HINTS & SUGGESTIONS

Hutt News, Volume 2, Issue 43, 3 April 1930, Page 5

HINTS & SUGGESTIONS

There are morning when the fire wont bum. We get cross and everybody in the house soon keeps us company The next time that occurs, drop one or two fireballs amongst the coal and you will soon have a^ fire. I; ( says an exchange) make my own. I mix sufficient crude turpentine with sawdust to make it pliable enough to form into balls. Keep an old pail for the purpose. Pour the ; sawdust in. first ,then make a 3}.01e in the centre andi add the turpentine. When the sawdust is well moistened, form it into balls. I need not remind you that turpentine is highly inflammable and that* the balls must not be stored by the fire. Keep them in an outhouse. They are invaluable as fire-lighters and no sticks are needed. Coal lasts twice as long' when, sprayed with the following solution: £lb saltpetre and 21b common salt dissolved in a.-gallon of warm water. Use a water can with a hose..

Hot water marks may -be removed from a polished! table by making a thin paste with a salad oil and salt it on the mark for about an- hour, and then rubbing with a soft duster.

sections 20 and 21, T. Brace, £300 ; sec-

Don 't wash outside doors with aoap and water, but rußf them well with a rag dipped in paraffin'; then polish with a dry cloth. -

To prevent fried eggs, from sticking or breaking,. add* a teaspoonf ul of flour to the frying fat. '

A remedy to prevent your^ wooden washing tub from leaking! Place the tub near a drain, put into it a laTge pan. of boiling water and'cover completely with a cloth, when the rising steam will caulk all joints. lEepeat this process, then

fill it up with cold water and leave until wanted. When tubs are not in use they shoud be filled- with water. This prevents the joints from splitting open.

Half the pleasure of fruit-eating is spoiled if the penalty is a stain on one ?» best frock, but all too often stains appear however much care you exercise in the eating or preparing' of your fruit. Still, as there is a safe and sure remedy for all fruit stains, your frock need never be regarded as a spoiledrone. Borax will remove fruit stains frdm almost any material. So many so-called stain-remov-ers will injure the material or leave a stain behind them a's bad. as the one just rcmovedi- Borax, doea neither of these things. It is particularly efficacious used on AVashing materials. The fruit stain should be damped and then some powdered borax should be rubbed into it, so that a thin, paste is collected over the stain. This may be left until the garment is- washed, by which time the stain should have disappeared. A'very obstinate stain, or one which has been left untreated for some time, may need a second application, napkins are items which are bound to be stained with fruit. If these re washed at home, j it is a good plan to damp them first., and treat all the fruit-stained ones with borax. The same rule may apply, of course to table-cloths and table-mats. The damped borax shoud be allowed to stay on for a short time, then the stains N will come out in the wash.

Cold tea as a renovating agent x for those curtains that are showing signs of wear needs to be tried to be appreciated. That it entails no additional,, cost is another point in its favour. First wash, your curtains in the usual way. Then take several brewings of stale tea and strain through a fine sieve or pice of old muslin. Add the tea:water to the starch, spoonful by spoonful, until the desired shade is attained. Now. stir well for a minute and set aside for a quarter of .■an--lip.ua", after which the curtains should be immersed in "the -! solution for ten to fifteen minutes. This will give them a pretty ecru shade, hide numerous minor faults and due to tannin in the fea, cot-, ton in the: curtains*is almost doubled in strength. When the dying has proceeded to; the shade you wish,/wring out the curtains andj hang immediately in the open air, preferably in the way of a gentle breeze. If this is done the curtains will take on a lasting ecru tint.

Every child should be taught to clean Mis teeth regularly and as to look afte» his own toothbrushes.. When choosing a toothbrush for a child, care should be taken that the brush is small k (some brushes intended for children are far too large .to permit proper manipulation). The child Should be taught to not not with a wide, sweeping movement. To ensure the maximum service from

each brush ,and that it will act as a preventive of infectious rather than a carrier of them, careful treatment is necessary. As soon as a toothbrush is received jt should be allowed to soak for several Hours in cold water to which a gener* ous' amount of salt has been added. Before use it should be held for a minuta or so under cold running water. After use the brush should be washed in cold, slightly salted water and hung in the open air.

There is an art in marketing. We have to learn to watch the market, so accommodating our requirements that when a certain article is high in price its place may be taken by something else; Goods fluctuate in price and if care is not taken the cost of housekeeping will often be appreciably more than we - can afford. See that the butcher includes bones and trimmings if he is in. the habit of trimicing the joint ready for table* The mea^ is weighed before the bones and .fat are removed, so they should be mA eluded. There are some" articles of -food that are cheap and yet contain mum of food vajue. For instance, hari-

cot beans, cheese, lentils, and liver, all have a big protein value, and are cheap, Separated milk is good, for milk puddings if a tablespoonful of grated suet is added. Children's boots'and shoes wear out quickly. It improves the leather and makes the shoes- last longer if-the soles and heels are treated! with cobbler's wax once a week. It also helps to" keep the water out. Rubber soles and heels also add to the lift of the shoes.