HINTS ON ECONOMY by Aunt Mary

Pacific Press Publishing Company · OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA · Oct 11, 1899

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 25, No. 41.

HINTS ON ECONOMY.

By Aunt Mary

THOUSANDS of men are out of employment, which means that unless they are fortunate enough or provident enough to have saved something from their former earnings, their families are without means of support. Such a state of affairs is not desirable, and sometimes we are disposed to join the army of grumblers, and to wonder why things do not happen otherwise. But adversity often has its uses, and many a housewife is learning lessons in economy that will help her over many rough places in life. It behooves wives and mothers, however well supplied their wants may be, to exercise their ingenuity in preventing waste, so that there may be a surplus to use in assisting those who are in need. It is astonishing how much could be used that is often put in the rag-bag or burned.

Large cotton or woolen stockings can be made over for the children when the feet are worn out. Good patterns can be obtained for a trifle, or one can cut a pattern of cloth, sew it up, and try it on the child. After the necessary alterations are made to secure a good fit, take it apart, and keep it for future use. Lay the pattern on the stocking and cut it out, using the best parts for the feet. After the seams are sewed, press them open, and catstitch down on either side, so they will not hurt the tender feet. An extra piece, put on like a patch and darned down at the heel and knee, will help them to wear longer.

Another item of interest to many mothers is the small boy's pants. They wear out so much faster than the coats that an extra pair or two must be provided to make the suit "come out even." Buy a good pattern, and use the discarded clothes of father, cousin, or uncle, as the case may be. There is almost always enough good material left in a pair of long pants to make a pair of short ones. If they are faded they may be made to look fresh and new by the use of diamond dye after the cloth is ripped and washed. Navy blue, black, and seal brown are the colors usually used for that purpose, and they will never fade.

Patchwork quilts have fallen into disfavor of late years; and while it is not advisable to cut large pieces of goods, just for the satisfaction of putting them together again, nice bed coverings may be made of scraps that could not be used for anything else. It is an excellent way to teach little girls to sew, for they will become interested in joining the light and dark colors. Flour sacks make good linings, so the quilts will not cost anything except for the batting and thread. Nice woolen quilts may be made of the best parts of old woolen dresses.

Warm skirts for children can be made of the lower parts of women's knit vests, the best parts of men's summer suits, and woolen dresses they have outgrown, if the sleeves are taken out and the neck cut low and bound. A woman's nightdress that is worn about the shoulders and sleeves will make a good nightdress for a child. Make a yoke and sleeves of new muslin, cut off the worn parts of the nightdress, and gather the lower part to the yoke. Faded light gingham may be bleached out white by the use of chloride of lime, and after the sleeves are taken out and the neck cut the proper shape, they will make nice aprons and underskirts. If for aprons, trim the neck and armholes with ruffles or lace; if for underskirts, they may be left as they are or have a lace edge put around the bottom.

A woman can often make dresses for the little girls out of very unpromising material. My little daughter needed a new dress to wear to Sunday-school, and I did not feel able to buy it. So I dyed an all-wool gray brocade dress of my own with wine-color diamond dye, and made the dress of it. It has a full skirt, with a deep hem, and three rows of gilt braid four inches from the bottom. The waist is plain, with a ruffle around the shoulders in the shape of a round yoke, and a row of braid one inch from the lower edge. The sleeves are full, and are gathered into cuffs. From the pieces that were left I made a tam-o'-shanter cap, with braid around the band. The braid had been used for trimming once before, and was turned over, so that the side that was soiled did not show.

Other economies will suggest themselves to the mother who is anxious to save the dollars and make the little ones comfortable.—Aunt Mary.