Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-07-18
The Care Of Clothing.


Concerning the fashion of clothing and
the various fabrics of which it is made,
information is full and frequent. Very
little, however, is said about the care of
clothing, and the ways In which it may
be preserved for the longest time and In
the best possible condition. To those who
change their garments with every change
of style this is matter of slight I'M
portance, but to those who purchase a
silk dress or broadcloth suit only once
in series of years it is matter OF
interest and value. Silks, cashmeres,
cloths of standard style and quality, are
very little affected by the various cur
rents of fashion. They hold their own
through all the years, and are always
good, always " stylish," always suitable.
When new fabrics are for the hour Of
their popularity high-priced, these
standard goods sell at the standard price,
and know little of rise or fall in stand
ard value.
Neglect and carelessness deteriorate
clothing great deal faster than steady
wear does. The housekeeper who, in
stead of changing her nice dress when
she passes from the street or the church
to her kitchen, keeps it on and takes iS
with her through the various processes
of DISTINGUISHING, sweeping and cooking
will soon rob it Of all its nicely, while
she who wears her fine clothes only IN
places where fine clothes are suitable
may keep them In good condition for an
indefinite time. To dress according to
ones work is good taste, good sense and
economy. The careful person will take
pains to preserve new calico no less
than new silk. We knew young
lady once who put on nice new calico
which she had taken great pains to
make, and wore it through the morn
ing dew to milk the COWS. To keep
her arms from being soiled or
tanned by the sun, she declined
to turn up the sleeves of the
dress. In two days the nice new calico
looked like the rest of her dresses, dow
dy, slatternly, unclean. We knew an
other young lady who had six silk
dresses, and not one of them was fit to
wear, though none of them had been
made above year. They were spotted,
draggled, tumbied, mussed, abused.
We knew another young lady who was
the fortunate possessor of one nice black
alpaca dress which she wore On all occa-
sions the season through, and always
appeared faultlessly dressed. She had
no work to do that would specially soil
her clothes. If stray drop of anything
that could make spot fell upon her
dress it was at once removed. All dust
was brushed off, a sponge dipped in am
monia water frightened faded places,
and snowy collars and cuffs suggested
dainty habits of cleanliness.
The care of clothing to be easy must
be habitual. The hardest part is In
forming the habit, and this cannot too
early in Life be formed. Most children
love to make mud pies, and play In the
dirt generally, and give little heed to
keeping themselves clean. This is all
well enough at times, and they should
be INDUCED in their mud pies, provided
they are dressed for the work. But it Is
"poor-folksy" in the last degree to al
low child to play in the dirt with nice
clothes on, or to permit young person
to dress inappropriately while at work.
It is vastly easier to change a good
coat for a poor one than it is to restore
to its pristine condition a soiled coat.
It is vastly easier to put on pair of
overalls than it is to sponge thoroughly
pair of pantaloons. But the worst Of
it is that those who neglect to change
the coat and to put on the overalls
neglect, also, the sponging and cleaning
processes, and let dust and spots re-
main.
A clothes-brush, wisp broom, bot
tie Of ammonia, sponge, hand-brush,
cake Of erasive soap, vial of alcohol,
should form part of the furnishings of
every toilet. After all dust has been re-
moved from clothing spots may be taken
out of black cloth with the hand-brush
dipped in mixture of equal parts of
ammonia, alcohol and water. This will
brighten as cleanse. Benzine is useful
in removing grease spots.