Part 102

[MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES 865]

75. To Freshen Bread.--To freshen bread pour cold water all over the loaf, drain quickly, and place in the oven. When the outside is dry and hot remove the loaf and it can scarcely be detected from a new one.

76. Renewing Wringer Rollers.--A neighbor rejuvenated a worn-out wringer the other day by covering the rolls with white felt. She cut the felt so that it would just come together, not overlap anywhere, and caught the edges together with close stitches. It bids fair to last her as long again, and it is certain that just now the wringer does as good work as any new one.

77. To Prevent Cake Tins Sticking.--Flour the baking tins after greasing them. If the flour is shaken all over the grease, and the tins rapped, you will have no difficulty with sticky cakes which break when you try to get them out. Lard is just as good as butter, for it will not taste through the flour.

78. Substitute for Chopping Bowl.--When chopping mincemeat, tomatoes, or large quantities of other fruit, you will probably find that your chopping bowl is a good deal too small. Get a clean wooden box with a thick bottom, from your grocer and use it instead of your bowl. You will notice a great saving of time is effected.

79. Save the Gas.--Cut strips of asbestos paper an inch and a half wide and long enough to go around the burners of the gas range. Pin together to form a ring, slip over the burner, and all the heat will be concentrated where wanted. In this way the gas can be half turned off and the same results obtained.

80. To Prevent Pitchers Dripping.--Syrup or other liquids will not drip from a pitcher if a little butter or grease is rubbed on the edge and under the side of the lip.

81. Medicine Cupboard.--An array of ordinary medicine bottles is always unsightly, and a nuisance, too, on cleaning days. Have a tiny cupboard with tight closing door, or a well-fitted curtain, and there is gain in looks and convenience.

82. To Prevent Tablecloths from Blowing Off.--We had some pieces of brass chain, and found them splendid to run through the hems of the tablecovers when in use on the porch in summer. Such "loaded" covers do not blow off easily, consequently they save quite a bit of annoyance and laundering.

83. To Mark Poison Bottle.--When you purchase a bottle of poison run a brass-headed tack into the top of the cork. It serves as a marker, and children will be more cautious of the marked bottle. If the label comes off or is discolored, the marker remains as a warning that the bottle contains poison.

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84. To Remove White Spots Caused by Hot Dishes.--For polishing tables after hot dishes leave a white spot, take a cloth wet in alcohol, then have one wet in sweet oil. Do it quickly and spots will disappear at once.

85. Stains from Fly Paper, to Remove.--Almost anything that has come in contact with sticky fly paper can be thoroughly cleansed by sponging with kerosene. The odor will soon evaporate if the article is exposed to the air for a short time.

86. A Use for Ravelings.--In trimming a tablecloth to be hemmed or stitched, one very frequently has to cut off quite a piece of the linen. Ravelings from these pieces are invaluable for mending old cloths, and ought to be saved for that purpose,

87. How to Remove a Glass Stopper.--The obstinate glass stopper in a glass bottle will yield to a string of seaweed around the neck of the bottle. Friction, heat, slight outside expansion solve the problem.

88. To Prevent Starch from Boiling Over.--Add a small piece of butter the size of a walnut when the starch comes to a good boil. This not only gives a nice, smooth finish and makes the ironing easier, but it prevents the starch from boiling over.

89. To Hold Sheets in Place.--I worked out a little scheme which has saved me a lot of trouble and inconvenience, so I thought I would pass it on. The sheets and bed clothes are constantly pulling out at the foot, so one day I sewed three buttons on to my mattress with strong thread, and worked buttonholes in the hems of the sheets to correspond, and since then have not had trouble with their pulling up in the middle of the night.

90. Hints for Bathing the Baby.--It is a great advantage when bathing the baby to have all the towels heated before using, as they absorb the moisture much more readily and are very pleasant and soothing to the delicate skin. This is also excellent for bathing an invalid as it greatly hastens the work and lessens the danger of catching cold. It acts like a charm for the child who dreads a bath, this is usually a nervous child who does not like the feeling of the towel, on the wet surface of its skin; complains of feeling damp; and refuses to don its clothing when a less sensitive child would be perfectly comfortable.

91. A Satisfactory Shoe Polisher.--Not long since I ripped up a velvet covered hat, only to find the velvet impossible for further use in the millinery line. A threw it into the big waste basket that stands near my husband's shoe cleaning apparatus. He caught up the velvet in a hurry one day to take a spot off a shoe, and now has it laid away as a treasure in his shoe kit. He says it is the best polisher he ever had, and uses it on my fine shoes to his own entire satisfaction.

92. Tasty Way of Preparing Beef-tea.--Beef-tea will not prove so monotonous to an invalid if a different flavoring is used each day, as dove, bay leaf, or celery.

[MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES 867]

93. To Preserve Silk Gloves.--If white or delicately tinted silk gloves are wrapped in blue paper, then in brown they will not discolor. The chloride of lime in white paper is injurious.

94. Red Ants to Destroy.--Dry sulphur, sprinkled about in cupboards or flour chests where small red ants frequent, will rid the place of the pests.

95. Kitchen Account Book.--I have found a kitchen account book is a very useful record. I have a small vestpocket note book hanging by a string and pencil near my kitchen range. A page or two is devoted to each month's use. The month and year are entered at the top of page. When groceries are purchased, the date, article and price are noted, and summed up at the end of each month. It makes a handy, permanent record, showing how long supplies last, the expense of one month compared with another, and the monthly average of each year.

96. A Brick Pincushion.--A brick pincushion was a dressmaker's ingenious way of making easy work of basting and sewing long seams. She took a common red brick, topped it with a flat oblong cushion size and shape of the brick, covering the whole neatly with a bright chintz cover. This standing on the edge of her cutting table was in constant use, and proved a great convenience.

97. Fruit Stains, to Remove from Hands.--When your hands become stained from paring fruit or vegetables, dip them in soap suds then rub thoroughly with coarse salt, and they will become smooth and white.

98. Eyelet Embroidery, Suggestions for.--For some time after I began doing "eyelet work" I wondered if there was not some way to fasten the thread after completing an eyelet. A friend of mine showed me a solution of my problem. It was to leave the last three loops loose enough so that I could pass the thread back through them after completing the eyelet. Then I carefully pulled each of these loops down and cut off the thread. This obviates the necessity of any knots that are so unsightly, and at the same time, the thread is firmly secured. 99. To Prevent Stockings from Wearing Out.--Paste pieces of velvet soft side up, into the heels of your shoes, bottom and back, and you will find your stockings darning reduced by a big per cent.

100. Needle Sharpener.--I know a woman who always keeps a small piece of whetstone in her machine drawer for sharpening needles when they become blunted. It is a great scheme, and saves a lot of needles, as I have proved to my own satisfaction.

101. Burned Kettles.--If you have had the misfortune to burn your kettle it may be made smooth and clean by filling it with ashes and water, leaving it for an hour or so, then washing with clear water.

102. Children's Petticoats.--When making washable petticoats for her small daughters, a mother whom I know attaches two skirts to one belt, which in turn is sewed to a little lace trimmed waist. The lower skirt is made of white cambric, and the top skirt is of swiss embroidery. This arrangement saves time in dressing the little ones and their upper and lower petticoats are always of the same length and set evenly.

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103. Systematic Housekeeping.--A friend of mine who has a six-room apartment delights in taking care of it in sections, one room a day. On each of the six days in the week one room is thoroughly cleaned and put in order. She plans, if possible, to add some little touch of adornment, a new rocker, or vase, or table cover, or pincushion. In this way there is always something new to notice and admire, and yet no new and startling changes and never any accumulation of hard work.

104. To Keep Grape Fruit After Cutting.--When half a grapefruit or melon is left from a meal, place it cut side down on a china or agate plate, so that no air can reach it, and the fruit will keep as though it had not been cut.

105. How to Freshen Nuts.--We had a lot of nuts that became too dry to be good, and were about to throw them away, when a friend told us of a very easy and practical way to freshen them. It was this: to let them stand over night in a solution of equal parts of milk and water, then dry them slowly in a moderate oven. They tasted so fresh and proved to be such an economy, that we thought the idea well worth passing along.

106. Measure the Eggs.--Try measuring the whites of eggs for angel food instead of counting them, for best results.

107. Kerosene Lamps.--A neighbor who has to use kerosene for lighting purposes told me the secret of her bright lights. After cleansing the lamps well and trimming the wick she fills the oil chamber, and drops into it a piece of camphor gum about as large as a marble. It is a very simple method of securing a splendid light.

108. Baking Help.--When creaming butter and sugar for cake or cookies, add two tablespoonfuls of boiling water, then deduct this amount from the other liquid used. Beat hard with a spoon, and the mixture will become a light creamy mass in one-third of the time it otherwise would take.

109. To Destroy Disagreeable Odors.--The cooking of onions, cabbage, or frying articles always leaves a disagreeable odor in our house. To get rid of this I place an old tin over a lighted burner and sprinkle some ground cinnamon on it. When the tin is very hot I carry it through the house on the dustpan, leaving behind me the pleasant pungent odor of the spice.

110. The Last Step.--A great many times last winter I had to go into the cellar to tend to the furnace when it was too light to light a lamp, and too dark to enable one to see easily. Almost every time I had to feel around to be sure that I was on the bottom step. One day my husband was doing some painting in the cellar and happened to think that a little white paint on that step would help. Now we wonder why we did not think of it before.

[MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES 869]

111. Truth spoken with malicious intent is greater error than keeping of silence where wrong is meant.

112. Boiled Potatoes.--Boiled potatoes should be served as soon as they are cooled. To make them dryer, drain off the water quickly, shake them in a strong draught of air and do not put back the lid of the kettle.

113. To Prevent Ripping.--When hemming table cloths, sheets, etc., on the machine, try the following plan: Sew the hem as you always do, but when you come to the end, instead of leaving a long thread to tie it, to keep from ripping, simply lift the presser-foot, turn the goods around, place the presser-foot down again and sew back over the same seam again, and sew about half an inch more. It makes a neat finish and no danger of the hem ever fraying out.

114. To Mix Corn Bread.--To mix corn bread more easily warm the bowl that it is to be mixed in.

115. Mending Table Linen.--To mend table cloths and napkins, take the sewing machine, loosen the tension, lengthen the stitch, place embroidery rings over the place to be mended, and stitch back and forth closely. You have a neat darn, easily done. When laundered you can scarcely see it. Do the same with stockings.

116. Children's Toy.--Save all the empty spools, and when any dyeing is done in the household, drop the spools into the fluid for a few minutes, and they will make fine playthings for the children on a rainy day.

117. To Keep Coffee From Boiling Over.--To keep coffee from boiling over add a lump of butter about the size of a small marble.

118. Sour Milk Pancakes.--We are very fond of sour milk pancakes, and have often had to go without any in the winter when the weather was cold, just because the milk would not sour. I have learned to put a teaspoonful of vinegar in a pan of milk, that I wanted to use for the cakes the next morning, and find that it never fails me in making the milk sour. Placing the pan over the register for the night helps matters along.

119. When the Wooden Scrub Bucket Leaks.--When the wooden scrub bucket leaks pour sealing wax into the crevice and paint on the outside. This will make it last for a longer period.

120. Rust Spots on Clothes.--Many rust spots on clothes are caused by bits of soap adhering to the latter when they come in contact with the bluing water. The discovery has been of great help to me because I can now easily avoid having these unsightly marks. I merely cut the soap into small pieces, and tie them in a salt bag I keep for the purpose. With this treatment the soap dissolves just as quickly but does not come into direct contact with the clothes.

[870 MOTHERS' REMEDIES]

121. Cleaning Stoves.--Before blacking my stove I rub soap on my hands, as if washing them, letting the soap dry on. When washing my hands after the work is done, the blacking and the soap come off together easily, leaving no stain on the hands.

122. Left-Over Peaches.--If there are not peaches enough left from an opened can to go around, mix them with orange pulp and a little sliced banana and the family will find them improved.

123. Substitute for Cream in Coffee.--For a substitute for cream in coffee put a pint of fresh milk into a double boiler and let it come to a boil, stirring often. Beat the yolk of one egg very light and pour it into the boiling milk and mix well.

124. Cooking cauliflower.--Soak cauliflower an hour before cooking. Put into boiling water to which a tablespoonful of salt is added. Boil from twenty to thirty minutes according to size of the head.

125. Uses for Child's Broom.--A child's broom should find place in the bath room. It can be kept in the clothes hamper, and will be useful in sweeping under the bath-tub.

126. Dish Cloths.--Dish cloths are often neglected. They should be kept scrupulously clean, and in order that they may be so they should be washed out carefully with soap, and well rinsed each time they have been used. After this has been done they may be hung in the air to dry. Some people, however, like to have a stone jar containing a solution of soda by the sink and to keep the dish cloths in it when not in use.

127. Watch for the wishes of the customers and not the hands of the clock, and some day you will have your boss's job.

128. We judge our neighbor as queer and eccentric, but with the same measure comes back his judgment of us.

129. Uses for Men's Worn Out Collars.--Men's collars when worn out, can be opened and bound together as a memorandum book which can be laundered each Monday.

130. Broiling Meat.--A little salt thrown on the coal flame will clear it for broiling meat.

131. Combinations of Cherries and Pineapple.--A combination of cherries and pineapple makes a most-delicious pie.

132. Crepe Paper for Dish Closet.--A pretty effect for the dish closet may be found in crepe paper. Some prefer white, but a tint harmonizing well with the china is pretty too. Have it to fall about three inches below the edge of the shelves and ruffle the edge of the paper by stretching it lightly between forefinger and thumb.

133. Boiling Rice.--One cook always puts a very little lemon juice in the water in which she boils the rice. She claims that it keeps the rice white and the grams whole and separate. It may be worth trying.

134. To Remove Grease from Silk.--Grease may be removed from silk and woolen clothes by the use of magnesia. Scrape a quantity upon the spot, cover with a brown paper and place a hot flat-iron over it. The heat of the iron acts upon the magnesia and when the iron and the paper are removed and the magnesia brushed off the spot will have disappeared.

[MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES 871]

135. Hemstitching.--When hemstitching wears out, take serpentine braid and stitch it across twice on the sewing machine. This makes the hem look neat and last a long time.

136. Moths.--When moths get into dresser drawers, sweep them clean, expose the wood to the sunlight and with an atomizer spray turpentine where the pests are liable to be. A lighted match or sulphur candle will kill them.

137. To Remove Putty.--To remove putty, rub a red hot poker over it, and cut off the putty with a steel knife.

138. New Method for Sprinkling Clothes.--Turn the nozzle of the hose to a fine spray and sprinkle the clothes while they are on the line; a very quick and good method. All plain pieces may then be rolled up and laid in the basket as they are taken down, while starched articles need but a little further hand sprinkling on portions not exposed.

139. To Open Packages of Breakfast Food.--To open packages of breakfast food and keep boxes in a dust proof condition until empty, make an opening in the side of box close to top by forcing a tablespoon through cardboard and turn flap downwards. The flap will fit back snugly in place each time package is used.

140. Preparing Oranges for the Table.--In preparing oranges for the table take a sharp knife, cut the skin straight around, insert the handle of a spoon turned over flat to fit the orange and loosen shell by forcing spoon to within one-half inch of the end, around one side, then the other, after which cut the orange through the center, making two parts. Then turn the skin back in cup form, making a pretty decoration for the table and serving as handles. Always serve in halves.

141. To Make a Muddy Skirt Wash Easily.--To make a muddy skirt wash easily and look white, take sour milk and dilute with water; soak the skirt in it over night, then wash in the usual way; the skirt washes easier and looks white.

142. To Make Stained Water Bottles Clean.--To make stained water bottles clean and bright, put in salt and pour on vinegar, let stand a few minutes then shake. Rinse in clear water.

143. Sanitary Window Screen.--Try tacking cheese cloth on the pantry window screen frame. This admits air that is sifted free from smoke and soot, before it comes into the pantry.

144. Cheerfulness at Meals.--Cheer during the meals will do away with the need of digestive tablets. Make it a rule to come to the table smiling, and continue to smile, though the food does not suit you and everyone else is down on their luck. Your smile will prove contagious.

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145. Uses for Stale Bread.--Take stale biscuits and grind them with a food chopper; toast in oven to a delicate brown. Serve with plenty of sugar and cream. Makes fine breakfast food and saves the stale bread.

146. Washing Lemons.--Always wash lemons before grating them, not only to remove any foreign matter sticking to them, but in order to remove the tiny insect eggs so often seen on them in the disguise of black specks. They may be kept fresh indefinitely, if wiped perfectly dry and placed in a sealed top glass jar.

147. To Give Vinegar a Nice Flavor.--A small button of garlic in a quart of vinegar will give it a mysterious delicious flavor, and it will immensely improve salads or anything in which it is used.

148. If Mice are Gnawing Holes.--If mice are gnawing holes in the house, rub common laundry soap around the gnawed places, and you may depend on it they will cease labor in that district.

149. To Teach Darning.--If young girls are taught to darn on canvas, the method of weaving the stitches is easily explained and put into practise.

150. Bed Sheeting.--Sheeting should never be cut, but should be torn into lengths, usually two and a half yards for medium beds.

151. Browning Potatoes.--For some kinds of frying the griddle is better and has a less tendency to grease than the frying pan. Among the other things potato cakes browned on a hot greased griddle are especially crisp and delicious.

152. To Keep Bread from Souring.--You will find that light bread will not sour so quickly in summer if it is not covered when taken from the oven. This steam is unnatural and should be allowed to escape or it soaks into the bread, making it clammy and more liable to sour. Let the bread cool gradually then put a clean cloth in a large stone jar, place the bread in and cover with the cloth, before covering with the stone, or wooden lid. This keeps bread fresh and moist from one bake day to another.

153. Never Pour Scalding Water into Milk Vessels.--Never pour scalding water into milk vessels; it cooks the milk on the sides and bottom of the vessels making it more difficult to clean such articles. Rinse them first with cold water. This same rule applies to cleansing of catsup bottles.

154. The Water Pipes in the Kitchen.--The water pipes in the kitchen will not be so unattractive, if painted the color of the kitchen woodwork.

155. To Brush Fringe of a Doilie.--Do not use a comb for the fringe of doilies as it pulls out the fringe, but brush it with a nail brush.

156. Wash Suits.--Large buttons should be removed from wash suits before they are sent to the laundry.

[MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES 873]

157. Sewing Machine Conveniences.--Always leave a piece of cloth under the presser foot of the sewing machine. This will save wear on the machine. Also it will absorb any drop of oil which might gather and spoil the first piece of fabric stitched, and will keep the needle from becoming blunted.

158. To Make a Ruffle Easily.--To make a ruffle easily, just above depth of the ruffle make a quarter inch tuck. Insert edge of ruffle under tuck, flatten down tuck over the ruffle edge and stitch on edge of tuck. If the ruffle is desired on very bottom of garment, make a quarter of an inch of tuck, leaving about half of an inch of goods underneath. Baste and stitch wrong side of ruffle to wrong side of half-inch piece, about quarter of an inch from edge. Turn back, making edge come under tuck. Flatten tuck and stitch on the edge. This will save all the trouble of bias bands, so dreaded by the dress-maker.

159. Greasing Cake Tins.--In making a cake, grease the tin with sweet lard rather than butter and sift a little dry flour over it.

160. Making Children's Petticoats.--When making children's petticoats gather the skirt to waistband before hemming the backs and then turn in with the hem, and when band gets too small and narrow across the back, all you have to do is rip out the hem and face back, and the gathers are already there properly placed; and no ripping skirt from band to adjust fullness is necessary.

161. After Cake is Removed from Oven.--A cake which has been removed from the oven should be placed on a wire stand on the stove and the steam allowed to thoroughly escape from it so as to obviate any chances of it becoming heavy.