THE TOILET TABLE

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 352, 12 May 1928, Page 19

THE TOILET TABLE

CHOICE OF PERFUME ] CARE OF HAIRBRUSHES Don’t buy a perfume because you like it on someone else, for the reaction of a perfume to individual skins may be utterly different. Don’t buy a perfume just from smelling it in the bottle. The true odour comes only after the alcohol has evaporated. Get the saleswoman, if you can, to wave the stopper in the air, or better still, to touch your hand with a little perfume, and then wait till it has dried. In almost every instance perfume smells best on the skin. Some women use perfume on their handkerchiefs, but a single drop behind each ear is better. For your body you’ll find toilet water a pleasant perfumer, and if you want to scent your underclothes, sachets are much more delicate and effective than perfume. Rinse in Warm Water Brushes should be washed in warm water and soap suds, rinsed in clear warm water and then in cold water and set up on their sides to dry. Some women like to use a little ammonia in washing brushes, but be sure not to use too much. Do not dry before a fire. On no account should soap be rubbed on to the bristles; this will permanently spoil the brush. When quite clean, rinsing should follow', first in warm water and then in cold water containing salt; the addition of the salt stiffens the bristles. Drying in the air is best, and a string tied securely round the handle will enable it to hang while drying, for it is very undesirable that it should rest on the bristles, and it is equally bad for the water to drain into the back, for this will loosen the bristles and cause the wood to rot. If it is impossible to dry the brush out of doors it should be hung in a draught and never before the fire, for this will yellow the bristles, make them brittle, and cause the wood to warp. When dry the silver-backed brush is ready for use; but the backs of others need attention. Polished wood backs may be cleaned with a little furniture cream, and a very little jeweller’s rouge will restore loveliness to tortoiseshell. Ebony will look best if polished with linseed oil. To preserve the whiteness of ivory brushes the ivory should be wiped with warm water in which a little borax has been melted. The use of soap yellows ivory. It is. however, useful to know that discoloured ivory may be cleaned with a cream of whitening and turpentine. This should be allowed to dry on and then be polished off. Lemon juice may be a substitute for the turpentine if desired.