Women and the Home

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16816, 19 August 1922, Page 15

Women and the Home

CONTRIBUTIONS

BY

SPECIAL WRITERS

WHY MEN INTEREST WOMEN. It fe a rare woman who does not feel a great deal of interest in men. Few of us wish to he associated with women only, and those who do mainly seek religious orders. The source of this interest is various. At twenty, it is mainly the fundamental difference of 6ex : at forty it is that, plus the funda mental difference of character. and. above all. plua the attractive circumstance that men have a free economic existence, and active, full and stirring lives. Their experience is far richer than that of women : they march cheek by jowl with events which women come cl only indirectly, through men. It may be that before long the market of men will be lower on those points than at present. because of woman’s progressive adventuring out into the world. But at present the one who tends to the static by the hearthstone of the home will always be strongly attracted by the one who Is dynamic. This attraction is perhaps not fully recognised by the young wife. "When she waits for her husband to come home it is the lover she is thinking of who will show his joy at returning to her. But th« wife of forty is keenly aware that while she sits at home her mate ha*, so to speak, taken his sling and arrows and gone after outrageous fortune, and that presently, quite in his own terms, he will relate and interpret to her all that has happened to him.

The young wife muses: “ Is he going to notice the new way I have done my hair for him? Js he going to praise it ?” The middle-aged wife may have suen a thought, but she also thinks, “ l wonder if anything interesting or exciting has happened in hie work today ?•’

THE CUP THAT CHEERS. It very rarely occurs to 119 to blame the teapot if we disapprove of the flavour of our ten. But the quality ot the ten may ho irreproachable and yet the palate rejects it. It is advisable pjalate rejects it. It is advisable, then, to inquire into the conditions ot its preparation. The water may have been just freshly boiled, and the tea brewed strictly in the most approved fashion. Took. then, to the teapot. It has the discoloured appearance and the faintly musty odour that means that ten and tea leaves have been habitually left standing in it. When this happens, the teapot must be thoroughly cleansed before the tea again has i's delicate flavour. To do this, fill the teapot to the brim with boiling water, and addja. piece of washing soda. Close down the lid. and let it stand overnight. Next day pour out the soda water, wash the teapot will with soap and water, using a small brush, then rinse thoroughly. A teapot should really he dried inside as well a« out. and left with the lid open until quite free from moisture. FOODS WE WEAR. “ Has it got any oil in it? If it ha.s T would rather not have any. T never touch oil of any sort. It makes me ill even to look at it. ! ’a friend remarked when she was offered n special homemade brand of salad dressing the other day. She is only one of many people who, while disliking certain ingredient*, in food, do not realise that those things plav an important part in the garments which they wear daily with comfort and enjoyment. THE “ DRESSING ” FOR MATERIALS. We all know that to keep well and warm we must eat. but few of us appreciate that much of our body h<*at is dependent upon the food stuffs utilised in the materials with which we clothe ourselves. Modern fashion demands materials which arc specially finished and “ dressed.” and these processes are largely carried out with the help of food stuffs. Without their aid pure silks, cottons, and wools would not come up to the usual standard of excellence in appearance. Flour, glucose, fats, gelatine, gum, oils, and glycerine are among the substances mainly used for these finishing materials. Flour is the most widely urn ployed in the making of the cheaper cloths on account of the gluten which it contains. This gluten has such great adhesive properties that it almost doubles the weight of a fabric treated with it. We are most of us familiar with the flour treated fabric, for ; t usually betrays itself when first washed by losing all its weight and taking on the flimsiness of fine muslin.. Starch, too. is used for the same purpose, and can he traced in a similar manner in the least expensive of modern day materials. MAKING FABRICS SOFT. In the ease of silks, crepe de chines, and other types to be found among tin wide range of expensive fabrics used for gowns, jumpers, blouses, and the like, oily substances are employed. These give the pretty appearance and the right “ feel.” for the olive and castor oil which are chiefly used lender the material soft and supple, a most important factor, seeing that we invariably judge a material not only by its appearance, hut its touch. Just as gelatine is used to make our cookery firm, so it is used to give i firm and slightly leathery finish to fabrics. Gelatine is. however, invariably employed with other preparation* which makes the material insoluble and unlikely to be affected by mildew. A GOOD SHEEN. When choosing silk we are' all insistent that the materials selected should have a good sheen upon them. Act how many of use realise that that

sheen is obtained by a substance derived from ordinary cow’s milk? Most of the finishing materials are obtained from commodities which might otherwise be consumed in food, so that even those of us who do not like any one food-stuff cannot he ,M.irc that we are quite independent of it. THE BOTTOM DRAWER. A FEW PRACTICAL IDEAS. Tll the thrilling and absorbing interest of stocking that wonderful “ bottom drawer,” it is well for the prospective bride to take note of the practical side. We all know the charm of buying dainty lingerie and ribbon, not to mention the pleasant task of stitching away at fancy work and those appointments which are to grace the various rooms, and which invariably turn any four walls into a ‘ home” at the hands of the true home maker: but there are simpler practical things needed also if the first few months of housekeeping are to be facilitated and lightened for the young and inexperienced housekeeper. In the first place mother will willingly part with one of those thin-worn blankets that she can so easily spare. In a few years the bride-to-be herself will hare plenty of these, but at present her possessions are limited in • this direction to one or two pairs of soft, woolly excellence which will positively be of no use when the fmv. ironing dnv comes round. Let her tueu her irpning blanket away in that box of hers, and keep it as evidence of a mind with practical ag well as artistic, values. In the next place, when she is adding another pair of silk stockings to the store, let lie!' slit the old pairs down the seam, and bind round the sides with material of a corresponding colour. These will go with the ironing blanket as improvised chamois leathers for polishing silver and mirrors. She should save also a pair of worn cashmere hose, one to draw over the new broom to keep the bristles intact, and another for using as a polishing glove when doing work about the stove. If she has a. handy brother she can ask him to plane to smoothness two serviceable pieces of board. Ono will . serve as a cutting board and the other as a saucepan rest. In this way the table will be saved from disfiguring rtiarks. He may aleo be persuaded to furnish her with a good-siz<?d paste board on which to practise the culinary art. When the general overhauling of linen and underwear takes plaoe, let the bride-to-be claim a share of discarding material and hem the largest pieces for dusters. Smaller squares will make face cloths and dish cloths , and the woollen fabrics will find their places for floor cloths and polishers. Squares of table damask cut from the worn articles and hemmed will come in handy for lunch and picnic baskets, and will save the better articles, and when that white silk blouse wears, out she should cut the host pieces and place the strips of boiled linen or calico for the medicine chest. Oiled silk is one of the finest aids for burns, and white fabrics which have been boiled are invaluable in connection with illness or accident. A sensible work basket is the next thing. If economy is necessary, sacrifice the appearance of this article to i its utility, and stock it with tape, use ful. everydav buttons, needles, pins, bodkins, and the many articles which are constantly needed in the arranging of the new home, in the preparing of curtains and dra.pings this basket will be in constant requisition, and will thereby prove its place in the bottom drawer.