OF INTEREST TO WOMEN

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 17 January 1931, Page 9

OF INTEREST TO WOMEN

FROM A FRENCHWOMAN’S DIARY THE VALUE OF CREPE DE CHINE (By Coliine Kouff—'For “The Mail”) Crepe de chine is one of the most fascinating and comfortable materials to choose for pretty afternoon gowns. It looks lovely in colours; it looks superb in black. It is becoming; it drapes, folds and pleats beautifully: it presents a splendid background for jewels, and lends itself well to era- j broidered trimmings because of its firm |

weave. What more can you desire! True, lharocain can play many of these parts; but,, alas! too much wear or : careless pressing will make it' shine like a mirror. So for the dear little house gown, in which you are going to feel very chic, and very comfortable, choose a really good crepe de chine, and; “it will pay for itself.” I have just; seen' a selection -'of models. Some are designed specially for very slim women; some for the not-so-slim! Much depends on the cut of a frock this season. It can make you look ordinary, or smart and fashion : able. Diet, careful exercise and rigjifc breathing begin the; good work of producing a good figure, but the dressmaker finishes it. HOW THE CREPE FROCKS ARE MADE One frock Avas of deep geranium red crepe de chine in a quality like satin. It seemed very plain until closely examined, but it was exquisitely made of’ course. Beautiful work is the chief feature of this season’s clothes, from the plain cpat .to the most elaborate evening gown." The bodice of the geranium -red dress was a little loose like a blouse, pouched at the waist over a slim belt. Finely piped scallops suggested the shape of a high bolero which, from a distance, looked like a; separate piece.' Actually,, of. course, ■ it’ was only part of the trimming, .and so . the perfectly fitting line Avas. preserved. The skirt was flared, and had a ’similar scallop decoration which, created the effect of a very deep yoke, at the hip-line and continued to within a foot of the hem. SUN.-RAY. TUCKS Another gOAvn, in black crepe, had tucks radiating; from the hips to; the knees, each tpck wonderfully ' graduated. The ray tucking was done also on : the blouse < bodice, from.'neckline downwards over the shoulders, to form a shoulder yoke. The neck was gathered into a plain little band’of the material Avhicli tied in front, the ends being finished with diamante. , ' IN TWO SHADES Two shades of brown are cpming in : to favour again as the scheme for an afternoon gown—a dull faAvn and a rich tone like the outer coat of a chestnut. The pointed hip yoke, the bodice front, and the cuffs , niay J be :in the lighter shade, while the rest of the frock is in the. darker. The deep cuffs are cut in points and fitted with fine openwork stitching on to the darker

portions. The hip yoke and the front of the bodice are also worked in with the pretty stitching—and the effect is charming. In black.and white, it is even smarter, but not so practical, for the white parts look, grubby almost at once. THE ÜBIQUITOUS BELT Belts are still worn with most dresses. On day frocks we see twisted silk cords with silver ring fastenings, or else twisted cords with little diamante rings at intervals.

Narrow strips of pure white calf skin or pressed lamb, with flat buttonhole flowers to match, look well on black tailored frocks; belts of all kinds are worn with tweeds, and dyed calf, lamb or pony-skin girdles go with jersey dresses.

Lace gowns have velvet bands, the newest idea being the ctouble belt for the wojnan who cannot make up her mind where her waist is. On a frock of the new onion skin lace there were belts of flame and black velvet, both fastened with jewelled clips. One was placed quite high, and the other just above the hip line. Such an idea is useful, for it gives an illusion of length that is most becoming to the rather short figure. Naturally, the belts are narrow—not more than an inch or an inch and a half in width.

HOME MADE DYES FOR DAINTY ARTICLES

Frequent laundering often makes it necessary to renew the tint of small articles which, nevertheless, need not bo sent to a professional dyer. Lace collars and cuffs soon lose their becoming ecru .tipt, but a dip into a bowl of di-luted-cofie or weak tea, sufficiently deep to cover them entirely, will prove wonderfully ’ refreshing. Leave them quite flat until they are ironed, otherwise . there > will be dark streaks along the folds. ,

A wash of water in which orange peel has been boiled for a quarter of an hour will bring back the original warm tone to chamois gloves. Similarly, a mild brew of saffron will renew the primrose tint of lingerie The delicate shell pink of "undies” may be regained by adding a few drops of red ink to the rinsing water. This is quite harmless in such a weak solution, and will not in the least damage the .texture of the silk.. Green ink, too. can be used as a dye jiibhave seen shabby white feathers dyed to. a fine green by immersion in a weak solution.V

Old typewriter ribbons boiled in water for half an hour will produce a satisfactory mauve' dye for muslins. With every fresh laUrtdermg, however, a fresh dyeing is advisable, since, like the majority, of home-made dyes, its effect cannot claim fo 'be 'permanent.. These dyes are extremely convenient when articles ’ are no longer sufficiently youthful to . justify professional dyeing costs. They will often tide over the time til 1 , new' ones are forthcoming.— F.F.

“HE’S A GENIUS!” , . , IS HE? , Generally speaking, it is impossible to tell what a child' under, seven years of age is likely to be when he grows.up. If he persists in strumming on the piano or “Avatching the wheels go round” after that age, then you can begin to. think that lie is a musical or engineering genius. Time and. time .again I haA r e heard fond parents extolling the genius of their offspring when' the youngsters have barely passed the crawling stage. ' All children like strumming on the piano, and. most children love to “watch the wheels go round.” But this does p.qfc mean that'the strummer is cut out for-.a. pianist, or the Avheel-Avatcher for an engineer. Sometimes, of course, auite young children display a keen and lasting interest in one particular subject. This, however, is usually duo to the fact that one of the infant’s parents is keen on the subject and that the child is merely following in father’s footsteps. Don’t imagine that, because little Jack wrote three lines of more-or-less poetry at the age of five, he is a born poet. If you start holding forth about it to your friends and..acquaintances, you will only see sarcastic smiles.

Don’fc worry about what your child is going to bo when lie grows up until he is at least ten or twelve years of age. Unless, as I have said, obvious genius begins to show itself when the small person is only seven. The great thing to do is to train the child to obey, encourage him to observe, and let him have plenty of good food and exercise.—G.A. FOR CHILDREN’S PARTIES STUFFED DATES Shell a number of Brazil nuts, remove the kernels without breaking, and peel them. Stone the same quantity of dates, put the nuts in place of the stones, roll the dates to their original shape and dip in sifted ; sugar. ' Put each into a small paper case. CANDY Pour into a saucepan one. breakfastcupful of sugar, half a. breakfast'cupful of milk, and one dessertspoonful of cocoa. Stir till the mixture boils,' but no longer. Let it cook quickly until it hangs in long thick drops from the spoon; then beat vigorously until it takes on a thick creamy consistency. Pour into a greased tin; when cold, mark into squares, break, and pack it. The candy should he crisp, yet creamy. OLD-FASHIONED BARLEY SUGAR Boil together three-quarters of a pound of loaf sugar, quarter-pint of water, and half the white of one egg. When the syrup comences to candy, add one teaspoonful of lemon juice; then boil quickly till it shows signs of candying a second time. Butter a dish, pour the sugar thinly over the surface, and, as it cools, cut it into long strips, roll and twist like rock. CARAMELS Take two breakfastcupsful moist brown sugar, half a cake of plain chocolate, two tablespoonsful of margarine, and half a teacupful of milk. Boil all for about twenty minutes; pour on to a greased dish to the depth of half an inch, smooth with a wet knife to give it a gloss and,, when partially cold, cut. the caramel with a thin wet knife into small squares. —M.M. A PLEASANT HORsIiPiOEUVRE ! SARDINE PASTE Ingredients: 15 large sardines, 1 small onion, celery salt, mustard pickles, pepper, olive oil, grated cheese, olives, tomatoes. Scrape, dean, and mash the sardines to a paste. Grate the onion and mix it in, with the chopped pickles, and celery,' salt and pepper to taste. Add sufficient olive oil to moisten well. Spread the mixture on a round dish and sprinkle grated chese thickly all over it. Stick in olives here and there, and arrange a row of tomato slices all reund. Serve as an hors d’oeuvre, or as a tea or supper dish, with b'town bread and-l>utter. KITCHENCORNER TESTED RECIPES Boston Cream 1 Jibs sugar, 2ozs tartaric acid, 3 pints boiling water: When cold add 1 teaspoon essence of lemon and the white of one- egg. Boftle and use. one part to 30/s of cold water. A delicious summer beverage. . ij' n . *,;/< . • Treacle Sconesv.y-. One cupful self-raising flour, 4oz dripping, beaten up with a few drops of lemon-juice' or a teaspoonful of vinegar, loz of sultanas, 2oz sugar, milk to mix, one tablespoonful treacle. Rub the dripping into the flour, add the dry ingredients, mix with the treacle and milk. Roll, out, and bake for about 20 minutes. Butter may he used' instead of the dripping and lemon-juice. Another good recipe is as follows : —Three cupfuls flour, one tablespoonful sugar, one tablespoonful..butter or.dripping, a pinch.of salt, three tablespoonfuls treacle, one

teaspoonful ginger if liked, one teaspoonful bicarbonate of soda. Mix fairly soft with milk, and cut into squares with a knife. Prune Jam Wash well lib prunes, and soak overnight in one-quart of cold water. Then next, day put them on to cook in the water in which they were soaked, and add the whole of one small lemon cut into thin slices, and the juice only of another lemon. Boil until the lemon is tender, and then add 31b of crystal sugar, and boil rather quickly until the syrup jellies when tested on a plate. Fruit Cup , There are many slightly different ways of making fruit cup. The general ingredients required are fruit juice, lemonade, and ginger-ale. Two bottles of dry ginger-ale should be allowed to every screw-top bottle of lemonade. Wellflavoured fruit should be chosen for the drink, but fruit with a heavy flavour, such as bananas, apples, and pears, should be used sparingly. Among the best fruits for the foundation of fruit cup are pineapple, orange, rhubarb, and lemon. The juice of any other fruits in season may be added to these, and should be allowed to stand for about an hour before serving. Just when the drink is required the ginger-ale and lemonade should be added. Pineapple and orange make drinks with a soft yellow colour, oranges make ail orange-coloured drink, and rhubarb makes an attractive pinktoned drink. It is very refreshing in hot weather. Sodawater may be used in place of lemonade if preferred. The best way to make good fruit cup is to experiment with types and quantities of fruit. Some very delightful drinks can be made. Pineapple and Orange Jam Six large oranges, one large pineapple or two small ones, two and a half quarts water, 41b sugar. Wash the oranges well, dry them, and grate away the yellow part of the rind Soak the oranges in water for 24 hours, changing the water twice; then drain, them, and cut them in thick slices, removing the pips, but saving the juice that escapes. Then boil the orange slices with all the juico in the two and a half quarts of water for three hours. Meantime pare the pine-apple, carefully removing all the specks, and shred all the soft part away from the core with a fork, saving all the iuicc carefully, but rejecting the core. Shred the flesh as finely as pos-

sible. Whon the oranges have boiled for . three hours add sugar and pineapple. Boil for one hour and a half longer, stirring gently until the sugar is dissolved. Cream Puffs “Rising” is quite unnecessary in cream puffs. The folloAving recipe should make very good puffs:—l teacupful Ayater, 1 teacupful flour, 1 tablespoonful of butter :(g6od), 3 eggs. Put the water and butter in a saucepan on the fire to boil. Sift the flour, and add it as soon as the water boils. Stir hard until the mixture is smooth and leaves the sides of the saucepan. Let it cool a little. Then add the eggs one at a time, without beating them first. Stir each egg in thoroughly before adding another. Have the oven moderately hot, but keep the oven shelf cold. Put the mixture in small dessertspoonfuls on the cold even shelf. Place the shelf in the oven, and let the puffs cook for 25 minutes before opening the oven door. The puffs should then be of an even pale brown colour, apd well risen, and should have a dry apearancc. If they are ton-pale cook them a little longer. Take them out and let them cool in a Avarm place. If cooled too suddenly they have a tendency to collapse. When cold make an incision in the side and put in the cream or filling. s Chocolate Roll One cupful sugar, two tablespoonfuls cocoa, quarter cupful butter, two eggs, pinch of salt, one cupful and a half flour, one teaspoonful and a half baking poAvder, quarter cupful boiling water or milk, a little essence of vanilla. Dissolve the cocoa mixed with a little of the sugar in the Avater. Beat the butter and sugar together, add the eggs, and bept thoroughly ; then add the dissolved cocoa and the flour sifted with the bakir~ poAvder. Flavour with essence of

vanilla and bake in one big, flat, square tin or two snulll ones. For the filling beat together 2ox butter, two teaspoonfuls cocoa, and enough icing sugar to make a fairly stiff paste. When the ..•like, is cooked, turn it out on a cloth, and roll it up quickly. When nearly cold unroll gently, and spread with the filling, then roll up again. Orange Cake Take two cupfuls of flour, one cupful sugar, half a cupful butter, the grated yellow rind of two oranges, one teaspoonful cream of tartar, half a teaspoonful of bicarbonate of soda, half a cupful milk, two eggs. Cream the butter and sugar, add the eggs, and beat well; then add grated orange rind and >he flour sifted with the cream of tariar, pouring in gradually the milk in which the soda has been dissolved. Bake in a moderate oven for about 40 minutes. Ice with the following icing: Mix half a pound of icing sugar with the juice of an orange until it. makes a nice, smooth, thick paste. Spread this on the cake while it is hot. Buttermilk Cake Five cupfuls flour, two cupfuls sugar, two cupfuls fruit (sultanas and dates are best), half a packet of mixed spice, one tablespoonful cocoa, a little cinnamon, two teaspoonfuls bicarbonate of soda, one pint of sour buttermilk. Mix with a knife very stiffly, and bake in a small meat dish for about one hour in a moderate oven. HOUSEHOLD HINTS THINGS USEFUL TO KNOW GRASS STAIN ON WHITE TENNIS FROCK To remove a grass sta ; n on a white tennis frock try damping the place with cold water and apply a little cream of tartar on the mark. This should prove effective at once if the stain is not of too long standing. TO CLEAN CANVAS SHOES When white canvas tennis shoes have become very soiled, it is best to wash them before applying white preparation?. First pad the toes well with soft tissiie paper, and then with a nailbrush dipped in soapy water, to which has been added a" little ammonia, go over the entire shoes until all stains have disappeared, finally removing all soap with a piece of white rag dipped in j clean, warm water. Hang the shoes out j to dry, and then apply the white pre-j paration in the usual way. Grass stains will yield to applications of ammonia or peroxide. v FOR INFLAMED EYES Scald some elder flowers, leave them in the water until nearly cold, then strain, and bathe the eyes well with the lotion. This is an old-fashioned remedy recommended to motorists. The elder relieves inflammation internally and externally A WASHING HINT Washing flannels in warm water and then rinsing them in cold water causes them to shrink. Instead of this, wash them in warm water with soap, and rinse in still warmer water. This method keeps the flannel from shrinking and preserves its softness. INVISIBLE MENDING ’ To mend a had tear in cloth or tweed so . that it will hardly be noticed, use horse-hair instead of ordinary thread, silk or cotton. Horse-hair is wonderfully elastic, and also very strong and thin. First draw the tom edges together carefully with a coloured thread which can be removed later. Thread a very fine needle with the hair. Pass the needle through the cloth from the back of the tear and secure it. Then run the needle through the thickness of the cloth from the back, the point of the needle always being toward the edge of the tear, backwards and forwards, always pushing the needle through the thiokness of the cloth, but do not let it come out on the right side. Repeat the process twice, and finish off securely. Press with a hot , iron.

TO PREVENT PUDDING CLOTIIS STICKING

It is quite easv to prevent a cloth sticking to a boiled oudding by first scalding the cloth in boiling water. Then flour it thoroughly. TO CLEAN GILT FRAMES Sponge soiled gilt picture frames with oil of turpentine or spirits of wine, only wetting the sponge enough to remove the dirt. Leave the frames to dry, but do not wipe them. GENERAL After polishing brass or copper, smear it with vaseline, and it will keep bright longer. Before using new towels hem both selvedges. This will considerably lengthen the wear of the towels, for it is at the edges where they wear soonest. To clean a stained marble-topped washstand rub it with a rag dipped in turpentine. Linseed-oil mixed with a little turpentine will preserve leather upholstery. To polish copper, brass, or zinc, use vinegar and salt. Apply with a soft cloth and polish with a dry woollen cloth. A handful of common salt thrown into a hot bath relieves fatigue, and often helps to prevent a cold. A block of camphor placed in each corner of a damp room is an effective way to remove dampness. The addition of a little hot milk when mashing potatoes makes them light and creamv. Cold milk makes them heavy and pasty.