Boudoir and Kitchen Gossip

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 104, 19 May 1937, Page 14

Boudoir and Kitchen Gossip

r!E manageress of a large private hotel opened my eyes to ways and means of making a chair cover last about twice as lotig as it would in the ordinary way. The lounge of .her establishment was equipped with a multitude of armj chairs, all looking immaculate, but I was assured that, despite the hard wear inseparable from hotel usage, a change of covers was astonishingly infrequent. Ihe first essential is a shallow scalloped "cosy" to fit over the top of eaeh chair back. This takes the "rub" of the head and can easily be removed for deanxng. It looks far better than a separate head rest, since the scalloping rtierely gives the impression of additional trimming sewn to the material. The "cosy," of course, matches the cover it protects. "Flood-lit" Vase. A "flood-lit" flower vase makes a lovely decoration for the mantelpiece, or for a shelf fixed on a bracket in a corner of the room. You will peed an oblong glass vase— a large wireless battery jar is suitable, if expense has to be considered, as one can be purchased for a few pence from a wireless surplus stores. You will also ,5 need a shallow wooden box, with sides about a quarter of an inch thiclr, a little larger than the base of the jar; a lamp holder with a flange mounting, obtainable for a smali sum from any electrician's shop; three half-inch screws and a few yards of flex. Cut the bottom panel out of the box with a fretsaw, leaving one inch margin all round.- The open box will have a lamp globe . fitted inside, and the jar goes on top so that the light from the lamp shines up through the glass. The lamp holder is fixed horizontally inside the box by means of three wood screws inserted in the holes provided. The diagram shows a section of the work. If any difficulty is experienced in attaching the flex to the lamp holder, this can be done at the shop where you buy the holder. Paint the box stand to J match the mantelpiece. v The way in which the vase is filled will vary with th" seasons, but you can always be sure of exquisite decoration with the flood-lighting arrangement. " Oomplexion Blemishes. With the feminine desire to look beautiful comes war against enlarged pores, lines on the neck, blackheads and spots. Enlarged pores may be the result of copiouf ica drinking. Cut out tea and

hot dr'inks for a while, if not altogether. To treat the pores at night after washing the face, mix a lotion of loz. of rosewater and quarter of an ounce of simple tincture of benzqin added drop by drop. Avoid vanishing creams. Use very little powder and give the face a cold plunge after washing in warm water. Blackheads and pimples are often a matter of diet also. Rich, starchy foods encourage the trouble. Avoid these and eat plenty of fresh salads, without vinegar or mayonnaise, and fresh fruit in season. If the blackheads are very pronounced, apply a little warm almond oil to the surrounding skin and press them out with the finger tips covered with cotton wool. To improve a lined and discoloured neck, wash well every night with soft, warm water, t sing oatmeal instead of soap. To a little sour milk add a few drops of simple tincture of benzoin. Apply this two or three times a day, let it dry on, ahd powder the neck lightly. Before an open window, night and morning, .-practise deep breathing through the nose. Hold the breath while you slowly count five, then exhale through the nose. Roll the head Srst tp the right, and then to the left, then all the way round. Keep up this treatment' regularly and a beautiful necl". and throat will be acquired by natural means. Queen's Fan. Beautiful fans made of single ■ ostrich plumes make a fresh bid'-for popularity every year about this time. A presentation one has just been sent to Queen Elizabeth, and the fact that she is rarely seen in the evenings with&ut one of these fans, especially at "important State social functions and at dances, is likely to make tliem al1 the more popUlar this year. It is more or less an open secret at Court that when Queen Elizabeth, as Duchess of York, was bemoaning the fact that she was not tall enough to carry off really ceremonial dresses. the gowns with elaborate embroideries and heavy trains, a wise and experienced lady-in-waiting suggested to her that a long ostrich feather fan would give her apparent height. Since that time she has always carried one, and there is no doubt that, held at one side so that it ■ falls straight down the skirt of her gown, it does give a semblance of inches. "Door Mat" Mothers. Women with a mother- complex are apt to complicate existence for their

children. Obsessed by the idea that they must devote themselves to the good of the young folk, they eventually live for little else. Every hour of the day is given up actually to working on their behalf, or else to thinking out some elaborate plan for giving them pleasure or saving them trouble. The consequence is that they develop into door mat women, who have so subordinated their interest to those of others that in themselves they have become of small importance. They metaphorically invite the family to walk over them. And the family, being human, eventually agrees to do so. The most distressing effect is not on the mother herself, but rather upon the children. They really deserve sympathy for the temptation put in their way to stray from the path of filial fseling. When there is always at their beck and call someone whose sole desire is to be permitted humbly to minister and serve, is it likely that they will keep their heado ? Pity them, but do not blame them over rruch. • The modern girl and boy are of the independent type They neither believe in ' devoting themselves chiefly to the good of others, nor in allowing others so to devote themselves to them. If the mother is persislent in her attitude, she should look for no return In kind, for this generation regards such relationships from another angle. As a rule, however, the door mat mother is tiresome in expecting her attentions to be appreciated and reciprocated. When they are not, she bewails the fact and is inclined to consider herself ill used. Tlien she degener;tes into a woman with a grievance, and her point of view reacts on her children, to the disadvantage of all concerned. Door mat women are not wanted today. They are often selfish women, who. having no vital contacts with life, seek to fill the gap with this over-maternal business. In most cases, their children would hail with relief the veering of their activities in other directions. Topical Buttons. Divide empty cotton-reels lengthwise, paint any desired colour, bore two holes in centre and sew on to garment. Washing-Up. A good plan is to tear old newspapers into squares and hang them up by the string near the sink to wipe greasy plates and cutlery before washing.