HOME MANAGEMENT

Taranaki Daily News, 27 November 1926, Page 18

HOME MANAGEMENT

HINTS FOR THE BRIDE. (By Phyllis Monkmail). Home management demands skill, decision and. above all. patience! Theoretical knowledge of homecraft does not always stand the practical test of evry day life. All sorts of unforeseen conditions, especially in relation to finance and the cost of living, loom in the path of the youthful couple. Perhaps the greatest problem which confronts young home-makers is not how to avoid spending beyond income—foolishness for which there is no excuse — but how to spend to the best advantage, giving each claim its legitimate share or available funds. NECESSITIES FIRST! In making the new home, one of the commonest mistakes is that of buying, at the beginning', things which could reasonably have been dispensed with for some years; and neglecting to acquire the dull, but very necessary, pieces of household machinery which make for efficient house-keeping.

It is folly to make a purchase, wildly, on the spur of the moment! Ou second thoughts and viewed more calmly, it becomes 'clear that the “plunge” cannot be afforded. Never be intrigued into spending more money than you intended to .Spend. A cushion, a ehair, a vase, that is not really wanted but is bought because it happens to please the eye. at the moment, becomes a burden rather than a pleasure. When you get home, add up the expenditure, and compare the total with the amount which should have been spent—then begins the trouble of striking a balance! ON CREDIT’. Never abuse the privilege and convenience of having “credit accounts.” Young wives especially arc often tempted to buy whatever appeals to them and to have it “entered"—but it is very had discipline. If this unthinking habit is hot checked, debts will accumulate until they 'become as source of grave anxiety; tears and recriminations will follow—and here ends the peaceful life in the new home! Use the credit system if you will; but only so far as the income will comfortably bear it. SAVE HARD. The failure to save is another '.frequent cause of trouble iu the new home. Rainy days do come in the best regulated households, and it is far better to ask: “How much can we put away without stinting?” than to wonder feverishly: “How much can we spend?” Saving hard, in these days, is a habit well worth while; it makes for happiness to have a balance iu the bank!