ART IN SUGAR

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVIII, Issue 19959, 17 November 1934, Page 14

ART IN SUGAR

BY CANDLELIGHT A meal served by candlelight never fails to attain an atmosphere of mellowness rarely possible when the more j penetrating rays of electricity are used. Knowing this, the wise hostess j who would cast a friendly glow over | her well-arranged board, invariably j chooses candles. Care should be exercised to see that | the light cast from the tapers is suf- j ficient to properly illuminate each place. It is possible to carry the artistic atmosphere too far and have guests trustfully consuming food in a blinking shadowland. It is unwise to buy cheap candles, because the wick has much to do with the quality of the candle. In cheap candles the wicks are j cotton, while those of the better grade use linen and as a consequence are : self-consuming. While it is in good taste to follow out the colour scheme of decoration with candles, the most discriminating prefer cream or white, regardless of other colour notes. NEW USES FOR USED TEA LEAVES Very few people know the manifold uses to which tea can be put, nor how invaluable the used leaves are as a cleaning agent. For instance, they j will cean glass and crystal flower vases which fail to respond to all the usual methods. Take the leaves straight out of the tea-pot, put them into the vases, and fill these up with hot water. Leave overnight, and when the leaves are iemoved the stains will wash off easily. Tea leaves boiled up in pans used for cooking fish will remove all fishy odour. Sprinkled on the flower beds, they will improve the flowers, particular]y violets. Geraniums in English cottage windows usually surpass all others simply because the wise country women invariably empty tea-pots over them. Strong tea will remove flower and vegetable stains from the hands, and used as a last rinse after the shampoo it will effectively and harmlessly disguise the first grey hairs. Cold tea is excellent for soothing and strengthening the eyes, preventing inflammation, and making the eyes bright and sparkling. “Beautifying “eye pads.” which are delicious to use but expensive to buy, are made of green tea and the dried herb called eye-bright. To make them, get one and a half ounces of green tea and three ounces of eyebright from the chemist or herbalist. Blend together, fill tiny round muslin bags with the mixture, and store in an airtight tin. To beautify and sooth the eyes, soak two pads in very hot water for a few minutes, place one over each closed eye, and leave for half an hour. Green tea can be brought from any tea merchant, and, though it is an acquired taste, it is a remarkable beverage for keeping one awake and alert, and is therefore popular with students who have to burn the midnight oil at examination time.