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Lay BA, which is the folded part, on a double piece of the material. Cut from F to G, slope from G to E, curve from E to A, round from C to B, cut from B to A. This shoe should be bound with ribbon; it looks pretty made of drab or grey, and bound with blue or rose colour. A little bow is put on in front, and strings are sewed to the ends of the straps, or passed through oylet-holes made in them, to tie round the ancle, and thus keep the shoe in its place.

BABY'S TICKING SHOE.

PLATE 20. FIG. 50.

This is also in one piece, and makes a pretty variety, it is cut according to the scale given before, and care must be taken in the cutting out to place the ticking on the pattern, so that the stripes lie properly, i. e. straight from the middle or front of the shoe, to the toe. The ticking is then ornamented by being worked in the intervals between the dark stripes, either in herring-bone, or some other fancy stitch, in coloured netting silk, either in one colour, or in two well chosen contrasts, as blue and brown, crimson and dark green. It is then lined all through, bound with ribbon to suit the work, and sewed up behind. The sole is of thick but flexible leather, lined and bound. Oylet-holes are made on each side of the slit in the front, through which a ribbon is laced, to tie it up, and a bow put on at the top of the slit, completes it.

ON COVERING SHOES.

It is sometimes very good economy to cover white or light coloured silk or satin shoes, but it requires great exactness, both in the fitting and sewing the new cover on; black silk or satin is generally found to answer the best, as from its dark colour any inaccuracies are less likely to be observed. The quantity required for covering a full sized pair of lady's shoes is six nails, cut the straight way.

Lay a piece of soft paper upon your shoe, and cut an exact pattern, divided of course in two parts, the front and the back. Place the pattern upon your satin or silk, so that the material lies the straight way, and so as to economize the satin.

The shoes must be first well rubbed and cleaned with a cloth; the binding should, if possible, be picked off, and every little crack or thin place neatly darned.

When you put the satin on the shoe, begin with the front, and be careful that it lies perfectly straight and even, pin it with small pins very near together, all round the front, next to the sole, keeping your hand in the shoe, so as to fill it out, almost as when the foot is in it; whip or sew it over at the inside round the edge, with a tacking thread, and pretty close stitches; then with a stout needle and strong but not coarse black silk, sew the satin to the shoe, as close to the sole as possible, with small neat stitches, taking very great care not to draw or confine it in any part, for fear of hurting the foot, and trying it on from time to time, to make sure. The back is done in a similar manner, and then a ribbon is laid on up the sides, where the front and back join, and double stitched. The binding is next put on, this must also be neatly back-stitched, and is broad enough to conceal the tacking, or sewing-over threads; you must observe not to hold it in too much, or all your work is wasted; for if the binding is tight, the shoes can never be worn. Small bows and strings complete the whole. Shoes that have been wetted by sea water, should be washed with soap and water, which prevents their spoiling.

For cleaning white satin shoes, see Receipt, No. 41.

Patent leather shoes should be well rubbed with oil outside, to clean them, and prevent their cracking.

The soles of shoes should be cut straight-wise, as when cut on the cross, they will crack.

GLOVES.

The chief kinds are kid, doe-skin, Berlin, Woodstock, and Limerick. The principal manufactures for the former kinds, are at Worcester, Dundee, and Jersey; the latter take their names from the places where they are made. French gloves are by some preferred to the English make, as they are considered to be more elastic. The Berlin gloves look like Woodstock, and wash and wear beautifully; a little pearl ash in the water makes them look as well as new. Others are made of cotton, silk, and worsted, and woven, net, or knit; for the latter, see "Knit Gloves."

Cotton gloves are worn by men servants when waiting at table, and are very good for the purpose, as they are easily washed.

It is impossible to give any shapes or scales for gloves; the best plan to get an exact pattern is to pick an old glove to pieces, and cut out by it. Gloves are sewed with a peculiar kind of silk, prepared on purpose, which is finer and less twisted than ordinary sewing silk; it is between floss and round silk. The needles are small, very sharp, and three-sided towards the point.

For cleaning gloves, see Receipt, No. 40, 45.

ON DOWN AND FUR.

As it may be a matter of economy to some persons, especially to those who live in the country, to understand something of the making up, cleaning, and keeping of down and fur, such hints as are essential to those not regularly employed in the business, are given in the following pages.

DOWN.

The down of the swan, from its high price, is rarely used; as it is not plucked from the skin, there is little to be said about it, excepting that, after being well cleaned, the skin is cut into strips or squares of the size required, and at once sewed upon the article to be trimmed or ornamented.

Christmas is the prime season for goose-down, and a great difference is made in the waste, if it is gathered out of season, when there will probably be a mass of pen feathers, or new quills, growing under the breast, which must all be picked out, before the down can be got at, which of course adds much to the trouble and expense. That down which lies under the wings has no quill, therefore it cannot be sewed at all, but is kept for stuffing cushions, coverlets, &c. Down should be kept in paper bags or boxes, in a very dry place; damp spoils it.

A little while before it is used, it should be laid in paper bags before the fire, to lighten or separate it. For sewing on down, to be used as trimmings, &c., the following instructions should be attended to. Choose a small empty room, with as few drafts of air as possible in it; wear a black silk pinafore or apron, and have a silk cover, or old apron on the table, to prevent the down adhering to it, or to the dress.

Begin by sorting your down into a box, keeping the refuse, or that without quills, in another box or bag by itself; in sorting it, draw a handful out of the bag, holding it fast in the palm of the hand, pulling it out piece by piece, by which means there is little waste; the hands of the workwoman should be very clean and cool. When all those pieces which have quills to them have been carefully picked out, lay them in pairs upon the table.

Cut your strip of calico to the proper size, whether for a boa or muff, it must be the straight-way. Pin the calico, beyond the part where you are going to work, to your waist or dress, and have some strong thread in your needle; double your calico in regular rows or creases, rather less than one

quarter of a nail apart; then begin to sew the down upon the first crease or fold, pass your needle through the ends of two of the small quilled pieces, which you must hold in your hand, push them down upon the calico, and sew three stitches strongly upon them, taking care not to pull the thread too tight, or it will not wash well; then take another stitch, a little further on the line, before beginning with the next piece of down. When the row is finished, go on to the next line marked on the calico, keeping that already done, next to you, so as to lie inside, or under your hand.

Observe, that for a boa, the rows of down go width-wise of the calico, while for a muff, the rows must be in a downward direction or round it; in short it should always be sewed in that way which will make it shew to the best advantage when made up, and so as to conceal the rows of sewing.

Upon an average, six ounces of down will make a boa, with nearly three ounces waste. The best goose down is about 2s. an ounce; it chiefly comes from Lincolnshire.

Turkey down is also at its prime at Christmas, and is sometimes used for cuffs, neck-ruffs, or operas, and other small articles.

IMITATION ERMINE.

Sew tails of false black sable into white Spanish rabbit skin, cut a little V and let the tail in, covering it over with the flap, and sewing the tail firmly in.

The following is a list of the furs in general use:—

Sable, which is black and brown.

Ermine, black and white.

Chincilla, greyish blue.

Bear, black, brown, and Isabella.

Otter.

Fox, black, brown, and white or Arctic.

Wolf, yellow or sandy.

Wolverine.

Lynx, black.

Squirrel, brown, or silver, which is also called Minever.

Racoon.

Fitch, brown.

Weazel.

Rat, Norwegian or Russian.

Rabbit.

Martin.
Cat.

TO MAKE A MUFF.

A full sized muff is about nine nails wide, and fourteen nails long, before it is sewed up. To make a foundation for a muff, lay a piece of Jersey on the table, and upon it a layer of curled horse-hair, next a sheet of wadding, roll it round, and sew it up the proper size, put it inside the muff and tack round the edge at each end, then make the lining, slip it in neatly and fasten it. One yard and a quarter of silk will line a full sized muff.

TO MAKE A BOA.

After sewing the down on the calico, as before directed, or the skins of fur together, turn it to the

wrong side, and sew the seam up neatly and strongly, turning it out to the right side as you go on, then fill it with Jersey to a proper thickness.

The usual length of a boa, is from two yards and three quarters to three yards.

TO MAKE A TIPPET.

A tippet is lined with flannel and wadding between the silk and the fur.

TO MAKE AN OPERA, OR RUFF.

This is lined with flannel and wadding, within the silk lining.
Fur is always cut at the back, with a knife and rule.

TO CLEAN FUR.

Unpick the seam, but not the skins. Place it on a large deal table, and tack it slightly down with small nails. Pound white French chalk, add some bran to it, and keep rubbing it on with the hand and a clean flannel very hard backwards and forwards, take it out with a brush, and when done, shake it well. When a grub or moth is in the fur, put it in a stove hot enough to bear the hand.

TO CLEAN DOWN.

Open the seam, and wash with white soap and warm water; shake it before a gentle fire till dry.

TO PRESERVE FUR.

With respect to keeping furs, it is well to bear in mind the old adage that

"A little neglect may breed a great mischief:"

great care should be taken to preserve them free from moths and damp; the following are the best methods of doing so:

On laying furs by for the summer, they should be put into brown paper bags, with clean hops scattered over them, and once or twice during the season, they should be exposed to the air and well combed or shaken, or they may be put away in tin boxes, or sewed up in strong linen; pepper, Russia leather, or a piece of mould candle are very good preservatives against moths, when put in the box or bag with the fur.

When fur has been wetted, it should not be wiped, but only shaken, and laid in the sun or a warm room till dry.

The best method of cleaning or preserving fur, is by washing the skin with a solution of corrosive sublimate in as much spirits of wine as will dissolve it, and gently shaking it, dry near but not close to a fire. After this process has been gone through, the moth will not touch it, but it requires care, as corrosive sublimate is a strong poison.

Z

CHAPTER VII.

HOUSE LINEN.

House linen appears to be a branch of domestic economy little understood and considered, in comparison with its importance.

Many persons are little aware how much the good washing and wearing of their house linen depends on the choice and adaption of it to the purposes for which it is intended, as well as of the different methods of cutting and making it up, so as to have a handsome appearance, with due attention to economy. The following suggestions, though not adopted in all families, may, it is hoped, prove useful

to some.

House linen may be classed under four heads, namely, bed-room linen, table and pantry linen, housemaid's linen, and kitchen linen, to which may be added stable linen.

The following is a general table of all the linen necessary in a gentleman's house, together with the price, width, and quality. Each article will afterwards be entered upon at large.

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