The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1900-06-22
CARPETS MADE AT HOME.
INGENUITY, INDUuTRY AND ECON.
OMY PRA>TISED.

A Handsome Matt ,g of the Hit or
Miss Style-The Twisted Stripe
An indispensable Element of Sue.
NU,s-Gay Colors,
ome people think it a waste Of
Zine to make carpets in these days
OF cheap carpets and cheaper mating,
but it certainly is good way TO econ.
omiZe unless one can afford the best
quality of these articles. and a pretty
rag carpet displays at once the in
genuity, industry and economy of the
housewife. If the rags are cut and
sewed as they accumulate it takes so
little time that you scarcely mss it.
and you will find your Uox of balls
filling up rapidly. 1t is an easy mat.
ter to make a rag carpet nowadays,
for one can afford to buy a few yards
of some cheap material if the guam
tity on hand is not sutncient, and
white cotton and many pieces that
were formerly thrown aside can be
colored any shade now. Some house
wives think they cannot make a car
pet without gay colors, says lady in
an exchange, but | think this is a
mistake, as carpet with natural col
ors is quite as desirable, and bright
pieces can be saved and made into
rugs, pillow covers or other pretty
things that are so much used now.
A good method is to have two bags
hanging in convenient place, ready
to receive worn garments as they be-
come no longer wearable Into one
throw worn stockings, colored pieces
and scraps that gather day by day,
and these accumulate rapidly. Into
the other throw white and faded
pieces ready for coloring any shades
that seem lacking in the general as
sortment. Some leisure hour it
can be carefully trimmed and placed
in the workbasket ready for pickup
work, and if managed in this way the
work never becomes a task. If the
strips are sewed on the machine the
work Is quickly and easily done, and
neater than when they are sewed by
hand. If the carpet is striped it is
better to have solid warp and the
stripe shows up to better advantage;
and, as the warp wears out first, it
pays to get the best quality, and dark
brown is the most serviceable color
The twisted stripe adds greatly to
the beauty of rag carpet, and black
and white, wound together, make an
effective stripe and look well with
any colors. The strips are cut very
fine, neatly sewed together and slight
ly twisted as they are wound into
balls. The yarn is twisted together
on the spinning wheel Two of these
strands several inches apart, on each
side of the center of the fancy stripe,
is pretty way to arrange them. A
really handsome carpet seen recently
was made "hit-or-miss' style, without
a stripe and woven with solid black
warp, which brought out the colors
beautifully. The light and faded
pieces together with the white ones
We're colored green, red and blue. with
the diamond dyes for cotton, and the
wooden pieces with the dyes for wool,
and by weakening the dye several
shades of these colors were produced,
making the necessary variety for the
carpet. This carpet was on the floor
of one who is well able to purchase
nice carpets, but she enjoyed sewing
the rags and arranging the colors
and balls ready for the weaver, and
color harmony is the one indispens-
able element of success