OF INTEREST TO WOMEN

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIII, 26 July 1929, Page 7

OF INTEREST TO WOMEN

HOW TO SPEND A HOLIDAY •Girls who work in shops and offices in. towns often long for an open-air holiday. Their annual fortnight is so l precious that naturally they want to make the most of it.' An unusual holiday provides a change not only for the hotly, but for the, mind. If funds will allow it a holiday abroad provides a total change. Women who do a fair amount of travelling every clay in trains and trams and ’buses probably prefer a more restful holiday, For them the ideal holiday means spending long, lazy days by the sea or in the country. A* walking tour is an inexpensive holiday, very suitable tor girls who love the country. A very careful.choice, of companions is desirable for a Walking tour. If i.s no usy going with someone who bores or irritates you. A tried friend whom you thoroughly understand and who understands you, with whom you can be grave; or gay, is the best possible companion. JL is not wise for more than tour people to join together. Haphazard rambling as the fancy takes one sounds very alluring, hut if is not so practical. It is much better to make at least a rough plan of your tour before you start. Take a train journey to a place, that will liiako a good starting-point for the tour, and do not tire yourself unnecessarily bv walking in towns. It is well to have the addresses of some good hms or rooms in different villages, and if your walking tour is in the height, of summer it will bo necessary to book accommodation in advance. If the walking tour i.s during the spring or early summer or autumn there is not, as a rule, any need to do this. CLOTHES FOll A WALKING TOUR The greatest possible attention should he paid to the feet. It is impossible to walk properly if the feet are not in 'good condition, and well-shod. Easy shoes with strong soles are essential, but there i.s no necessity for the shoes to bo rough or heavy. Crepe rubber soles ni.'o comfortable for walking and splendid for keeping out the l'aiu, hut some may find them rather warm in hot weather. If you have been accustomed to wearing thin, high-heeled shoes do not go to the other extreme, but choose easy shoes with moderate heels. Do not wear thin stockings. Fine cashmere ones arc host, hut if woollen stockings are not liked, wear a silk and wool mixture. Ribbed woollen stockings are liked by women who are accustomed to wearing them for golf. Before a walking tour it is advisable to harden the ieet by giving them a bath c-f hot water and salt to which a little alum has been added. Then douche the, feet with cold water, dry them carefully, and rub the soles with methylated spirits. Sec that there are no traces of callouses or corns before you begin the tour, and every day whilo on holiday pay the strictest attention to the feet. Seize .every opportunity of giving them a seabatli. Several changes of stockings arc necessary, and a pair of soft slippers should also be placed in the pack. Other things there should include nightclothes, a few first-aid and toilet requirements, such as iodine, ointment, can do Cologne, etc., and a change of under-linen. Do not carry an ounce more than necessary, but arrange to have a complete change of clothes sent on to an arranged addiess. A liglß-weiglit tweed suit with a lino woollen jumper or, if the weather., be warm, a washing-silk blouse, is a sensible costume. Another suggestion is a woollen jumper suit and cardigan. A small, light hat with a brim to shade the eyes, and a light mackintosh are also necessary. WHEN MAKING CAKES It is useless to expect good results from cake-making if pure ingredients are not used, and cam is not taken in the baking. Cake-tins should be greased beforo the'ingredients are mixed, and the oven prepared. The best place in which to put a cake is in the middle of the oven. Cakes for children should be made with fresh eggs and butter, and the addition of currants increases the nourishing qualities of the cakes as well as adding to their attractiveness. The currants should bo quite dry, after having been washed in several waters. Candied and lemon peel should bo sliced as thinly as possible, as this is ( somewhat indigestible. Raisins should be stOned, and sultanas when'cut in half improve the flavour of the cake. Almonds should bo blanched and sliced lengthways, while a few cut widthways are useful for decorative purposes. Flour should be dry and finely-silted, and is better slightly warmed. If damp the cake will be heavy. . When whole eggs are used the result- is a dose kind of cake, and when, yolks and whites are whipped separately the cake is of a lighter .variety. The cake-tin should be lined with greased paper, which should project about three inches above the sides of the tin. Do not fill the canetin more than two-thirds full with the cake mixture. For a rich cake the but. ter must be creamed to a light-, frothy substance. The oven must be hot at first, i.c., about 350 degrees, if you have an oven thermometer. If not, put in a piece of white paper, and if after a tow minutes it turns dark brown, it is right for a largo cake. If the oven is too hot at first, it will brown the cake too scon, and so stop it from rising, 'which it does as soon as it begins to colour. If not hot enough the cake will fall and become stodgy. Leave the cake for ten or twenty minutes—according to size—at the temperature stated, then lower -the gas, and again lower it to finish off the baking. I)o not bang the oven door when opening it to see liow things arc going on. To know if the cake is done, insert a skewer in the centre. If it comes out clean it is done; then turn the cake on to a. wire tray or upturned sieve, to allow the steam to escape and prevent it from getting sodden. The richer and more liquid the mixture, (lie longer it lakes to bake. • RENOVATING A FELT lIAT Little felt lial.s are worn all the year round now, and so light aro they Lhqt it i.s only on the hottest summer day that they are ton warm. For sport and travelling felt Jmts are ideal. Eu cheap are fell- hats nowadays that many women may be of the opinion Hint cleaning and' remodelling a felt hat is unnecessary. They prefer to buy a- new hat rather than renovate an old one. There aro other women, however, who, having taken a fancy tu an old hat, hate to replace it by a new one, and if they have a liking for millinery they take pleasure in “doing up” a favourite hat. One can make experiments with an old hat arid remodel it completely, before altering the shape of a hat, remove the trimming and head-lining and brush it thoroughly. If tlm hat is held oyer the spout of a kettle of boiling water the steam, passing through the felt, will remove all dust. .This method shrinks the felt a little. If part of a brim is .to- be overturned and a hot iron is to be used on the felt, remember that this is apt to stretch the felt, so merely press and duiiT pull it. Never press a felt on the side that is to show, ovon if a damp cloth is used, because that flattens the nap. Always press a hat on the wrong side, even if it means pressing the hat on the inside of the crown in order to press back a piece of overturned brim. If felt should have been pressed on the right side, the best plan i.s to brush it well with a stiff brush in order to raise the flattened nap • again.