Domestic

New Zealand Tablet, 10 March 1910, Page 393

Domestic

By MAUREEN

To Brighten Paint. . Kitchen paints will soon acquire a shabby, dull look from the frequent cleaning that is necessary.- The use of soap only increases the difficulty, especially if the paints are varnished. A good plan is to boil 11b of bran in a gallon water te lnd° if a uni O V r; t the + n W ? sh t he P aint with this bran glossy. d * Ibe kept 110 t only clean > but bri B ht and To Expel Cockroaches. . Pulverised borax the pure article scattered wherever these creatures seem to find ingress drives them away. Odorless and harmless, it blends easily with water, ■ making froo,!! +i ld , cle t nsmg wl i en washed away. It must be used frequently to keep a place free if once infested. It is a good plan to scatter pulverised borax in the kitchen sink every night after all the evening work is over, so that it may lie undisturbed until morning. n Drinks for Invalids. H Barley Water. -Take two tablespoonfuls of pearl barley, wash it very clean, and add to it a pint of boiling water; let it boil for five minutes, pour off this water and add two quarts more. boiling water; reduce it to two pints and a half, and strain. This is simple barley water ; it may be made very pleasant by adding the following: Z + -n b j S ’ ? z \ rais i ns (stoned), £oz of liquorice; boil it till reduced to a quart, and str^n. , Toast and Water.—This article, simple as it is, is rarely well prepared. Cut an upper crust of bread as thick again as it is usual for toast; brown it carefully, but see that it be not burnt, smoked, or.black; pour on as much water as is required, and cover the jug till cold. A slice of thincut orange i or lemon peel infused with it improves it greatly; it should be made early in the day during summer, and placed in the sun, when it may be drunk with impunity. Linseed Tea. Take of linseed two spoonfuls; boiling water two quarts. ,Let it stand by the fire one hour, ana strain for use. ’ Cleansing Hints. ■ One way to eradicate grease is to hold a hot iron above the spot with blotting or ordinary brown paper between the iron and the stain, sponging in ammonia and water afterwards. Turpentine is good for resin stains.* It is about the only thing to use. Grease spots can often be removed by hanging the garment in front of a hot fire, the grease gradually evaporating with the heat, and if it was clean grease leaving no sign. - For stains which accumulate on cloth garments, such as shirts, trousers, and coats, spots whose origin it would be difficult to trace, one often has to try various remedies. A thorough brushing, of course, precedes the use of any one of them. J Here is a good cleaning fluid: —loz of gum camphor pulverised, loz of borax, and 1 quart of boiling water. Stir thoroughly When cold, bottle tightly. This is fine tor black and colored woollens, the finest we have ever used. Apply with a piece of woollen cloth. A very good general cleanser is kerosene, but it must be applied plentifully, with a good, big woollen rag, and to the whole garment if it be much gone over, though special attention must be bestowed where spots appear. The odor disappears quickly if the garment be hung in the sun or wind. Kerosene seems to act more satisfactorily on woollen goods than on mixed fabrics. Paint stains are perhaps the hardest to get out if allowed to dry in. When fresh they can be taken out easily with kerosene oil. Turpentine is also recommended as is rubbing in lard and letting the grease soak in well before removing the grease in the ordinary way. The paint is supposed to disappear along with the grease. Alcohol, benzoline, and chloroform I have also found to work well on paint stains on delicate muslins. V For washing alpaca, camel’s hair, or any other woollen material, take 4oz of ammonia, 4oz of white Castile soap, 2oz of alcohol, 2oz of glycerine, and 2oz of ether. Cut the soap fine, dissolve in a quart of water over the fire add- four quarts of water, and when nearly cold add the other ingredients. . This makes eight quarts. Bottle tightly, and it will keep any length of time, Use this in enough water to make it foamy.

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