HOW TO DO IT

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXI, Issue 18973, 26 March 1924, Page 9

HOW TO DO IT

THINGS YOU MAY LIKE TO KNOW. PUTTY FOR FLOOR CRACKS. Cracks in a floor that is stained and varnished may be filled with a putty consisting of 2 parts of glue, 14 parts of water, 4 parts of plaster of Paris, and 2 parts of litharge. This putty will take the stain and varnish well. MIXING PAINT. An eggbeater, such as every housekeeper uses in the kitchen, is far superior to a wooden stick or paddle for mixing paints. When different coloured paints ar.e used it will be’ found convenient to use a seperate beater fer each colour. They cost only a few pence apiece, and can easily be cleaned by working them in kerosene after using. OUR COMPLEXIONS. Do you know about using fuller’s earth to cleanse the pores of the skin? I found it out only recently, and I have been delighted with the results. A friend of mine who Jived for several years in the biggest city got this secret from some little beauty-parlour girls who advertised is so well that my friend got some fuller’s earth immediately—and so did I when she told me (says a correspondent of the Country Gentleman.)

Fuller’s earth is a soft clayey substance of gpcyisji-white colour, and a good-sized package can be obtained from any druggist for a small sum. To apply, add just enough water io make a stiff paste, and apply to the face, allowing it to dry. It is advisable to assume the pleasantest expression you can, for you will have to hold it for half an hour. Don’t laugh or talk or you’ll break the mask. The best arrangement I have found is reading. I generally have a serial that I can read at such times. After anywhere from a half to threequarters of an hour you can wash the mask off, using an old piece of cheesecloth or something that you can throw away, and you will find your face all neatly vacummed; for that is just what fuller’s earth does —it absorbs oil and draws out blackheads and all dirt from the pores.

WHIPPING CREAM. Every housewife knows what a difficult task it is to Whip cream without splashing if over everything near by, especially when the cream is a little (hin. I have solved the problem by using a small fish globe which I keep for that purpose alone. Such globes cost very little. Select one that will allow the handle on the wheel of your rotary egg beater to work freely above the opening. The circular shape of the bowl with its small opening prevents the cream from splashing out. Since learning to use mine I have nO mopping up to do after making whipped-cream desserts. MOISTURE-RESTISTING COATS FOR WOOD. Shrinking and swelling, and internal stresses that cause wood to warp and check, are caused by changes in the moisture content. Such changes are occurring continually when wood is exposed to changing atmospheric conditions, and the only way to prevent or retard them is to protect the wood from the air with some moisture-resisting finish or coating. In order to determine the protection against moisture afforded by various coatings a series of tests is being conducted by the U.S. Forest Service. No coating or finish which js entirely moisture proof has yet been discovered, but several have been found that are very effective (says Popular Mechanics.) Linseed oil, although ij is probably recommended more frequently than most of the other materials for moisture proofing wood, was found in the absorption tests to be quite ineffective. Five coats of hot oil followed by two coats of floor wax failed to give any protection. Oil paints form a film over Wood which is very durable even in exterior locations. Laboratory tests show, however, that such a film, although it may be continuous, does not prevent moisture changes in wood. Graphite paints and spar varnish are about as effective as the ordinary oil paints with the heavier pigments.

The cellulose lacquers rank somewhat higher than the foregoing in moisture resistance, and considerable improvement can probably be effected in them by the addition of solids. They have the advantages of being fast drying and forming a film over the wood that ig very elastic. Rubbing varnishes afford much more protection against moisture than do spar or long oil varnishes. The larger amounts of gum solids present in rubbing varnish probably account for their greater moisture resistance.

Enamel coatings made by the ' addition of pigments, such as barytes, to ordinary varnish are about as effective as rubbing varnish. A “bronze” coating, composed of a cheap gloss oil and aluminium powder proved in test to be superior in moisture resistance to any of the coatings mentioned above. This mixture is Very fast drying; three coats can be applied in the course of half an hour. -The alumlnum-leaf coating developed at the Forest Products Laboratory particularly for the protection of airplane propellers is highly efficient in preventing moisture changes in wood. Such a coating can best be applied to large unbroken surfaces.

Although the thros-plcce suit has enjoyed a wonderful run, it remains fashionable still—especially if featured in the Parisienne’s favourite dull crepe marocaln, plain and figured. The plainness of the above example Is not Its least charm.

The long tunic or dalmatique glittering with beads or embroidery is fashionable for evening wear. On a new dinner gown a deep narrow cape of lace hung from the shoulders and its long ends, knotted in front at the waist, reached almost to the hem, THE FASHIONABLE FIGURE. The new dress-line demanded by <ll- - puts all but slim •omen at a disadvantage, and it has led to a veritable cult of slimness. Now, it is undoubtedly perfectly Irue-that ws have yet much to learn tbout the actual chemical changes which govern the production and disposition of tat in the body, and more especially with regard to the connection between the fat metabolism and the choice of food, or both. This is not disproved by the faet that fat people are often small eaters, is in the great majority of cases this Is true of them only after they have become fat. Once the layer of fat beneath the >kin increases beyond Its normal thickness, Bays a phyoician in the London Exchange, it Is increasingly easier to add to it—ln other words, fat breeds fat. Hence it comes about that the surest way for a woman to conserve her figure is by proper regulation of diet and exercise while she is sliab

Miss America was wearing this last autumn, just six months ago. New York modistes keep right abreast — sometimes ahead—of Paris and London by wireless, cable, fast mail steamers, imported models and frequent personal visits. Notice small collar, long revere, link button fastening, three-quarter coat, abbreviated skirt, flare top gloves, turban and twin-strap low-heeled shoes.