The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-11-20

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willing to give their time aDd iapoF ior
the purpose Of saving dollars.
Many people buy from the upholsterer
i wire-framed or canvas-covered COT, up
on which they place a maItress' oroereu
to fit the cot. A row OF CUSHIONS lala
along the wall at the back serves 70 al
ford comfort to the cupan OF the
couch. Bright Oriental draperies thrown
over the cot make the usual coverings OF
this style of divan. Such pouches are a
trihe expensive when one counts the cost
of the cot and mattress and Oriental
draperies.
The homemade couch may be either
constructed by the carpenter, or, better
still, built at home by some member Oh
the family. In these days of manuai
training schools when women handle tools
as cleverly as men. that ought to be no
difficult matter. The homemade coucn
may be a straight one or one to be htteo
into a corner.
To make the corner couch, order some
timber: pieces 3 inches by 2 inches are
the best, and some red or yellow oeai
2 inches by 2 inches for the legs cross
njeces. The couch may be made any
length that is convenient. A satisfactory
width for the seat is two ana one-hall
feet.
The legs should be cut. the front ones
longer than those intended for the BACK,
% that the seat will be given a slgnt
fill. an arrangement that adds to the
comfort of those who sit upon the eouch-
The heavier pieces of timber are cut the
reouired ength n mitred at one end'
+be front edges of the front bars being
rounded off with a drawing knife, OF
other pounding tool. to prevent the sharp
edge from cutting the sitter, The cross
bars are then cut and halved into the
lower sides of the other bars. They are
an inch less in depth than the others,
and consequently viii not be felt through
the cushions, as they do NOT reach !"
the top. An ingenious arrangement oi
webbing laced and interlaeed forms 2
groundwork for the cushions, giving q
spring to the frame that IS very sats-
factory.
The legs should be naortised into the
large bars of the frame The WeDDihs
should be strained tightly across, being
fxed by at least FIVE tacks to the
sides of the bars. thus lessening the STRAIN
upon the nails.
A valenee of cretonne, denim or othef
material. either box plated or PLAIN Is
then fixed to the front. and the coucn
is ready TO be supplied with its cushions
THOSE for the seat should be three or four
inches thick and stuffed with flock For
the back wedge-shaped cdshionz-that 49,
cushions made thicker below than at the
top-are convenient, for they will be more
easily keptin position.
ANY stout material will do for the
cushion covers. When the cushions are
finished. they should be covered with
some ornamental cloth. matching the
valence. This material may be buttoned
down by running a packing needle filled
with irvine through the cushion and afix-
ing TO the upper side a wooden button
covered with cloth of a color to match the
covering
A convenient way of keeping the cush-
ion in position IS to tack to the wall a
strip Of wood covered with cloth to match
THAI covering the couch, and tying the
top of the back cushion to this by in
visible tapes. Al the occupant of the
divan may not be always quiet, the cush-
ions on the back need some support to
keep them In place Instead of making the
cushions at home, cheap cushions may be
purchased of the u~pholsterer.
a simpler straight divan may be built
of narrow strips of wood. It is designed
almost like a garden settee, except that
the feet are shorter. Good dimensions are
10 inches high for the seat and 5 inches
wide. with the back p inches high The
frame. is strengthened by means Of strips
OF wood nailed around the legs lower
down. When the framework has been
finished, the cushions must be made. They
should be, for the back. z feet by 2 inches.
the one for the seat being Is inches by Z
feet, so that the back one win slip behind
the other. They should be nailed to the
wooden framework and covered with some
dark clothlike denim In addition to the
mattress ticking, SO that, should the loose
draperies become disarranged, all will
look presentable beneath.
1t will take four yards of material 81
inches wide to do the covering, only one
side of the cushions being covered, Of
course. This should be cut into two pieces
each two inches long. and they should be
sewed together at the sewage. From one
side of one of these pieces should be cut
a piece fifteen inches wide. The large
piece Is nailed on the back and sides of
the divan, drawn over and tucked between
the cushions and then Allowed to hang In
front to the ground; there it is hemmed
Then the strip which has been cut off will
just do TO cover the ends.
Some beautiful fabrics can be bought
quite cheaply for the covering. India
prints are very pretty, especially those
having a white ground with a red and
white and green wavy pattern running
over it. A rather more expensive cover
ing can be made Of ji5im 1t should be
one of those. not made of strips sewed
together, but all in one piece. A design
admirable for the purpose would be of
dull gold with faint pinkish e~mbroideries.
Still more LUXURIOUS. would be a covering
consisting of two Oriental rugs. A very
picturesque covering, II you can manage
1t, is an army blanket the couch being
~ornamented with one or two separate
cushions covered with patriotic covers.
Just over the dlvan it Is a pretty idea
to have a shallow shelf from underneath
which is suspended a silken curtain. The
curtain should be hung from a long brass
rod the length Of the shelf. On the shelf
may be PLACED a row Of handsome china
plates or decorations Of a rather fiat
kind.
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A few years ago a ladies, lunch party
often resembled a dinner in almost every
respect. The dining room shutters were
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