The Bloomfield times. [volume] (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1867-187?, 1870-10-11
Household Expedients.
BY SUSAN sNAPP.

NF all the women I ever knew, my
" Aunt Benedict is the best at devising
expedents. She never ball1s at difficulty
nor turns back at mishap. Her nature is
a sort of universal antidote for home per-
plexities.
One summer, when Uncle Benedict hired
an old half-tumbled-down cottage for the
summer, she moved there, taking no heavy
furniture-yet out of packing boxes, boards,
and barrels, she contrived to fit out kitch-
en-, n parlor, and three bed-chambers, to
say nothing of a state apartment for hon
ored guests. Her present suburban home is q
curiosity-simple, unpretending, and so
very pretty but almost every thing i'll it is
"a contrivance. Uncle Benedict is only
bank-clerk on a moderate salary, and
there are three children SO, of course,
there is no surplus of ready cash. Whose
business is it that the pretty ottomans in
the parlor are just pine boxes, cushioned
and covered with striped chintz; that the
chairs were bought direct of the manufac-
turers, unpublished, and with just the first
covering (of unbleached canvass on the
seats, and were afterward covered with
chintz by Aunt.
The flower-stand in her parlor is lovely,
but it is improvised out of high nursery
fender made of heavy wire. She fitted a
pan-top Of wood to it herself, painted the
fender brown, fastened pine-cones around
its upper edge, and filed the top with
charcoal and soil-planted her variegated-
leaved plants and vines allowing ivy to
creep in and out among the fancy meshes
of the fender; and you've no idea how pref
ty the effect is. Her old-fashioned centre
table was too small, SO she obtained big
pine-wood top for dollar screwed it on,
enlarged the little square table-cloth by
sewing on pretty border, and now ON Win
ter evenings, all the family can sit around
it and have room to spare. She bought
secondhand carpets, put all the best parts
around the edges of the room, and the worst
in the middle, and covered the centre with
square drugget, that corresponded charm
ingly in color and, for the halls, bought
this patent wooden veneering (maple and
walnut), and laid it down herself at cost
much less than of good oil cloth, and found
it much more durable. l haven't time to
tell half She found two old bedroom
chairs somewhere, rubbed and oiled them,
stuffed out the seats, and covered them
with lovely stripped material, which learn
ed yesterday was made out of an old green
waist and a pair of Uncle Benedicts cast
away pantaloons She mends her cane
bottom chairs with twine, and then var
nishes the seats so that you scarcely can
tell they are mended. She makes her own
soap-stones for her stove, by taking three
parts in bulk of potter-baker's clay to one
of wood-ashes, stirring in water till thick
paste is formed, and plastering it thickly
in place with q kitchen-spoon. 1t soon
hardens and the fire bal1es it harder, and it
will last for months. If her shoe is too tight,
she Sits it over the toe till it is easy. and
conceals damages with big rosette. She
turns old window-shades upside down, and
leaves the old faded part rolled up at the
top or if she has chance to buy new ones,
always buys plain buff linen, and makes
them up herself
Ineyer shall forget the time Aunt and
went on visit to Boston. She carried half
her knick-knacks in her hoop-skirt cover.
How she managed to wear the article so
burdened, l cannot imagine but she in
sisted it was perfectly convenient and COM
Portable.
The weather changed suddenly during our
journey to Boston, and Aunt Benedict
found herself growing very cold; so she
took big newspaper, folded it loerchief
fashion over her bosom, pinned another
around her waist, put her black shawl
neatly over all, and declared herself to be
perfectly comfortable. I believe she pin
ned another newspaper over her petticoat
so as to keep her knees warm, but l am
not sure. She told me that often when
she got her shoes damp, she would put in
donhla naner solo and So rrotact bnr foot