Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-22
HOUSE
HOLD
lINTS

N = Ak.'V-0
Unless the stern hand of maternal law
holds itself infiexibly for breakfast there
| is apt to be slip In the cog on Christmas
morning. The children are wild to get at
| their stockings, anxious to begin immediate
consumption of the sweets that adorned
the Christmas tree, and every mother knows
what comes next
In many households where there are
| children the Christmas breakfast-and it
must be rapid transit in its preparation
and serving-comes first. before the chill
dren are allowed even a peep at their stock
ings. OF course, 1t needs be an unusually
early one, and the elders may have to
| forego their customary forty winks''; but
christmas comes but once a year." and
| minutes are hours until those stockings are
! investigated. Have the dining room good
and warm, the lights bright and the table
prettily set with Christmas card or greet
! ing at each place. This can be done the
| night before, after the children have retired.
In one dear California home where
| breakfast first was the established GUS
| tom, small boy writing his Christmas
| duty letter to his grandfather said: ION
Christmas morning we al woke up early so
| We could look in our stockings, but We had
| to eat breakfast first. We then all marched
| In in line, mother leading, and all singing,
| Hark the herald angels sing to the fold
/ Ing doors. but after that 1t was confused
mass"
In this home the time-honored way of
| hanging the stockings In a graduated row
| ferred according to family tradition. Where
| change is desired there are new and at
| tractive ways that can be followed. On
| Christmas morning last year the children
coming in another home to breakfast found
| in the bay window of the dining room a
| Santa Claus house. This had been built of
the boxed presents each wrapped in
| sheet of colored paper Presents that did
| not come already boxed were inclosed in
| empty boxes kept for such emergencies so
| that there was abundant material for the
| structure, which presented fine architec-
\ tural effect. Green branches set in Hover
| pots made a grove about the building, while
| two dolls dressed as Mr.. and Mrs. Santa
Claus stood Hospitality outside their door.
| Christmas Decorations.
Christmas without holly wouldn': be
Christmas, though it may be helped out
with ivy. ground pine. spruce, arbor vitae,
pine and cedar. Manhattan is never so
| beautiful as when during Christmas week
every window in the residential streets
| bursts into radiant bloom with wreaths
of holly or ground pine tied with bows
| of scarlet. Usually dingy. colorless city
| INTELLECTUALLY. this great influx of scar
| let and green, the Christmas colors, makes
it charmingly bright and CHEEKY, Inside,
| a pretty idea is to hang the chandelier of
the dining room with greens and holly and
from that carry loosely long ropes of
| ground pine to each corner of the room,
| forming canopy for the table. If the pres
| ents are to be given in the dining room
| after breakfast, garland of ground pine
| wound on cord may he stretched tightly
from the door handles, wainscote height.
| about the room, tying to this the light
| weight gifts with scarlet ribbons. Larger
gifts can be heaped tables that rise to
| a level with the garland and serve as sup
| port at the corners of the room. Bunches
| of holly over the corners of large pictures
| and sprays of green in all the vases make
| the rooms bright and 'Christmasy." For
| those who have access to woods and pas
| lures where grow the self-sown symmet-
| rical little cedars, try ranging them in reg
-ular intervals along the top of a low
| bookcase, and on the newell post or window
sill. For those debarred the pleasure of
| having genuine trees with their balSd mic
| odor there cunning little artificial trees
| from Nuremberg that good invest
ment, as they can be used from year to
year. accommodating associations that give
| them added value These trees are only
| about three feet high. including the founda-
| ton wooden pot. With their couple dozen
| of tiny candles lighted, these trees afford
| genuine bit of Christmas cheer.
| For the genuine big Christmas tree,
| spruce or New England balsam pine is
| considered best. The principal thing in Sc
| lecting Christmas tree is symmetry. Ii
! scraggly and not well proportioned. some
of the branches can be Topped off side
and inserted on the other, using a small
gimlet to bore a hole in the stem in a
| slightly slanting direction.
| There are different ways of mounting a
tree One substantial way is to take an or
| binary grocery box and make a hole in the
top large enough to allow the butt of the
tree to go through. Now turn upon the
side and nail a second board across the bot
tom of the box, upon which the butt end of
the tree rests, and nail the butt to this piece
| of board. If the tree seems too topheavy,
place large stones top of the box in
it. In trimming the tree begin at the apex
first. An expert Christmas tree dresser
gives his method of decorating follows:
| place a big round glass ball or silver or
| nament made especially for the top of the
tree on the highest branches, and then fill
in with glass bulls threaded on strings and
strands of gold and silver tnSel. Wax
cherubs and angels of little weight are also
suspended from these twigs Silver fish
those IN metallic blues and greens make an
| attractive showing when tied to the upper
| branches where the light from the ceiling
falls on them. AS the topmost boughs are
not usually strong enough to support can
dies, bright light from the ceiling should
drop direct on the tree, so the upper part
will not be in shadow. On the stouter
branches candles should be put to give out
| line of light to the tree and show off the
| other trimmings. Decorative tinsel figures
| of stars and crosses supported by rings in
| the center Of which are small red or green
| glass balls, are effective when hung from
| the branches. Tiny glass birds in vivid
blues and greens are also effective hung
| from the branches and may be purchased at
two for cents. The presents should be
tied to the stouter branches close to the
trunk of the tree, so that they can be easily
removed without disturbing the decora-
tons. Heavier ones still are placed at the
base and covered with tinseI or asbestos.
This asbestos, by the way. being fireproof
gives all the effect of snow and frost with
none of the danger that Is attached to cot
ton batting, formerly used for the same
purpose.
For those who can afford them the lovely
lincandescent electric lights of varied colors
are strung through Christmas trees. a safe
and easy method of decorating.
| For the many who prefer homemade dec
orations for Christmas trees there is moth.
| ing prettfer or less expensive than strings
! Of popcorn, cranberries and tinsel papers
| Corn to string easily should be popped sew
| eral days before string ng. To make pop
| corn chains. thread on six kernels of corn
| then three Of cranberries.
| Tjtf1a CaLeS FOR Cbrisfn,a. rraes