by Lina Beard
Ten yards of material cut in two breadths of five yards each are required for these curtains. The breadths must be sewed together lengthwise and then passed through a small wooden hoop which has been gilded or painted white.
When the hoop is directly in the middle of the breadths, the material must be brought together close to the hoop and two of the edges sewed or basted together. This seam is to go at the back and keep the curtain from parting and hanging in two strips.
A ruffle of the same material, or lace, sewed on the edge and across the ends of the drapery gives it a soft, lacy effect. The ribbons which loop the curtains at either side should be of the prevailing colors of the room. If the furniture is white and gold, they should be yellow.
The hoop can hang from a brass chain fastened to a hook in the ceiling.
The bureau belonging to this style of furniture is too clumsy for our use, although without the mirror it will be convenient as a chest of drawers. Brass handles in place of knobs will improve it.
A Dressing-table
to take its place, like the one shown in Fig. 370, can be made of a small kitchen-table. The mirror suspended over it should have a broad flat frame of white pine, varnished or painted to match the furniture. Almost any cabinet-maker can frame a mirror in this way. Bracket candlesticks made of brass, which are very inexpensive, should be fastened to the frame on either side of the glass with brass nails or brass-headed tacks.
Fig. 370.—What can be done with Common Unpainted Furniture.
With a brass handle on the drawer, a pretty scarf of linen crash, ornamented with drawn work or outline, thrown over the table and hanging down at each end, and the addition of pincushion and toilet articles, this toilet-table looks very attractive and readily challenges admiration.
Fig. 371.—The Ordinary Unpainted Washstand in a New Light.
Washstand.
A piece of white matting bound at top and bottom, with yellow cotton cloth for a splasher, as in Fig. 371, and a pretty scarf and toilet-set, presents this most ordinary washstand in a new light.
Three common kitchen-chairs and one rocker, when painted white or varnished, as the case may be, and cushioned in pretty light-colored cretonne, completes this novel, pretty, and remarkably inexpensive set of furniture.
The curtains next to the windows should be of the same material as that used for the bed-drapery, with the inner one of cretonne like the chair-cushions.
White matting is suitable for the floor in summer, and during the cold weather it can be mostly covered with a pretty ingrain rug or art square, as it is called.
Instead of using gilt, the rings and bands on the furniture may be blue or red, in which case the trimmings of the room should correspond.
Fig. 372.—Hall Seat Made of a Common Wooden Bench.
A Hall Seat.
As another illustration of what can be done with the most ordinary piece of furniture, we have chosen a common wooden bench, and by painting it black and giving it a dark-red cushion with tassels at each corner, have transformed it into quite an elegant hall-seat. Fig. 372 gives the effect.
Fig. 373—Window Seat and Book-shelves Combined, Made of Boxes.
Fig. 373 shows a
Window Seat and Book-shelves Combined,
made of boxes. Eight soap-boxes of the same size are required for the shelves, and a packing-box about two feet high, two feet in width, and as long as the window is wide, for the seat.
Remove the tops and two sides of the soap-boxes, and bore holes with a red-hot poker in one corner of the bottoms of six of the boxes, and in two of the tops which have been removed, making the holes one inch from either edge (Fig. 374). In the other two boxes bore in the same place, but not entirely through, making the holes about half an inch deep.
Place these last two on the floor and pile the others on top of them, three on each, nailing the bottom of each box to the top edge of the one beneath it. On the two upper boxes nail the tops in which the holes have been made.
Fig. 374.—Hole in Corner of Box for Book-shelves.
Have ready two slender bamboo rods about four feet long. Insert a rod in the hole in the top of an upper box and let it pass down, slipping it through the holes in the bottoms of the other boxes and fitting it in the cavity in the lower box.
In like manner put the other rod in place through the other pile of boxes.
If the packing-box has a cover, it should be fastened on with hinges, so that it may be used for a shoe-box as well as a seat; if it has not, turn it upside down, place the soap-boxes at each end and nail them to it.
Paint the shelves black or the color of the wood-work in the room, and upholster the seat and the boxes on either side of it with cushions made of strong muslin stuffed with excelsior and covered with cretonne.
Fasten the edges of the side cushions to the boxes with gimp braid and tacks. Make a deep plaiting of the cretonne and tack it across the front of the large box. When there is a lid a narrow plaiting must be tacked across its front edge, which will, when the box is closed, lap over the top of the deeper plaiting.
That this combination of window-seat and shelves is both comfortable and convenient, one may easily imagine, and that it adds not a little to the furnishing of a room, we leave to our illustration to show.
CHAPTER XL.
SOMETHING ABOUT MANTEL-PIECES AND FIRE-PLACES.
THE spirit of hospitality and comfort presides over the ruddy blaze of an open fire; yet, as we gather cosily around and bask in the delightful warmth and radiance, its cheerful influence is too often retarded by its very unattractive surroundings. This lovely household spirit should have a more fitting habitation than the one frequently accorded it. The fire-place should at least be pleasant to look upon, and not depend wholly upon the bright fire to make it inviting.
The ordinary marble and marbleized slate or iron mantelpieces are the reverse of beautiful, but they may be very much improved at the expense of a small outlay of money, time, and trouble.
The examples we give here of the treatment of commonplace mantel-pieces are simple, and can easily be managed by the girls themselves, with but trifling aid from a carpenter.
In a room occupied at one time by a young friend of the writer, there was an old-fashioned white-pine mantel-piece. It was stiff and plain, with no attempt at ornamentation, and the border of white marble, about five inches wide around the fire-place, was apparently inserted to protect the wood from the heat of the fire, and not for beauty. A hint from the writer was sufficient to set this girl’s brain and fingers to work. Soon the white-marble border was transformed into a row of blue and white tiles, which were not only pretty and appropriate, but were also the means of dispelling the impressions of coldness and hardness the marble gave.
Fig. 375.—Shelves over Mantel-Piece.
The manner of effecting this transformation was simple enough. First the marble was divided into squares, the lines being painted black; then conventional patterns were sketched with a pencil on the squares and painted in blue, oil-paints being used for the purpose.
How the mantel-piece was otherwise reformed, the writer never saw, but it might have been greatly improved and altered by the addition of shelves above, or a suitable lambrequin upon the mantel-shelf. However that may or might have been, the tiles were a successful bit of work, and the painting of them within the capabilities of almost anyone. Then why should we long in vain for a tiled mantel-piece, when we have it in our power to gratify the wish?
On a plain white-marble mantel a border around the fireplace may be marked out, and a set of tiles painted, which will look just as pretty as any that can be bought.
If the rest of the marble is painted black or brown, the tiles will look as though they were set in, and the contrast will make them more effective.
Fig. 375 illustrates our suggestion of putting shelves over the mantel-piece. The braces can be bought at any hardware-store, and the shelves may be of black-walnut or pine boards, stained or painted to match the ma
ntel-piece.
Fig. 376 shows the effect of a mantel-shelf covered with enamel-cloth made in imitation of leather. The color of the material used for the one from which our sketch is taken is dark red, and has a dull, soft finish like Russian leather. It is ornamented with small brass curtain-rings sewed on in points or pyramids; a strip of enamel-cloth is also put behind the shelf, and at the top edge a piece of narrow gilt moulding is tacked.
Fig. 376.—Mantel-Shelf covered with Enamel-Cloth ornamented with Brass Curtain-Rings.
A mantel-board of pine, two inches longer and two inches wider than the shelf, is always necessary when there is to be a lambrequin, for upon this the lambrequin is tacked.
First, the board must be neatly covered with the material, enamel-cloth or whatever is used, the edges of the cloth being brought over and tacked under the edge of the shelf; then the strip composing the lambrequin must be turned in at the top edge and tacked across the front and two ends of the board with brass-headed tacks. It looks better if the corners of the board are rounded as shown in illustration.
Fig. 377.—Enamel-Cloth ornamented with Brass Rings.
The piece at the back of the shelf should be about eighteen inches deep and must be tacked at top and bottom with small tacks, the edge at each end being turned in and tacked to the wall with brass-headed tacks.
Fig. 377 is the diagram of enamel-cloth ornamented with brass rings, and shows a section of the pattern. The bottom row of rings should be sewed on first, and the edge of the cloth turned up as the rings are fastened on. The stitches which hold the rings catch the hem also. This first row of rings should extend half way below the edge of the cloth, as shown in Fig. 377. Strong yellow embroidery-silk or saddlers’ silk is the best to sew them on with.
The gilt moulding can be bought by the foot and small headless nails are furnished to tack it with.
Another mantel is treated in very much the same manner as Fig. 376, the difference being that, instead of enamel-cloth, the covering for the shelf and the piece at the back are dark-red canton flannel, and around the edge of the shelf is tacked a worsted fringe, about six inches deep, matching the canton-flannel in color. This has a warm, comfortable look and is quite appropriate for a bedroom, while the other should be used only in a library or dining-room.
Fig. 378.—Shelves around Projecting Chimney.
The writer was once invited into a young girl’s room which was very attractive in its daintiness. It was not pretty in shape, and an uncompromising chimney, in which there was no fire-place, projected into the room; but taste had overcome these difficulties, and the effect produced was decidedly pleasing.
Pretty wall-paper and the arrangement of the furniture helped very much, but the greatest triumph was in subduing the awkwardness of that chimney by surrounding it with a set of shelves for holding pretty bits of bric-à-brac.
In case another girl may have the same difficulty to surmount in decorating her room, we give an outline drawing of the shelves (Fig. 378) that she may see and profit thereby.
CHAPTER XLI.
HOME-MADE CANDY.
WE have noticed that in none of the books we have seen, which were written especially for the amusement and entertainment of girls, has there been any directions or recipes for making candy. Knowing by experience that most girls consider candy-making one of their prime winter enjoyments, we consider the omission to be quite an important one, and we will in this chapter endeavor to supply the much-wished-for information.
Though cooking in general may not be regarded with much favor by the average school-girl, she is always anxious to learn how to make candy, and hails a new recipe as a boon.
The following recipes for peanut-candy, butter-scotch, and molasses-candy were obtained from a friend who makes the best home-made candy it has ever been our good-fortune to taste, and as she recommends them, we may rely upon their being excellent. We give them, with her comments, just as she wrote them.
Delicious Peanut-Candy.
Shell your peanuts and chop them fine; measure them in a cup, and take just the same quantity of granulated sugar as you have peanuts. Put the sugar in a skillet, or spider, on the fire, and keep moving the skillet around until the sugar is dissolved; then put in the peanuts and pour into buttered tins.
This is delicious, and so quickly made.
Butter-Scotch.
2 cups of brown sugar.
cup of butter.
4 tablespoonfuls of molasses.
2 tablespoonfuls of water.
2 tablespoonfuls of vinegar.
Boil until it hardens when dropped into cold water, then pour into buttered tins.
Molasses-Candy.
2 cups of brown sugar,
cup of New Orleans molasses,
cup of vinegar and water mixed.
A piece of butter half the size of an egg.
When the candy hardens in cold water, pour into shallow buttered tins, and as soon as it is cool enough to handle, pull it until it is of a straw-color. Splendid!
Here are two recipes which another friend has kindly sent us:
Chocolate-Creams.
To the white of 1 egg add an equal quantity of cold water. Stir in 1 pound of confectioner’s sugar. Flavor with vanilla. Stir until fine and smooth; then mould into balls and drop into melted chocolate.
To melt the chocolate, scrape and put it in a tin-cup or small sauce-pan over a kettle where it will steam. Let the chocolate be melting while the cream is being prepared.
Walnut-Creams.
Make the cream as for chocolate-drops and mould into larger balls. Place the half of an English walnut on either side and press them into the cream.
The cream prepared in this way, we have found, can be used for various kinds of candy.
Small pieces of fruit of any kind and nuts can be enclosed in the cream, making a great variety. Chocolate may be mixed with it; and if strong, clear coffee is used in place of the water, the candy will have the coffee flavor and color which some people like.
Walnut and Fruit Glacé.
Put 1 cup of sugar and ½ cup of water in a sauce-pan and stir until the sugar is all dissolved; then place it over the fire and let it boil until it hardens and is quite crisp when dropped in cold water. Do not stir it after it is put on the fire.
When cooked sufficiently, dip out a spoonful at a time and drop in buttered tins, leaving a space of an inch or so between each spoonful. Place on each piece of candy the half of a walnut, or the fruit which has previously been prepared, and pour over them enough candy to cover them, always keeping each piece separate.
Any kind of fruit can be made into glacé. When using oranges, quarter them and remove the seeds. Strawberries, in their season, and peaches also make delicious glacé.
The remainder of our recipes have been taken from family recipe-books, and although we have not tested them ourselves, we think it may be safely said that they are good ones.
Marshmallow Paste.
Dissolve 1 pound of clean white gum-arabic in one quart of water; strain, add 1 pound of refined sugar, and place over the fire. Stir continually until the syrup is dissolved and the mixture has become of the consistency of honey. Next add gradually the beaten whites of 8 eggs; stir the mixture all the time until it loses its thickness and does not adhere to the finger. Flavor with vanilla or rose. Pour into a tin slightly dusted with powdered starch, and when cool divide into squares with a sharp knife.
Toasted Marsh-mallows.
Tie a string on the end of a cane or stick, fasten a bent pin on the end of the string, and stick the pin into a marsh-mallow-drop. Hold the marsh-mallow suspended over an open fire and let it gradually toast. When it begins to melt and run down it is done.
For a small party toasting marsh-mallows will be found quite a merry pastime, and a great many persons consider the candy much better for being thus cooked the second time.
Molasses Peanut-Candy.
2 cups of molasses.
1 cup of brown sugar.
/> 1 tablespoonful of butter.
1 tablespoonful of vinegar.
While the candy is boiling remove the shells and brown skins from the peanuts, lay the nuts in buttered pans, and when the candy is done pour it over them. While it is still warm cut in blocks.
Chocolate-Caramels.
2 cups of sugar.
1 cup of molasses.
1 cup of milk.
1 tablespoonful of butter.
1 tablespoonful of flour.
½ pound of Baker’s chocolate.
Grease your pot, put in sugar, molasses, and milk; boil fifteen minutes, and add butter and flour stirred to a cream. Let it boil five minutes, then add the chocolate, grated, and boil until quite thick. Grease shallow pans and pour in the candy half an inch thick, marking it in squares before it becomes hard.
Pop-Corn Balls.
6 quarts of popped corn.
1 pint of molasses.
Boil the molasses about fifteen minutes; then put the corn into a large pan, pour the molasses over it, and stir briskly until thoroughly mixed. Then, with clean hands, make into balls of the desired size.
Saint Valentine.
CHAPTER XLII
Saint Valentine’s Day.
DID it never occur to any of you to wonder who Saint Valentine was, and why we should commemorate his day by sending cards or letters containing all sorts of nonsense, like true-lovers’ knots, hearts pierced with arrows, etc.?
