309.  For Cupboard Shelves.—­Put a white oilcloth on kitchen shelves instead of paper.  The cloth will not turn yellow as the paper does, and can be kept clean while washing dishes.

310.  Cleaning Gilt Frames.—­When gilt frames or mouldings of the rooms have specks of dirt on them they can be cleaned with white of an egg, rubbed on with a camel’s hair brush.

311.  To Clean Kid Gloves.—­Take a fine soft cloth, dip it into a little sweet milk, then rub it on a cake of soap, and rub the gloves with it.  They will look like new.

312.  Washing Fine Woolens.—­To keep baby’s sacques and socks and your own shawls and scarfs as fluffy as when new, dry and put in oven of range, shaking often between the palms while drying.

313.  To Wash Grained Woodwork.—­To wash grained woodwork take a half pail of hot water, add half a pound of soap chips, and boil until dissolved.  Take from fire, add one pint kerosene, then boil for five minutes longer.  Add one quarter of this to a half pailful of warm water.  Wash woodwork thoroughly, wipe and dry, and lastly use a flannel to polish with.

314.  Sewing on Buttons.—­How often the mother hears the complaint:  “I do wish you wouldn’t sew these buttons on so tightly that I can’t button them.”  When you start to sew on a button, before you take a stitch, lay a pin across the face of the button, and sew over the pin.  Fasten your thread before you remove the pin, else you will draw the last stitch and spoil it.  You will find there is a good shank to the button and yet it is perfectly secure.

315.  Airing House After Meals.—­After each meal, there should be another thorough airing of the lower floor in the home.  No matter how perfectly the system of ventilation, it is impossible to prevent cooking odors.  This airing is doubly necessary should there be smokers in the family.

316.  House Cleaning Hints.—­For the last few days before house cleaning, ornaments and pictures can be washed at one’s convenience.  They need only be removed or covered when a room is cleaned.  With these preparations, the actual cleaning can be done quickly and with much less disturbance of the family routine.

[Miscellaneous recipes 889]

317.  Uses for Men’s Old Silk Handkerchiefs.—­Men’s old silk handkerchiefs should never be thrown away when worn thin.  They are just the thing for dusting the polished surface of the piano, ornaments and fine china and glass and bric-a-brac.

318.—­Cleaning Fine Fabrics.—­In cleaning fabrics great care should be taken not to rub them roughly between the hands.  The gentle rubbing on of the solvent with a fresh cloth is sufficient.

319.  To Wash White Woolen Blankets.—­To wash white woolen blankets, dissolve four tablespoonfuls of good washing powder in a dipperful of boiling water and pour into a tub of warm water.  Open the blanket out wide and put it in the tub and let it soak all over for a half an hour.  Then rub it all over between the hands, and if there are any stains left, rub them with soap.  Rinse in clear water of the same temperature as the wash water.  If you do this your blankets will be soft and will not shrink.  Do not rub blankets on a washboard, as it makes them hard, and blueing added makes them a dull gray color.