EVERYDAY ECONOMIES

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 347, 7 May 1928, Page 5

EVERYDAY ECONOMIES

THE WITS-END CLUB A new novel to be selected by the winner each week as a prize for the most original household hint or recipe that has been tested and found to save time, labour or money. Many folk might be glad to have the benefit of your experience, so send in your suggestions, addressed to The Homecrafts Editor, Women’s Page. THE SUN. Auckland. This week the prize has been given to Mrs. P. Middleton. Herne Bay, for the following suggestion: FOR GILT FRAMES The best way to clean gilt frames is to first of all rub them over with a dry cloth, in order to remove all trace of dust. Then wash them in warm water in which a medium-sized onion has been boiled. In this original way the dirt will com e off both easily and rapidly. Dry the frames by rubbing gently with soft, clean cloths. Be careful not to rub too hard, or the gilt may come off with the dirt. P.M. CHILD’S BEDSPREAD A spread that will help entertain a sick child can be made of blue galatea or solid coloured gingham. Make the spread any desired size; then pull apart the pages of a linen story book and stitch these on the spread, leaving spaces between the various pages. I have known a child to be entertained for an hour at a time with this spread. SAVE TIME AND BURNED FINGERS When boiling several eggs considerable time can be saved by placing them all in a sieve or wire basket and then lowering this into the boiling water. When the eggs have cooked sufficiently it is much simpler to lift out the sieve or wire basket than to fish for each egg singly with a spoon. BAKING SQUASH I used to have sad times preparing Hubbard squash for cooking, often being obliged to call on the axe to help me. Now immediately after lunch, I just wash the squash and place it in the range oven. By dinner time it is baked, then I open it with any common knife, remove the seeds, scrape out the squash, and with the addition of a little cream and seasoning, I have the most delicious squash imaginable, for all its sweet juices have been retained and so has my temper!, SAVE EYE-STRAIN When darning in the evening, use a light-coloured darner for dark hose and a dark-coloured darner for light hose. Or better than either of these is an electric torch if you have one. Aside from the light enabling one to darn faster and more neatly the glass surface makes an excellent darner. I-I.A. CARING FOR CUTLERY AND PLATE There are many folk who still prefer a steel knife that is keen and razorlike to the stainless variety which saves labour but rc/.ises to deal, for instance, with a thick steak. To these a few hints will not be amiss. Steel knives will brighten quickly if heated before they are polished. The best method is to hold the blades foia moment or two in boiling water, and then rub them while hot. Before putting steel knives away for any length of time, rub the blades with mutton

fat, or a ltitle vaseline, and roll them in brown paper. Thus treated, they will never rust. Onion juice will remove rust from steel knives. KNIFE HANDLES Equal parts of ammonia and olive oil, to which sufficient prepared chaik has been added to make a naste, make a good cleanser for the ivory handles of knives. Rub the handles with this mixture, allow to dry, and then brush off. If very stained, repeat the process several times. If the knife has come away from the handle, fill the hollow with powdered resin, make the stalk of the blade red hot and press it into its original place. Bone knife-handles may be cleaned by rubbing with a piece of new flannel dipped in peroxide of hydrogen. To remove vinegar and fruit stains from steel knives, rub them with a freshly-cut raw potato as soon as possible after use. PLATED TEAPOTS When a plated teapot grows “musty,” wash it, dry it as well as you can, and put a lump of sugar inside. This will absorb the moisture that causes the musty smell. If the pot becomes tarnished on the outside, put it in warm potato water, which will quickly remove the tarnish. BLACK ENAMEL Here is a recipe for grate polish that gives a beautiful and wonderfully lasting shine” that has the appearance of fresh black enamel, while effecting a most appreciable saving of wear and tear on brushes. Into a wide-mouth bottle put two ounces of furniture cream, four ounces of turpentine, and the contents of a small packet of blacklead. (The last to be bought in solid form, and duly powdered.) This will make about half a pint of polish. Mix very thoroughly and apply with a piece of rag. When dry, brush over lightly, and give a final polish with a piece of old velvet. Thus treated, your grate will “stay polished” for quite seven or eight weeks, requiring only a once-a-week rub-over with the velvet rag. H.B. THE COOK’S CORNER ITALIAN CREAM Italian cream is a very successful . p^ rty swe et, with which an excellent 'effect may be obtained by placing th'e mould in a dish and heaping red and green jelly round it. To prepare the cream, place ?>oz of gelatine in one cupful of milk and’ allow to stand for an Tiour. Put it into a saucepan with a second cupful of milk, * of a teaspoonful of sugar and 4 drops of essence of lemon. Heat until near boiling point. Beat the yolks of three eggs with another cupful of milk and add to the gelatine mixture in the saucepan. Allow to come slowly to the boil, and then turn it into a large basin. Stir in gently the whites of the three eggs beaten to a stiff froth and continue stirring till well mixed. Turn into a quart mould and set aside to cool. MOCK LOBSTER BISQUE This is a very good soup for a substantial supper menu. You will reqinre a large tin of tomatoes, a quart of milk, a teacup of breadcrumbs, an onion, butter, and seasonings. Put the milk into a double pan, add the breadcrumbs and flavour witli the onion stuck with cloves, a stalk of paisley, and a bay leaf Leave these seasonings in until the milk comes slowly to the boil and then strain it through a hair sieve, rubbing the breadcrumbs through also. Put the tinned tomatoes into a second pan, with a little salt and a