USEFUL HINTS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 36, 6 November 1907, Page 3

USEFUL HINTS.

■That the matting /has worn out is the dreaded announcement in a household where economy -is to bo .'-studied-.; She was an ingenious - woman ' who had matting .'in use on hor ifloors after twelve years; and it was firm and in good ; condition. , The : strips were sewed ••together, 'and 'every year she took 'it up.'for the purpose of cleaning,.and when it was. relaid; it _ was'ilresscd with- a coat' of varnish. This mado. a hard surface, which did_ jio't allow the dust to pdss;throUgh, arid which preserved its texture.

If the lace or-insertio,n on clothing gets torn instead ofattempting to darn -the,' many holes, which'is a difficult and tedious' task, just lay a pieco. of' plain net ;under the hole, -overcast itr.around the edges, and -you will-find-that -the' torn 'place is neatly mended., ■ ; . ' - Thefmending of socks arid stockings con•umes valuable time) and' tho speed with which they-' are worn out helps to wear away the income. •' The objectionable holes will bo slower to make their appearance-if-the heels •rid 'to.6s : *are'"-rubbtid" l - with-- 0 paraffin. The rubbing of-the shoe wears away the para-ffin-instead of the'stocking. -'-'It may bo'(renewed as frqeuritly'Vs needed. It is. foiind that tho of coloured hosiery before wearing; is ari. -offcctivb Way of/postponing tho-wearing-out process. •'

AY ben buying cloth it is a wise economy to buy an oxtra.yard or .two. , . Many, .times only new sleeves or a new breadth in the skirt are needed to transform an oM dress into a new one. In sending old materials to. bo, dyed it is important to.remembcr to send all the unused picces as well.

Many times short lengths of all sorts of fabrics, may be had for half price or less, and the wise buyer will find here one. of •■hergreatest sayings.: It is necessary, however, 1 ' to' • discriminate • carefully between genuine bargains; and those sales where poor materials ard, displayed- as "greatly,, reduced.'' At : the end of every., season'"not only cloth ,of . every sort but garments; of all kinds are sold at;'astonishingly, cheap prices; If. women living in the country '.'who'':visit the city at intervals to do their buying' choose, July and August they will'find winter, clothing of every description greatly reduced; in addition they will find it a particularly, favourable timo to buy muslin underwear. If. thoy . chooso January or early February for another trip the counters. .will .be full of delightful 'bargains in summer, wear; they will bo. wiso : also at this, time of the: year to renew their stocks of household linens. A safo rulo in buying bargains of all softs is to get only tho tilings for which one has a definite use, or,, putting it-the other way round, to be on the watch for special sales in the . particular,' tilings needed. The buyer of limited means cannot aitorcl to tie up her money to any great extent in things merely for a possible future use. Many women would bo astonished to find how much money they spend foolishly on the thousand and one pretty trifles which are so attractive and seem so cheap in tho stores.

The quantities of material nccessary for making a gown are often a difficulty to tho amateur dressmaker. It is forgotten by many, people that so much depends upon the oapability of the dressmaker; some women will lay out all their material to the very best advantago, joining on corners so as to save cutting into a fresh width of material, while others will waste another couple of yards of material simply on account of their bad 'management.

The muslin gown of tho present fashion has a very ample, skirt, generally prettilv trilled at tlio hem; and 12 yards of material is, not one inch too much to buy. Of course, those,.who do not-mind a skimpy skirt, or who. are below average staturo, will-probably do. with less material; but it is obvious that a. •. u PstM at ®' garment one. must have sufficient stuff to-deal with. For an ordinary dress _or a bolero and skirt of double-width material. 7 to 8 yards is sufficient to "buy and : for an evening gown, say, of • crene-d'c-ohine or. soft, silk, of single width, from 12 to 14 yards will , be-required,' and from. 8 to lO of double-width material, if it 'is desired to' have, a skirt very full and flowing! at the

„In ironing muslm blo.usM, ~tho tapes, if •Try, should bo ironed first, then the trimmings,. such as laco frills; which should be ironed on ■ tho wrong side until they are smooth and dry. The frill should bo carefully .ipullM between tho fingers and th'cn P.?.' ,°P 0 orio pieco at a tinio, and .tho iron be prossed firmly over it, giving special attention'to tho gathered part which ought; to in ado quite dry. Tlio yoke should then bo placed evenly on tKo table and lrpn on. both sides, choosing tho wrong Bide first. _ The sleeves ought next to bo ironed, ( by folding :thom ,by the inner arm seani and. placing •them .one. at a time, so that they will lid flat on the table, anil that tho middle part may'bo ironed across from seam to fold.'. ' The toe of tho iron should then be turned towards tho top of tho sleeve, and the gathers' as far as possible be ironed. The lower part ' of-the sloevo must then bo,done. Iron tho under.sido of the sleeve in .-tho Kijric way. The bodice part of.the shirt is ironed by beginning at one sido of tho front, ironing across to .tho under arm. seam and up to tho, shoulder , srar.i. Tho sleeve is, then placed, over, tho finished, work, and the back of the sfii.rt is ironed, and then tho sccond half.of.the front ironed, Tho fulneGS of the front iiiay be!regulated into.pleats, and the neck-bahd ironed. on' both ' sides. When the shirt is put to' air. it should' be hung very carefully, as it will probably stiffen in the airing, and, if carelessly folded, the mark of. the' fold will remain.