HOUSEHOLD HINTS.

Shannon News, 9 February 1923, Page 3

HOUSEHOLD HINTS.

A teaspoouful of leulon-juice in a cup of coffee will often relievo a bilious headache.

When buying nutmegs, choose small . rather than large ones, as the former | have a better flavour.

, Steel knitting needles should be rubbed occasionally with emery paper, especially if the knitter lias hot hands. Stains on nickel will yield if rtibbed ■with a soft cloth dipped in ammonia. Polish with a leather.

Drooping flowers may be revived by standing them in hot water to which a small quantity of ammonia has been added. ' ■ ' "■ - *

If, when washing curtains, a little milk is added to the blue water they will look like new when they are ironed.

When tying down jam, dip the cover in vinegar, and tie down whilst the jam is hot. This will keep it from working.

When cooking green gooseberries, add a pinch of carbonate of soda; it will take away a great deal of - the sharpness. , Suet keeps best when covered with flour. It is quite safe to bury it in the' flour bin; it will not leave odour or flavour behind. , j ■ Tiles will look like new if they are •wiped with a cloth wrung out of skimmed milk, or polished with a furniture cream. A,paste made with whitening and water, is excellent for cleaning paint. It should be smeared over , the paint, and then rubbed off briskly with warm water. Polish with n dry soft cloth. The best way to clean lamp-burners is to boil them for 20'minutes in strong, vinegar to which a few yellow .onion peelings have been added.

To clean silver, moisten the platepowder .with j,i little methylated spirit. Pish call be preserved'for some time if it. is sprinkled with coarse sugar.' Cold potatoes ' used ‘ as soap wi,ll cleanse the hands and keep the skin sofjt and healthy, ; -Those not overboiled are best.

When you buy tea open it and spread on paper in a warm oven for 15 min. utes. The flavour is grfatly iinjiroved, J and without lowering strength you can use a teaspoonful’less. A teaspoonful of powdered borax added to the water in which clothes are rinsed will be found to whiten them considerably. ,

Grease marks can be removed from suede shoes by rubbing, the spots with emery paper. This brings up the nap again. . »

Woollens that have shrunk in the wash can be. restored to their original size and fluffiness if they are finished off -in clean soapsuds instead of clear water.. Do not rub woollens, but squeeze them in yotif hands.

The offensive smell can be removed from saucepans in which onions or fish have been cooked by adding a little vinegar to the washing water.

Scratches on furniture may be “removed by .mixing together equal parts of linseed oil and turpentine. Dip a flannel in this, and rub well into thte scratched places. . Afterwards polish with a- soft duster. - ;

If your tape measure has curled'up, put a teaspoonful of milk in a saqccr, 'pass* the measure through this, and then squeeze lightly and press .between, a cloth with a very hot .iron.

TO CLEAN BEADS.: China or glass beads may be clcancu in this way. Put the necklet into an old pocket handkerchief or piece of silk and cover with a little salt, tying the corners of the material to make a. bag. Plunge the bag and its contents into a bowl of lukewarm water and keep moving it about until all tho salt has dissolved. Then take out the bcadk and dry them with a soft cloth. , RICH PINEAPPLE PRESERVE. Pare, pineapples anp cut in . Anger pieces. Place in deep china bowl and cover each pound of fruit with two pounds of sugar. : Let. stand - twentyfour hours, then heat slowly to boiling point in the preserving kettle and cook ttui minutes. Let cool and pack , the lingers neatly in half-pint jars, and fill to overflowing with the syrup created |from the pineapples and sugar. Adjust the rubber and lid and seal securely. Process for twenty minutes in hot water bath. When cold, dip the tops of the jars in melted paraffin. DRY CLEANING AT HOME. Silk blouses and, other garments can be dry cleaned in this way: Obtain a cardboard hat box and put inside it a clean towel, spreading it out so that it lines the interior. Sprinkle fuller’s earth liberally on the towel, and then place the article to be cleaned on it. A little fuller’s earth may bo scattered here and there in the folds of tlic garment. Close tho lid of the box and keep it shut for three or four days., At the end of that time shake out the garment, which will in most cases be found to be well cleaned. ;

REMOVING LIDS. When the lid of a ’boot polish tin is difficult to remove. stand the tin on its edge on a table and - then tap it all round with the back of a brush. The lid will then come away quite easily. A different plan should be adopted in the ease of coffee and baking powder tins. Just, below the lid tio very firmly a piece of string. Put a pencil up under this string and,then twist it round. This will compress the top part of tho tin and thfe lid can then be removed. Screw tops on fruit jars can usually bo moved by winding a strip of emery paper* round the top and then removing it with a duster under the hand. HOME-MADE CURTAIN RINGS. Curtain rings made of thin cord or thick silk to match the materials of which the curtains are composed are an excellent idea, as it is unnecessary to remove them for laundering purposes. How to Make Them.—Coil the cord or silk, using two or three thicknesses, into a circle the size required for the ring. Then, without severing the cord or silk, twist it over and over the rings thus formed in suchi a way that a buttonhole stitch results. Continue to do this until-the circle is quite covered. Then cut the cord and finish it off neatly. This join will be hidden when the ring is sewn on to the curtain.