GENERAL HOUSEHOLD RECIPES.

To Purify Sinks and Drains.—To one pound of common copperas add one gallon of boiling water, and use when dissolved. The copperas is deadly poison, and should always be carefully labeled if kept on hand. This is one of the best possible cleansers of pipes and drains.

To Wash Greasy Tin and Iron.—Pour a few drops of ammonia into every greasy roasting-pan, after half filling the pan with warm water. A bottle of ammonia should always be kept on hand near the sink for such uses; never allow the pans to stand and dry, for it doubles the labor of washing, but pour in water and use the ammonia, and the work is half done.

To Clean Carpets.—Shake and beat the carpets well; lay them upon the floor and tack them firmly; then with a clean flannel wash them over with one quart of bullock's gall mixed with three quarts of soft, cold water, and rub it off with a clean flannel or house-cloth. Any particularly dirty spot should be rubbed with pure gall. Carpets cleansed in this way look bright and fresh.

Treatment of Oilcloth.—Oilcloth ought never to be wet, but merely rubbed with a flannel and polished with a brush of moderate hardness, exactly like a mahogany table; and by this means the fading of the colors and the rotting of the canvas are entirely avoided.

To Remove Iron Stains from Marble.—Wet the spots with oil of vitriol, or oxalic acid diluted in alcohol, or with lemon juice, and after a quarter of an hour, rub them dry with a soft linen cloth.

To Clean Marble.—Use three ounces of pearl ash, one pound of whiting, and three pints of water well mixed together, and boil for ten minutes; rub it well over the marble and let it remain twenty-four hours, then rub it off, and dry with a clean cloth.

To Clean Woodwork.—Where painted wainscot or other woodwork requires cleaning, fuller's earth will be found cheap and useful, and on wood not painted it forms an excellent substitute for soap. Where extreme nicety is required, use a mixture of one pound of soft soap, two ounces of pearl ash, one pint of lard, and one pint of table beer; simmer these substances in a pipkin over a slow fire, and let them be well mixed. The mode of application is to put a small quantity in flannel; rub it on the wainscot, wash it off with warm water and dry thoroughly with a linen cloth. This will clean painted woodwork without removing the paint.

To Clean Gilt Frames.—When the gilt frames of pictures or looking-glasses, or the gilt mouldings of rooms have specks of dirt upon them, from flies or other causes, they can be cleaned with the white of an egg gently rubbed on with a camel's-hair pencil.

To Clean Picture Frames.—Black walnut frames will become dull and rusty looking. They may be renewed by first brushing thoroughly with a stiff brush to remove dust, and then applying pure linseed oil with a proper brush, or with a piece of new bleached muslin.

To Remove Moths from Furniture.—Moths may be exterminated or driven from upholstered work by sprinkling it with benzine. The benzine is put in a small watering-pot, such as is used for sprinkling houseplants; it does not spot the most delicate silk, and the unpleasant odor passes off in an hour or two in the air. Care must be used not to carry on this work near a fire or flame, as the vapor of benzine is very inflammable. It is said that a little spirits of turpentine added to the water with which floors are washed will prevent the ravages of moths.

Perfume and a Preventive Against Moths.—Take one ounce of Tonquin beans, caraway seed, cloves, mace, nutmeg, cinnamon, well ground; add six ounces of Florentine orris root; mix well, and put in bags among your clothes.

To Blacken Hearths.—Mix black lead and whites of eggs, well beaten, together; with a painter's brush wet the hearth thoroughly all over; then rub it bright with a hard brush.

To Remove Fly Spots.—Dip a camel's hair brush into spirits of wine, and apply it to remove fly spots.

Mucilage.—An excellent mucilage may be made by taking one ounce of gum tragacanth, as much corrosive sublimate as will lay on a silver five-cent piece; put it into a jar and pour over it one quart of cold, soft water; let it stand twenty-four hours; then stir, and it is ready for use, and it will keep as long a time as is desired.

Liquid Glue.—Dissolve 33 parts of best glue, in a steam bath, in 36 parts of water; then add gradually, stirring constantly, 3 parts of nitric acid, or enough to prevent hardening when cool.

How to Keep Meat.—Meat is much better for family use when at least one week old, in cold weather. Hang up a quarter of meat with the cut end up, the reverse of the usual way, and the juice will remain in the meat and not run to the cut and dry up by evaporation.

To Restore and Preserve Flowers.—Faded flowers may be generally more or less restored by immersing them half way up to their stems in very hot water, and allowing them to remain in it until it cools, or they have recovered. The scalded portion of the stem must then be cut off, and the flowers placed in clear, cold water. In this way a great number of faded flowers may be restored; but there are some of the more fugacious kinds on which it proves useless. Flowers may also be preserved and their tints deepened by adding to the water a little solution of carbonate of ammonium and a few drops of phosphate of sodium. The effect of this in giving the flowers a deeper color and a stronger appearance is quite wonderful; and, by cutting off every other day about half an inch of the stems of the flowers with a sharp knife, they may be kept as long as their natural life would last in the fields or woods. If a spoonful of charcoal powder be added to the water, the flowers will last as long as they would on the plant without any need of changing the water.

To Clean Mica.—Take a little vinegar and water and apply with a soft cloth. The acid removes the stains, and if well done and wiped dry will look as good as new. If the stove is hot, tie the cloth to a stick.

Silver Polish.—Cream of tartar, two ounces; prepared chalk, two ounces; pulverized alum, one ounce. Water sufficient to make a paste. Apply with soft cloth, allow to dry and polish with flannel.

Flannels.—Flannel should always be washed with white soap, and in warm, but not boiling water.

Damp Closets.—For a damp closet or cupboard, which is liable to cause mildew, place in it a saucerful of quicklime, and it will not only absorb all apparent dampness, but sweeten and disinfect the space. Renew the lime once a fortnight; if the place be very damp, renew it as often as it becomes slaked. Lime may be used in the same way for water-closets and out-buildings.

Damp Walls.—Line the damp part of the wall with sheet lead, rolled very thin, and fastened up with small copper nails; it may be immediately covered with paper, and so hidden from view. The lead is not to be thicker than that which lines tea chests.

Whitewash for Rooms.—Take four pounds of whiting and two ounces of common glue; let the glue stand in cold water over night, then heat it until dissolved and pour it hot into the whiting mixed with cold water. This makes a nice, smooth whitewash.

Whitewash that will not Rub Off.—Mix up half a pailful of lime and water ready to put on the wall; then take one-fourth pint of flour, mix it with water, then pour on it a sufficient quantity of boiling water to thicken it, and pour it while hot into the whitewash; stir all well together and use.

Painting and Papering.—Painting and papering are best done in cold weather, especially the former, for the wood absorbs the oil of paint much more in warm weather, while in cold weather the oil hardens on the outside, making a coat which will protect the wood instead of soaking into it.

Lamp Chimneys.—To prevent cracking, put them into a kettle of cold water, gradually heating to the boiling point, and then let them as gradually cool.

Roach Exterminator.—Borax is one of the best exterminators. It should be pulverized and sprinkled around the infested places. Red lead made into a paste with flour and brown sugar and spread on small pieces of card distributed at night about infested places is also said to be good.

To Remove Old Putty.—Old putty, it is said, can be removed without injury to the sash or glass by passing a hot soldering iron over it. The heat of the iron softens it rapidly.

Testing Butter.—Melt some suspected butter; soak a wick in it; when cold, light it like a candle and then blow it out. If oleomargine it will smell like a blown-out candle, if it is butter it will smell like butter.

To Remove a Tight Ring.—Envelop the finger in a length of flat rubber braid, beginning at the tip of the finger and laying it on closely and tightly, so as to exert its elastic force gradually and gently upon the tissues. When the binding is completed, the hand should be held up and in a few minutes the swelling will be perceptibly diminished. The braid is then taken on and immediately reapplied in the same manner, when, after another five minutes, the finger, if again rapidly uncovered, will be small enough for the ring to be removed with ease.

For Cleaning and Polishing Furniture, Hard Wood, Leather, Etc.— One-third pure lard oil, two-thirds benzine. Mix. Rub with woolen cloth.

To Remove Iron Rust from White Goods.—Try salts of lemon. Buy it from your druggist and keep it out of the children's way. Wet the stains, rub in the salts of lemon and lay goods in the hot sun. If the first application does not entirely remove the iron mold, renew it, always leaving in the sunlight for some time.

TOILET ARTICLES.

To Clean Hair Brushes.—Dissolve a piece of soda in some hot water, allowing a piece the size of a walnut to a quart of water; put the water into a basin, and, after combing out the hair from the brushes, dip them, bristles downward, into the water and out again, keeping the backs and handles as free from water as possible. Repeat this until the bristles look clean; then rinse the brushes in a little cold water; shake them well, and wipe the handles and backs with a towel, but not the bristles, and set the brushes to dry in the sun, or near the fire. Wiping the bristles of a brush makes them soft, as does also the use of soap.

To Clean Combs.—If it can be avoided, never wash combs, as the water often makes the teeth split, and the horn, if wet, often becomes rough. A small brush can be bought, made purposely for cleaning combs; with this the comb should be well brushed, and afterward wiped with a cloth.

Bandoline.—Soak starch or Irish moss (whichever is handy) in rose water until dissolved and smooth; if you wish it to be pink, color it with a little pounded cochineal.

Oil of Roses for the Hair.—Attar of roses one drachm, oil of rosemary one drachm, olive oil one quart, mixed together. It may be colored red by steeping a little alkanet root in the oil (with heat) before scenting it.

Milk of Roses.—Put into a small bottle two ounces of rose water, one teaspoonful of oil of sweet almonds, ten drops of oil of tar. Shake the bottle until the whole is combined; it makes a nice and perfectly harmless cosmetic to apply to the skin after washing.

Marrow Pomade for the Hair.—Marrow a quarter pound, lard a quarter pound, caster oil six ounces, salad oil six ounces, palm oil half ounce, scent with oil of bergamot; melt the lard and palm oil together, then strain it, and strain the marrow; mix all well together, until nearly cold and put in pots.

Perfume for Linen.—Lavender flowers half pound (free from stalk), dried thyme and mint, of each, half ounce, ground cloves and caraway, of each, a quarter ounce, common salt dried one ounce; mix well together, and put into cambric or silk bags.

Chapped Hands.—Unsalted lard a quarter pound, yolks of two new-laid eggs, rose water to mix well; add a large spoonful of honey, and enough of fine oatmeal or almond flour to work it into a paste.

Chapped Lips.—Borax, benjamin, and spermaceti, of each, a quarter ounce, a pinch of alkanet root, a large juicy apple chopped, a bunch of black grapes bruised, a quarter pound of unsalted butter, two ounces of bees wax; put all into a new tin saucepan; simmer gently till the wax, etc., are dissolved, and then strain it through a linen; when cold, melt it again and pour it into small pots or boxes; or, if to make in form of cakes, use the bottom of teacups.

Excessive Sweating of the Hands or Feet.—A useful prescription for excessive sweating of the hands and feet is: Carbolic acid 1 part, burnt alum 4 parts, starch 200 parts, French chalk 50 parts, oil of lemon 2 parts; sprinkle on feet, or inside of stockings or gloves, etc.

Chilblains.—Wash the chilblains with tincture of myrrh diluted in a little water.

Burns.—Lime water beaten up with sweet oil is an excellent ointment for painful burns.

Sprains.—Sal ammoniac half an ounce, rose water half pint, cologne water a tablespoonful. Bags wet with the lotion should be laid on the injured part, and changed when they get dry.

Sunburn.—This may occur in grade from a slight reddening of the face to an inflammation attended with blistering. Soothing applications and avoiding the cause are the indications. Oxide of zinc ointment, cosmoline and zinc ointment, in equal parts, or dusting powders of starch or rice flour, are useful. A solution of subnitrate of bismuth, or bicarbonate of soda, has some value for removing freckles. Powdered nitre, moistened with water and applied to the face night and morning, has also been recommended for removing freckles.

To Remove Blackheads.—Use hot water, a pure vegetable oil soap and a rough wash-cloth faithfully and vigorously at least twice a day. The friction will also help to rid you of the enlarged pores. The following ointment applied directly after washing the face is excellent for softening the obnoxious little "flesh worms." Allow it to remain on all night or at least three or four hours, and then scrub off with soap and warm water: Ergotine six grammes, oxide of zinc fourteen grammes, vaseline sixty grammes.

For Obstinate Cases of Blackheads.—For very obstinate cases of blackheads anoint the face with tincture of green soap after washing it with hot water. Let the soap remain on for a few minutes, then rinse it off with warm water. A few weeks treatment will soften the skin so that all of the blackheads, which have not already succumbed to the action of the soap and water, can be easily pressed out with the fingers. The green soap may make the face very tender. In that case apply some soothing cream or lotion directly after using it. The following is excellent: Rose water two ounces, almond oil two ounces, white wax one-half ounce, spermaceti one-half ounce.

To Remove Freckles.—Try the following: Bichloride of mercury two grammes, sulphate of zinc four grammes, spirits of camphor five grammes, distilled water one hundred and fifty grammes. Dilute with three parts of water and apply to the spots with a piece of soft linen at night. Label the bottle plainly with red ink, as bichloride of mercury is a poison and should be handled discreetly. It will not, however, injure your face in the least when used as here directed.

For Pimples on the Face.—Camphor ten grains, acacia (pulverized) twenty grains, sulphur (precipitated) two drachms, lime water two ounces, rose water two ounces. Apply to the face with a soft cloth at bed-time. Allow to dry and brush off the excess of powder.

For Chapped Hands and Face.—Compound tincture of benzoin ten drops, alcohol two drachms, rose water one-half drachm, glycerine one ounce. Apply to chapped surfaces at night after they have been washed with soap and warm water and thoroughly dried.


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Last Modified: Monday, 13-May-2013 15:31:47 EDT