The Clifton clarion., 1888-11-14
PRACTICAL HINTS.
Which Arc Very Useful to Those
 Who Heed Them.

One of the newest things in dining.
 room commentators is the old
 Crener cupboard - modernized, ol course, as most antiques are, to shit
 the present taste. These cupboards for the display of old family china, il
 one is so fortunate as to be pos sessed of any, need not necessarily be in a corner, and are quite as pretty elsewhere ii there is room. Some enthusiastic home decorators have had the upper half of an un-orna- mental door removed from the small china closet to be found in almost every dining-room, with large pane of glass substituted, through which can be seen the gailv painted cups hung on brass hooks, which are screwed immediately under the front edge of the shelves. Little strips of wood are tacked on the shelves, with an upright braid back of them, and against these rest the plates, on edge. The intermediate spaces may be filled with any odd pieces-the teapots, pitchers and cream-jugs that have survived their mates, and Bridget's handling. If the door is finished with large brass hinges ar,.t paddock, the china closet becomes one of the ''points" of the room, in stead of the artists abomination-an upsightly door.
 The plTsh portiere hung on a brass rod immediately back of the man. tel ornaments has almost entirely superseded the lambreguins so much in vogue for several years past. They are certainly more effective, as they bring into bold relief the pale bisque and Dresden figures now In favor.
 Many mother would find it very much to her advantage to save all the dilapidated picture books, and where there are any at all there are apt to be very many. Then. some rainy afternoon or Saturday, when all are kept indoors, set the larger girls and boys to cutting the pictures out If rart of q scene is torn, cut the remaining figures out clearly, whether man, woman or child, bird, beast or fish, and paste them all on the nursery door, helter-skelter, or in the most ludicrous positions pos sible, and see if it doesn't stop baby's crying many and many time.
 A floor painted with two or three coats of brown paint, and then either shellacked or waxed will prove to be very much handsomer and some times cheaper than staining, as a floor that has never been stained absorbs the thin liquid like q sponge and consequently requires very many more coats, while the paint, being smooth and thick, will form a rich, hard surface with two coats, and is much more durable. Brown paint ready mixed in one-pound cans can be bought at all of the paint stores for fifteen cents, and any one of q practical turn can put it on. The waxed floor will prove more satis- factory than the shellacked, and at a far lower cost.
 Any clever girl, who is very much interested in bcautiiying her room, can make wonderful progress in that direction by beginning with the cor ners. and she cannot imagine, till she has tried, what fine results there can be made to add to the general effect. She must have them all different, and this will tax her in genuity considerably. One very effective style is . row of three shelves-the top one the largest, the second smaller, and the bottom one quite small. They should be triangular in form, the point fitting into the corner. Paint these black, and graduate the size of the orna- ments to suit the size of each shelf. Very small, spread-open Japanese fans, placed so as to fill in the space and form a background for the bric- a-brac, will brighten it all wonder fully, and . beautiful point of color is obtained.
 Card screens, although not par ticularly new, are pretty and useful. One saw was made of nursery clothes-horse, and as the idea was d happy one, took Captain Cuttle's advice and made note ont" The horse had coarse muslin tackled on, covering the open spaces and leaving the frame bare. The muslin was then entirely covered with picture cards, of which there always seems to be houseful. These arc stuck on with ordinary mucilage, and the frame painted with black, although red is quite as effective. A screen of this kind capacities making the nursery presentable when suddenly invaded by visitors, and, too, it is an inexhaustible source of amusement to the tvddlers, and the greatest beauty of it is that tke cards can so easily be replaced by others when torn of by investigating little fingers.
 A Japanese parasol, with the stick removed, makes gay center-piece for the ceiling of the AIikado room. A handsome Japanese lantern, sus- pended from the middle of the um- brella, enhances the oriental effect.
 Summer is the time when people loll and "loaf," and the parlor furni- ture gets more abuse then than dur ing the gayest winter season, cspe- cially the sofa; so I have a little suggestion for those housekeepers who are about to move into the cot tage rented for the heated term. Get a long and not too narrow wooden box, and put the lid on with strong, iron hinges; then fold :n old blanket or something of the kind. and tack it on; make muslin bag the size of the top. and fill it with hair of ieath- CTS, and lay it on the blanket. It can then be covered with cretonne, taking care to cover the lid sepa- rately, pulling the cretonne we'll un- derneath to tack it securely; the lid can then be raised, and you have besides a delightfully."- comfortable lounge q receptacle for many things for which there is no other convenient repository. Cover the two largest square pillows you have with some of the same material. and set them on end side by side to form the back, and you will have q divan of pre- sentable appearance which you may use and abuse to your hearts con tent, with the consciousness that pa1yat ona ie A,