Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-07-28
WITH BITS OF BROKEN CHINA
CLEVER WOMEN MAKING NEW
MOSAIC TABLES.
Useful for Cards and Serve as n
SaIve for Losses-Plaques
in Plaster.


To be surrounded with pretty things is to
many women almost a necessity, and the
very latest and most ingenious effort in
this direction is the making up of broken
bits Of china into tops for card tables or
in jardnieres and vases This new art is
open to all, for the melancholy fact re-
mains that in every home more or less
china and porcelain come to an untimely
end. When these things are mended they
are seldom thoroughly satisfactory; their
value Is to all purposes, gone. If laid aside
they remain but unhappy reminders of the
catastrophe, and not every has the
courage TO throw them away. at once.
Here. then, is where the table top comes
to ones assistance. In the thought that
| the pieces will look well in the mosaic,
there is something of a salve for the grief
of the breakage; and with this purpose in
view they are speedily gathered up and put
by in a place of safe keeping. AS soon as
enough pieces have been collected to cover
square table top, the work of arranging
them should begin. This does not take
long to accomplish. The prettiest table to
select for the purpose is a plain one, made
of pine and enameled with white paint. Its
height and shape Of legs, as being suitable
for card table, should be considered. 1t
is first necessary that a piece of molding.
about half an inch in width, should be set
on all about the top of the table. and as
its corners require to be well mitered IL is
best to have this done by carpenter The
table is then in readiness to receive its
china top. First fill the entire space within
the molding with putty, so that 1t rises to
q height about equal with the molding.
The various bits Of china are then taken up
separately and pressed into the putty until
the whole surface of the table is covered.
When this is accomplished the effect pro-
duced is something like a mosaic. or a
piece of crazy patch work OF course, any
particular scheme can be worked out in
this way. For instance, a top made en-
fra1N of tic oh "A sol,g~
be charming.
A Star In the Center.
If one has enough pieces of a similar color.
q star can be fashioned to rediate from the
center. White china also can be blocked
in to produce smart effect 1t is always
a point to be remembered that the putty
hardens quickly and the pieces should
therefore, be first collected and all set in at
once; If possible during the same day. AS
| they sink the soft material naturally rises
| up between them and forms putty ridges
| that must be smoothed down until exactly
even with the china. 1t is now desirable
| to go over the surface with a coating of
shellac, applied with small camels' hair
| brush. After this has been done 1t is a
| good scheme to put the whole thing away
| for day two, until it has become
perfectly solid and dry. The final touch,
and one that adds greatly TO the beauty
of the top, is to cover all the lines of putty
with the same sort of gilt used to regild
old picture frames. This, too should be
| done with a fine camels' hair brush. After
| this, a good washing with cold water is
about all that the table requires.
A Barrel Full of Breaks.
The china shops are very good natured
about encouraging this sort of work In
fact an instance is known where a promi-
nent firm in New York sent, upon applica-
ton, a whole barrel full of broken bits to
a young matron who wanted to make such
a top. but had not the fortitude to patient
ly wait the breakage of her own household
gods. Among the collection were many ex-
quisite and distinctive things.
Jardinieres and small vases are made
through following the same process only
the execution is done upon perfectly plain
earthen jars covered with putty instead of
a table top. These things give quite an
air of extravaganza to a summer veranda,
or even to a rather .pretentious living room.
Another burst of ingenuity seems to have
centered itself In new plaster Paris
plaque. 1t has come as a welcome way Of
preserving some of the exquisite colored
heads and floral pictures which We yearly
have sent to us on calendars. little good
| taste and considered nimbeness Of fin
gers is all that is required. in addition to
an agateware pie plate, some plaster of
Paris and water. a knife, bit of tape and
a curtain ring, with pretty colored pic
ture which has been neatly cut out from
its background and a bottle of gilt paint.
These various things are then handled in
the following way:
Takes Nimble Fingers.
First the plate should be filled with
water which, however, is soon tossed out
again. the object being simply to have a
moist surface. The picture is then taken
up and placed face downward in the CEN
ter of the plate. AS soon as it is seen
that 1t adheres to it quite closely the plas
ter Of Paris, which has previously been
mixed with water until 1t Is smooth and
of the consistency Of thick cream, is pour
ed in upon it. and in a sufficient quantity
to fill the plate up to the very top. Here,
then, the knife is useful in smoothing 1t
over. At this point. also. a contrivance
is arranged for hanging up the plaque in
the future. The piece Of tape with cur
tain ring on one end Of 1t is pressed down
in the plaster, where It soon hardens into
permanency. AS soon as 1t is found that.
the plaster is sufficiently hard the knife
can be slipped around the edge of the
plate to facilitate the whole turning out
well. When this Is accomplished the pic
| ture will appear as though It had been paint
ed upon the pure white surface Of the
paste. Should, by any means the plaster