BALDNESS.
Gentlemen are more liable to baldness than ladies, owing, no doubt, to the use of the close hat, which confines and overheats the head. If the hair is found to be falling out, the first thing to do is to look to the hat and see that it is light and thoroughly ventilated. There is no greater enemy to the hair than the silk dress-hat. It is best to lay this hat aside altogether and adopt a light felt or straw in its place.
Long, flowing hair on a man is not in good taste, and will indicate him to the observer as a person of unbalanced mind and unpleasantly erratic character—a man, in brief, who seeks to impress others with the fact that he is eccentric, something which a really eccentric person never attempts.
THE BEARD.
Those who shave should be careful to do so every morning. Nothing looks worse than a shabby beard. Some persons whose beards are strong should shave twice a day, especially if they are going to a party in the evening.
The style of the growth of the beard should be governed by the character of the face. But whatever the style be, the great point is to keep it well brushed and trimmed, and to avoid any appearance of wildness or inattention. The full, flowing beard of course requiresmore looking after in the way of cleanliness, than any other. It should be thoroughly washed and brushed at least twice a day, as dust is sure to accumulate in it, and it is very easy to suffer it to become objectionable to one's self as well as to others. If it is naturally glossy, it is better to avoid the use of oil or pomatum. The moustache should be worn neatly and not over-large. There is nothing that so adds to native manliness as the full beard if carefully and neatly kept.
THE HAND.
The beautiful hand is long and slender, with tapering fingers and pink, filbert-shaped nails. The hand to be in proper proportion to the rest of the body, should be as long as from the point of the chin to the edge of the hair on the forehead.
The hands should be kept scrupulously clean, and therefore should be very frequently washed—not merely rinsed in soap and water, but thoroughly lathered, and scrubbed with a soft nail-brush. In cold weather the use of lukewarm water is unobjectionable, after which the hands should be dipped into cold water and very carefully dried on a fine towel.
Be careful always to dry the hands thoroughly, and rub them briskly for some time afterward. When this is not sufficiently attended to in cold weather, the hands chap and crack. When this occurs, rub a few drops of honey over them when dry, or anoint them with cold cream or glycerine before going to bed.
CHAPPED HANDS.
As cold weather is the usual cause of chapped hands, so the winter season brings with it a cure for them. A thorough washing in snow and soap will cure the worst case of chapped hands, and leave them beautifully soft.
TO MAKE THE HANDS WHITE AND DELICATE.
Should you wish to make your hands white and delicate, you might wash them in milk and water for a day or two. On retiring to rest, rub them well over with some palm oil and put on a pair of woolen gloves. The hands should be thoroughly washed with hot water and soap the next morning, and a pair of soft leather gloves worn during the day. They should be frequently rubbed together to promote circulation. Sunburnt hands may be washed in lime-water or lemon-juice.
TREATMENT OF WARTS.
Warts, which are more common with young people than with adults, are very unsightly, and are sometimes very difficult to get rid of. The best plan is to buy a stick of lunar caustic, which is sold in a holder and case at the druggist's for the purpose, dip it in water, and touch the wart every morning and evening, care being taken to cut away the withered skin before repeating the operation. A still better plan is to apply acetic acid gently once a day with a camel's hair pencil to the summit of the wart. Care should be taken not to allow this acid to touch any of the surrounding skin; to prevent this the finger or hand at the base of the wart may be covered with wax during the operation.
THE NAILS.
Nothing is so repulsive as to see a lady or gentleman, however well dressed they may otherwise be, with unclean nails. It always results from carelessness and inattention to the minor details of the toilet, which is most reprehensible. The nails should be cut about once a week—certainly not oftener. This should be accomplished just after washing, the nail being softer at such a time. Care should be taken not to cut them too short, though, if they are left too long, they will frequently get torn and broken. They should be nicely rounded at the corners. Recollect the filbert-shaped nail is considered the most beautiful. Never bite the nails; it not only is a most disagreeable habit, but tends to make the nails jagged, deformed and difficult to clean, besides gives a red and stumpy appearance to the finger-tips.
Some persons are troubled by the cuticle adhering to the nail as it grows. This may be pressed down by the towel after washing; or should that not prove efficacious, it must be loosened round the edge with some blunt instrument. On no account scrape the nails with a view to polishing their surface. Such an operation only tends to make them wrinkled.
Absolute smallness of hand is not essential to beauty, which requires that the proper proportions should be observed in the human figure. With proper care the hand may be retained beautiful, soft and shapely, andyet perform its fair share of labor. The hands should always be protected by gloves when engaged in work calculated to injure them. Gloves are imperatively required for garden-work. The hands should always be washed carefully and dried thoroughly after such labor. If they are roughened by soap, rinse them in a little vinegar or lemon-juice, and they will become soft and smooth at once.
REMEDY FOR MOIST HANDS.
People afflicted with moist hands should revolutionize their habits, take more out-door exercise and more frequent baths. They should adopt a nutritious but not over-stimulating diet, and perhaps take a tonic of some sort. Local applications of starch-powder and the juice of lemon may be used to advantage.
THE FEET.
A well formed foot is broad at the sole, the toes well spread, each separate toe perfect and rounded in form. The nails are regular and perfect in shape as those of the fingers. The second toe projects a little beyond the others, and the first, or big toe, stands slightly apart from the rest and is slightly lifted. The feet, from the circumstance of their being so much confined by boots and shoes, require more care in washing than the rest of the body. Yet they do not always get this care. The hands receive frequent washings every day. Once a week is quite as often as many people can bestow the same attention upon their feet. A tepid bath at about80 or 90 degrees, should be used. The feet may remain in the water about five minutes, and the instant they are taken out they should be rapidly and thoroughly dried by being well rubbed with a coarse towel. Sometimes bran is used in the water. Few things are more invigorating and refreshing after a long walk, or getting wet in the feet, than a tepid foot-bath, clean stockings and a pair of easy shoes. After the bath is the time for paring the toe-nails, as they are so much softer and more pliant after having been immersed in warm water.
TREATMENT FOR MOIST OR DAMP FEET.
Some persons are troubled with moist or damp feet. This complaint arises more particularly during the hot weather in summer-time, and the greatest care and cleanliness should be exercised in respect to it. Persons so afflicted should wash their feet twice a day in soap and warm water, after which they should put on clean socks. Should this fail to cure, they may, after being washed as above, be rinsed, and then thoroughly rubbed with a mixture consisting of half a pint of warm water and three tablespoonfuls of concentrated solution of chloride of soda.
BLISTERS ON THE FEET.
People who walk much are frequently afflicted with blisters. The best preventative of these is to have easy, well-fitting boots and woolen socks. Should blisters occur, a very good plan is to pass a large darning-needle threaded with worsted through the blister lengthwise,leaving an inch or so of the thread outside at each end. This keeps the scurf-skin close to the true skin, and prevents any grit or dirt entering. The thread absorbs the matter, and the old skin remains until the new one grows. A blister should not be punctured save in this manner, as it may degenerate into a sore and become very troublesome.
CHILBLAINS.
To avoid chilblains on the feet it is necessary to observe three rules: 1. Avoid getting the feet wet; if they become so, change the shoes and stockings at once. 2. Wear lamb's wool socks or stockings. 3. Never under any circumstances "toast your toes" before the fire, especially if you are very cold. Frequent bathing of the feet in a strong solution of alum is useful in preventing the coming of chilblains. On the first indication of any redness of the toes and sensation of itching it would be well to rub them carefully with warm spirits of rosemary, to which a little turpentine has been added. Then a piece of lint soaked in camphorated spirits, opodeldoc or camphor liniment may be applied and retained on the part. Should the chilblain break, dress it twice daily with a plaster of equal parts of lard and beeswax, with half the quantity in weight of oil of turpentine.
THE TOE NAILS.
The toe-nails do not grow so fast as the finger-nails, but they should be looked after and trimmed at least once a fortnight. They are much more subject to irregularity of growth than the finger-nails, owing totheir confined position. If the nails show a tendency to grow in at the sides, the feet should be bathed in hot water, pieces of lint introduced beneath the parts with an inward tendency, and the nail itself scraped longitudinally.
Pare the toe-nails squarer than those of the fingers. Keep them a moderate length—long enough to protect the toe, but not so long as to cut holes in the stockings. Always cut the nails; never tear them, as is too frequently the practice. Be careful not to destroy the spongy substance below the nails, as that is the great guard to prevent them going into the quick.
CORNS.
It is tolerably safe to say that those who wear loose, easy-fitting shoes and boots will never be troubled with corns. Some people are more liable to corns than others, and some will persist in the use of tightly-fitting shoes in spite of corns.
HOW TO HAVE SHOES MADE.
The great fault with modern shoes is that their soles are made too narrow. If one would secure perfect healthfulness of the feet, he should go to the shoemaker and step with his stockinged feet on a sheet of paper. Let the shoemaker mark with a pencil upon the paper the exact size of his foot, and then make him a shoe whose sole shall be as broad as this outlined foot.
Still more destructive of the beauty and symmetry of our women's feet have been the high, narrow heels somuch worn lately. They make it difficult to walk, and even in some cases permanently cripple the feet. A shoe, to be comfortable, should have a broad sole and a heel of moderate height, say one-half an inch, as broad at the bottom as at the top.
TO REMOVE FRECKLES.
B
RUISEand squeeze the juice out of common chick-weed, and to this juice add three times its quantity of soft water. Bathe the skin with this for five or ten minutes morning and evening, and wash afterwards with clean water.
Elder flowers treated and applied exactly in the same manner as above. When the flowers are not to be had, the distilled water from them, which may be procured from any druggist, will answer the purpose.
A good freckle lotion is made of honey, one ounce, mixed with one pint of lukewarm water. Apply when cold.
Carbonate of potassa, twenty grains; milk of almonds, three ounces; oil of sassafras, three drops. Mix and apply two or three times a day.
One ounce of alcohol; half a dram salts tartar; one dram oil bitter almonds. Let stand for one day and apply every second day.
FOR PIMPLES ON THE FACE.
Wash the face in a solution composed of one teaspoonful of carbolic acid to a pint of water. This is an excellent purifying lotion, and may be used on the most delicate skin. Be careful not to get any of it in the eyes as it will weaken them.
One tablespoonful of borax to half a pint of water is an excellent remedy for cutaneous eruptions, canker, ringworm, etc.
Pulverize a piece of alum the size of a walnut, dissolve it in one ounce of lemon juice, and add one ounce of alcohol. Apply once or twice a day.
Mix two ounces of rose-water with one dram of sulphate of zinc. Wet the face gently and let it dry. Then touch the affected part with cream.
WASH FOR THE COMPLEXION.
A teaspoonful of the flour of sulphur and a wine-glassful of lime-water, well shaken and mixed; half a wine-glass of glycerine and a wine-glass of rose water. Rub it on the face every night before going to bed. Shake well before using.
Another prescription, used by hunters to keep away the black flies and mosquitoes, is said to leave the skin very clear and fair, and is as follows: Mix one spoonful of the best tar in a pint of pure olive oil or almond oil, by heating the two together in a tin cup set in boiling water. Stir till completely mixed and smooth, putting in more oil if the compound is too thick to runeasily. Rub this on the face when going to bed, and lay patches of soft cloth on the cheeks and forehead to keep the tar from rubbing off. The bed linen must be protected by cloth folded and thrown over the pillows.
The whites of four eggs boiled in rose-water; half an ounce of alum; half an ounce of sweet almonds; beat the whole together until it assumes the consistency of paste. Spread upon a silk or muslin mask, to be worn at night.
Take a small piece of the gum benzoin and boil it in spirits of wine till it becomes a rich tincture. In using it pour fifteen drops into a glass of water, wash the face and hands and allow it to dry.
BORACIC ACID FOR SKIN DISEASES.
Boracic acid has been used with great success as an external application in the treatment of vegetable parasitic diseases of the skin. A solution of a dram of the acid to an ounce of water, or as much of the acid as the water will take up, is found to meet the requirements of the case satisfactorily. The affected parts should be well bathed in the solution twice a day and well rubbed.
TO SOFTEN THE SKIN.
Mix half an ounce of glycerine with half an ounce of alcohol, and add four ounces of rose-water. Shake well together and it is ready for use. This is a splendid remedy for chapped hands.
REMEDY FOR RINGWORM.
Apply a solution of the root of common narrow-leafed dock, which belongs to the botanical genus ofRumex. Use vinegar for the solvent.
Dissolve a piece of sulphate of potash, the size of a walnut, in one ounce of water. Apply night and morning for a couple of days, and it will disappear.
TO REMOVE SUNBURN.
Take two drams of borax, one dram of alum, one dram of camphor, half an ounce of sugar-candy, and a pound of ox-gall. Mix and stir well for ten minutes, and stir it three or four times a fortnight. When clear and transparent, strain through a blotting paper and bottle for use.
TO PREVENT HAIR FALLING OUT.
Ammonia one ounce, rosemary one ounce, cantharides four drams, rose-water four ounces, glycerine one ounce. First wet the head with cold water, then apply the mixture, rubbing briskly.
Vinegar of cantharides half an ounce, eau-de-cologne one ounce, rose-water one ounce. The scalp should be brushed briskly until it becomes red, and the lotion should then be applied to the roots of the hair twice a day.
TO BEAUTIFY THE HAIR.
Take two ounces of olive oil, four ounces of good bay rum, and one dram of the oil of almonds; mix and shake well. This will darken the hair.
HAIR OILS.
Mix two ounces of castor oil with three ounces of alcohol, and add two ounces of olive oil. Perfume to liking.
TO MAKE POMADES FOR THE HAIR.
Take the marrow out of a beef shank bone, melt it in a vessel placed over or in boiling water, then strain and scent to liking, with ottar of roses or other perfume.
Unsalted lard five ounces, olive oil two and a half ounces, castor oil one-quarter ounce, yellow wax and spermaceti one-quarter ounce. These ingredients are to be liquified over a warm bath, and when cool, perfume to liking.
Fresh beef marrow, boiled with a little almond oil or sweet oil, and scented with ottar of roses or other mild perfume.
A transparent hair pomade is made as follows: Take half a pint of fine castor oil and an ounce of white wax. Stir until it gets cool enough to thicken, when perfume may be stirred in; geranium, bergamot or lemon oil may be used.
GERMAN METHOD OF TREATING THE HAIR.
The women of Germany have remarkably fine and luxuriant hair. The following is their method of managing it: About once in two or three weeks, boil for half an hour or more a large handful of bran in a quart of soft water; strain into a basin, and when tepid, rub into the water a little white soap. With this wash thehead thoroughly, using a soft linen cloth or towel, thoroughly dividing the hair so as to reach the roots. Then take the yolk of an egg, slightly beaten in a saucer, and with the fingers rub it into the roots of the hair. Let it remain a few minutes, and then wash it off entirely with a cloth dipped in pure water. Rinse the head well till the yolk of the egg has disappeared from it, then wipe and rub it dry with a towel, and comb the hair from the head, parting it with the fingers, then apply some soft pomatum. In winter it is best to do all this in a warm room.
TO KEEP THE HAIR FROM TURNING GREY.
Take the hulls of butternuts, about four ounces, and infuse in a quart of water, and to this add half an ounce of copperas. Apply with a soft brush every two or three days. This preparation is harmless, and is far better than those dyes made of nitrate of silver.
Oxide of bismuth four drams, spermaceti four drams, pure hog's lard four ounces. Melt the two last and add the first.
TO CLEANSE THE HAIR AND SCALP.
Beat up a fresh egg and rub it well into the hair, or if more convenient, rub it into the hair without beating. Rub the egg in until a lather is formed, occasionally wetting the hands in warm water softened by borax. By the time a lather is formed, the scalp is clean, then rinse the egg all out in a basin of warm water, containing a tablespoonful of powdered borax: after that rinse in a basin of clean water.
HAIR WASH.
Bay rum six ounces, aromatic spirits of ammonia half an ounce, bergamot oil six drops. Mix.
TO MAKE THE HAIR GROW.
If the head be perfectly bald, nothing will ever cause the hair to grow again. If the scalp be glossy, and no small hairs are discernible, the roots or follicles are dead, and can not be resuscitated. However if small hairs are to be seen, there is hope. Brush well, and bathe the bald spot three or four times a week with cold, soft water; carbonate of ammonia one dram, tincture of cantharides four drams, bay rum four ounces, castor oil two ounces. Mix well and use it every day.
SEA FOAM OR DRY SHAMPOO.
Take a pint of alcohol, half pint of bay rum, and half an ounce of spirits of ammonia, and one dram of salts tartar. Shake well together and it is ready for use. Pour a quantity on the head, rub well with the palm of the hand. It will produce a thick foam, and will cleanse the scalp. This is used generally by first-class barbers.
BARBER'S SHAMPOO.
To one pint of warm water add half an ounce of salts tartar. Cut up very fine a piece of castile soap, the size of two crackers, and mix it, shaking the mixture well, and it is ready for use.
CLEANING GOLD JEWELRY.
Gold ornaments may be kept bright and clean with soap and warm water, scrubbing them well with a soft nail brush. They may be dried in sawdust of box-wood. Imitation jewelry may be treated in the same way.
TO LOOSEN STOPPERS OF TOILET BOTTLES.
Let a drop of pure oil flow round the stopper and let the bottle stand a foot or two from the fire. After a time tap the stopper smartly, but not too hard, with the handle of a hair brush. If this is not effectual, use a fresh drop of oil and repeat the process. It is almost sure to succeed.
TO MAKE BANDOLINE.
Half a pint of water, rectified spirits with an equal quantity of water three ounces, gum tragacanth one and a half drams. Add perfume, let the mixture stand for a day or two and then strain.
Simmer an ounce of quince seed in a quart of water for forty minutes, strain, cool, add a few drops of scent, and bottle, corking tightly.
Iceland moss one-fourth of an ounce, boiled in a quart of water, and a little rectified spirit added, so that it will keep.
TO MAKE LIP-SALVE.
Melt in a jar placed in a basin of boiling water a quarter of an ounce each of white wax and spermaceti, flour of benzoin fifteen grains, and half an ounce of theoil of almonds. Stir till the mixture is cool. Color red with alkanet root.
TO CLEAN KID BOOTS.
Mix a little white of egg and ink in a bottle, so that the composition may be well shaken up when required for use. Apply to the kid with a piece of sponge and rub dry. The best thing to rub dry with is the palm of the hand. When the kid shows symptoms of cracking, rub in a few drops of sweet oil. The soles and heels should be polished with common blacking.
TO CLEAN PATENT-LEATHER BOOTS.
In cleaning patent-leather boots, first remove all the dirt upon them with a sponge or flannel; then the boot should be rubbed lightly over with a paste consisting of two spoonfuls of cream and one of linseed oil, both of which require to be warmed before being mixed. Polish with a soft cloth.
TO REMOVE STAINS AND SPOTS FROM SILK.
Boil five ounces of soft water and six ounces of powdered alum for a short time, and pour it into a vessel to cool. Warm it for use, and wash the stained part with it and leave dry.
Wash the soiled part with ether, and the grease will disappear.
We often find that lemon-juice, vinegar, oil of vitriol and other sharp corrosives, stain dyed garments. Sometimes, by adding a little pearlash to a soap-lather and passing the silks through these, the faded color will be restored. Pearlash and warm water will sometimes do alone, but it is the most efficacious to use the soap-lather and pearlash together.
TOOTHACHE PREVENTIVE.
Use flower of sulphur as a tooth powder every night, rubbing the teeth and gums with a rather hard toothbrush. If done after dinner, too, all the better. It preserves the teeth and does not communicate any smell whatever to the mouth.
HOW TO WHITEN LINEN.
Stains occasioned by fruit, iron rust and other similar causes may be removed by applying to the parts injured a weak solution of the chloride of lime, the cloth having been previously well washed. The parts subjected to this operation should be subsequently rinsed in soft, clear, warm water, without soap, and be immediately dried in the sun.
Oxalic acid diluted with water will accomplish the same end.
TO TAKE STAINS OUT OF SILK.
Mix together in a vial two ounces of essence of lemon and one ounce of oil of turpentine. Grease and other spots in silk must be rubbed gently with a linen rag dipped in the above composition. To remove acid stains from silks, apply with a soft rag, spirits of ammonia.
TO REMOVE STAINS FROM WHITE COTTON GOODS.
For mildew, rub in salt and some buttermilk, and expose it to the influence of a hot sun. Chalk and soap or lemon juice and salt are also good. As fast as the spots become dry, more should be rubbed on, and the garment should be kept in the sun until the spots disappear. Some one of the preceding things will extract most kinds of stains, but a hot sun is necessary to render any one of them effectual.
Scalding water will remove fruit stains. So also will hartshorn diluted with warm water, but it will be necessary to apply it several times.
Common salt rubbed on fruit stains before they become dry will extract them.
Colored cotton goods that have ink spilled on them, should be soaked in lukewarm sour milk.
TO REMOVE SPOTS OF PITCH OR TAR.
Scrape off all the pitch or tar you can, then saturate the spots with sweet oil or lard; rub it in well, and let it remain in a warm place for an hour.
TO EXTRACT PAINT FROM GARMENTS.
Saturate the spot with spirits of turpentine, let it remain a number of hours, then rub it between the hands; it will crumble away without injury either to the texture or color of any kind of woolen, cotton or silk goods.
TO CLEAN SILKS AND RIBBONS.
Take equal quantities of soft lye-soap, alcohol or gin, and molasses. Put the silk on a clean table without creasing; rub on the mixture with a flannel cloth. Rinse the silk well in cold, clear water, and hang it up to dry without wringing. Iron it before it gets dry, on the wrong side. Silks and ribbons treated in this way will look very nicely.
Camphene will extract grease and clean ribbons without changing the color of most things. They should be dried in the open air and ironed when pretty dry.
The water in which pared potatoes have been boiled is very good to wash black silks in; it stiffens and makes them glossy and black.
Soap-suds answer very well. They should be washed in two suds and not rinsed in clean water.
REMEDY FOR BURNT KID OR LEATHER SHOES.
If a lady has had the misfortune to put her shoes or slippers too near the stove, and thus had them burned, she can make them nearly as good as ever by spreading soft-soap upon them while they are still hot, and then, when they are cold, washing it off. It softens the leather and prevents it drawing up.
REMEDY FOR CORNS.
Soak the feet for half an hour two or three nights successively in a pretty strong solution of common soda. The alkali dissolves the indurated cuticle and the corncomes away, leaving a little cavity which, however, soon fills up.
Corns between the toes are generally more painful than others, and are frequently so situated as to be almost inaccessible to the usual remedies. They may be cured by wetting them several times a day with spirits of ammonia.
INFLAMED EYELIDS.
Take a slice of stale bread, cut as thin as possible, toast both sides well, but do not burn it; when cold soak it in cold water, then put it between a piece of old linen and apply, changing when it gets warm.
TO MAKE COLD CREAM.
Melt in a jar two ounces of white wax, half an ounce of spermaceti, and mix with a pint of sweet oil. Add perfume to suit.
Melt together an ounce of white wax, half an ounce of spermaceti, and mix with a pint of oil of sweet almonds and half a pint of rose-water. Beat to a paste.
TO MAKE ROSE-WATER.
Take half an ounce of powdered white sugar and two drams of magnesia. With these mix twelve drops of ottar of roses. Add a quart of water, two ounces of alcohol, mix in a gradual manner, and filter through blotting paper.
HOW TO WASH LACES.
Take a quart bottle and cover it over with the leg of a soft, firm stocking, sew it tightly above and below. Then wind the collar or lace smoothly around the covered bottle; take a fine needle and thread and sew very carefully around the outer edge of the collar or lace, catching every loop fast to the stocking. Then shake the bottle up and down in a pailful of warm soap-suds, occasionally rubbing the soiled places with a soft sponge. It must be rinsed well after the same manner in clean water. When the lace is clean, apply a very weak solution of gum arabic and stand the bottle in the sunshine to dry. Take off the lace very carefully when perfectly dry. Instead of ironing, lay it between the white leaves of a heavy book; or, if you are in a hurry, iron on flannel between a few thicknesses of fine muslin. Done up in this way, lace collars will wear longer, stay clean longer, and have a rich, new, lacy look that they will not have otherwise.
HOW TO DARKEN FADED FALSE HAIR.
The switches, curls and frizzes which fashion demands should be worn, will fade in course of time; and though they matched the natural hair perfectly at first, they will finally present a lighter tint. If the hair is brown this can be remedied. Obtain a yard of dark brown calico. Boil it until the color has well come out into the water. Then into this water dip the hair, and takeit out and dry it. Repeat the operation until it shall be of the required depth of shade.
PUTTING AWAY FURS FOR THE SUMMER.
When you are ready to put away furs and woolens, and want to guard against the depredations of moths, pack them securely in paper flour sacks and tie them up well. This is better than camphor or tobacco or snuff scattered among them in chests and drawers. Before putting your muffs away for the summer, twirl them by the cord at the ends, so that every hair will straighten. Put them in their boxes and paste a strip of paper where the lid fits on.
TO KEEP THE HAIR IN CURL.
To keep the hair in curl take a few quince-seed, boil them in water, and add perfumery if you like; wet the hair with this and it will keep in curl longer than from the use of any other preparation. It is also good to keep the hair in place on the forehead on going out in the wind.
PROTECTION AGAINST MOTHS.
Dissolve two ounces of camphor in half a pint each of alcohol and spirits of turpentine; keep in a stone bottle and shake before using. Dip blotting paper in the liquid, and place in the box with the articles to be preserved.
TO TAKE MILDEW OUT OF LINEN.
Wet the linen in soft water, rub it well with white soap, then scrape some fine chalk to powder, and rub itwell into the linen; lay it out on the grass in the sunshine, watching to keep it damp with soft water. Repeat the process the next day, and in a few hours the mildew will entirely disappear.
CURE FOR IN-GROWING NAILS ON TOES.
Take a little tallow and put it into a spoon, and heat it over a lamp until it becomes very hot; then pour it on the sore or granulation. The effect will be almost magical. The pain and tenderness will at once be relieved. The operation causes very little pain if the tallow is perfectly heated. Perhaps a repetition may be necessary in some cases.
TO REMOVE GREASE-SPOTS FROM WOOLEN CLOTH.
Take one quart of spirits of wine or alcohol, twelve drops of winter green, one gill of beef-gall and six cents' worth of lavendar. A little alkanet to color if you wish. Mix.
TO CLEAN WOOLEN CLOTH.
Take equal parts of spirits hartshorn and ether. Ox-gall mixed with it makes it better.
TO TAKE INK-SPOTS FROM LINEN.
Take a piece of mould candle of the finest kind, melt it, and dip the spotted part of the linen in the melted tallow: Then throw the linen into the wash.
TO REMOVE FRUIT-STAINS.
Moisten the parts stained with cold water; then hold it over the smoke of burning brimstone, and the stain will disappear. This will remove iron mould also.
CLEANING SILVER.
For cleaning silver, either articles of personal wear or those pertaining to the toilet-table or dressing-case, there is nothing better than a spoonful of common whiting, carefully pounded so as to be without lumps, reduced to a paste with gin.
TO REMOVE GREASE SPOTS.
French chalk is useful for removing grease-spots from clothing. Spots on silk will sometimes yield if a piece of blotting-paper is placed over them and the blade of a knife is heated (not too much) and passed over the paper.
TO REMOVE A TIGHT RING.
When a ring happens to get so tight on a finger that it cannot be removed, a piece of string, well soaped, may be wound tightly round the finger, commencing at the end of the finger and continued until the ring is reached. Then force the end of the twine between the ring and finger, and as the string is unwound, the ring will be gradually forced off.
MOSQUITOES WARDED OFF.
To ward off mosquitoes, apply to the skin a solution made of fifty drops of carbolic acid to an ounce ofglycerine. Mosquito bites may be instantly cured by touching them with the solution. Add two or three drops of the ottar of roses to disguise the smell. The pure, crystalized form of the acid has a less powerful odor than the common preparation.
LINIMENT FOR THE FACE AFTER SHAVING.
One ounce of lime water, one ounce of sweet oil, one drop oil of roses, is a good liniment for the face after shaving. Shake well before using. Apply with the forefinger.
TO REMOVE SUNBURN.
Wash thoroughly with milk of almonds, which can be obtained at the drug store.
TO WHITEN THE FINGER NAILS.
Take two drams of dilute sulphuric acid, one dram of the tincture of myrrh, four ounces of spring water, and mix in a bottle. After washing the hands, dip the fingers in a little of the mixture. Rings with stones or pearls in them should be removed before using this mixture.
TO REMOVE TAN.
Tan can be removed from the face by dissolving magnesia in soft water. Beat it to a thick mass, spread it on the face, and let it remain a minute or two. Then wash off with castile soapsuds and rinse with soft water.
TO CURE WARTS.
Take a piece of raw beef steeped in vinegar for twenty-four hours, tie it on the part affected. Apply each night for two weeks.
REMEDY FOR IN-GROWING TOE-NAILS.
The best remedy for in-growing toe-nails is to cut a notch about the shape of a V in the end of the nail, about one-quarter the width of the nail from the in-growing side. Cut down as nearly to the quick as possible, and one-third the length of the nail. The pressure of the boot or shoe will tend to close the opening you have made in the nail, and this soon affords relief. Allow the in-growing portion of the nail to grow without cutting it, until it gets beyond the flesh.
TO REMOVE WRINKLES.
Melt one ounce of white wax, add two ounces of juice of lily-bulbs, two ounces of honey, two drams of rose-water, and a drop or two of ottar of roses. Use it twice a day.
Put powder of best myrrh upon an iron plate sufficiently hot to melt the gum gently, and when it liquefies, cover over your head with a napkin, and hold your face over the fumes at a distance that will cause you no inconvenience. If it produces headache, discontinue its use.
In washing, use warm instead of cold water.
REMEDY FOR CHAPPED HANDS.
After washing with soap, rinse the hands in fresh water and dry them thoroughly, by applying Indian meal or rice flour.
Lemon-juice three ounces, white wine vinegar three ounces, and white brandy half a pint.
Add ten drops of carbolic acid to one ounce of glycerine, and apply freely at night.
TO CURE CHILBLAINS.
Two tablespoonfuls of lime water mixed with enough sweet oil to make it as thick as lard. Rub the chilblains with the mixture and dry it in, then wrap up in linen.
Bathe the chilblains in strong alum water, as hot as it can be borne.
When indications of the chilblains first present themselves, take vinegar three ounces and camphorated spirits of wine one ounce; mix and rub on the parts affected.
Bathe the feet in warm water, in which two or three handsful of common salt have been dissolved.
Rub with a raw onion dipped in salt.
HAIR RESTORATIVE.
The oil of mace one-half ounce, mixed with a pint of deodorized alcohol, is a powerful stimulant for the hair. To apply it, pour a spoonful or two into a saucer, dip a stiff brush into it and brush the hair and head smartly.
On bald heads, if hair will start at all, it may be stimulated by friction with a piece of flannel till the skinbecomes red. Repeat this process three times a day, until the hair begins to grow, when the tincture may be applied but once a day, till the growth is well established. The head should be bathed in cold water every morning, and briskly brushed to bring the blood to the surface.
WASH FOR THE TEETH.
Dissolve two ounces of borax in three pints of warm water. Before the water is quite cold, add one teaspoonful of spirits of camphor. Bottle the mixture for use. One wine-glass of the mixture, added to half a pint of tepid water, is sufficient for each application. This solution used daily, beautifies and preserves the teeth.
FOE WHITENING THE HANDS.
A wine-glass of cologne and one of lemon-juice strained clear. Scrape two cakes of brown Windsor soap to a powder and mix well in a mould. When hard, it is fit for use, and will be found excellent for whitening the hands.
Wear during the night, large cloth mittens filled with wet bran or oatmeal, and tied closely at the wrist. Persons who have a great deal of house-work to do, may keep their hands soft and white by wearing bran or oatmeal mittens.