Evening star., 1914-05-10
Lace Cleaning at Home.

~JNcE lace ia SO extensively used at
nresent. the question of washing and
cleaning 1t at home becomes a mat
ter OF considerable importance. for rea-
sons Of economy as well as for the sake
of preserving the lace itself.
For laces that are in constant use
home cleaning or washing saves the
rough handling at the laundry or clean
er's With the expenditure OF little
time and patience every girl could make
her lace blouse slips. vests, ETC., last
twice as long, while suiting her own
taste as to degree of stiffness. tint and
other details.
Lace which is only slightly soiled may
be cleaned by rubbing lightly into 1t
mixture Of equal quantities Of fine salt
and flour, leaving awhile, then shaking
the. powder out. Dry magnesia will serve
the purpose used in the same way. Gen
orally, however. washing is more salts
factory. and if carefully treated lace VIII
look nearly as good as new even after
many washings.
First, make all necessary repairs, then
make a lather by shredding plain white
when this has cooled dip the lace in,
moving it up and down, pressing with the
hands. and half squeezing it until all the
dirt is removed. Do not rub or wiring, for
delicate threads snap most unexpectedly.
Rinse carefully in several tepid waters,
and If the lace Is to be deepened in
shade put the tinting material into the
last of these. to which also should be
added any stiffening that is to be used
other than starch.
Carefully strained coffee or tea may be
used for the tinting, or very enectiye
tones may be obtained by the use of
few crystals of permanganate of potash.
These dissolved in water will give pinkish
tints that soon change to cream or brown
ish tones. Make experiments with
piece of old muslin until the required
shade is obtained.
Unusually lace will be stif enough if
ironed while still wet If little more
firmness is needed use milk. Dip the
lace into 1t after rinsing in tepid water.
squeeze lightly. and roll up In a piece
Of soft white cloth. and iron when partly
dry. For greater degree of stiffness
dissolve a little sugar in the final rims
ing water. or pour some gum arabic
solution into it. The quantity OF either
will be small but the degree of stiffness
required will regulate it, two Jumps of
sugar being generally sufficient for about
a pint of water.
If you perfer to use starch. the lace
should be put through rather stiff hot
starch, then rinsed Immediately by dip
ping up and down two or three times
in bowl of cold water, which helps
to perserve the clearness Of the lace.
especially If it has net foundation. The
starch may be prepared in the ordinary
way, and then strained through muslin.
or it is better If mixed to a paste with
a little cold, soft water, then thinned
somewhat, and finally boiled until clear
and thick Thus prepared 1t maintains
the light. transparent appearance of the
lace.
When only slight stiffness is desired. a
little cold starch mixed to a cream. may
be put into the last rinsing or tinting
water, and is very effective. When ready
for ironing. lay the lace carefully in
clean cloth. rolling it up as each article
or piece is added. SO that it can be
gradually unrolled Use a soft blanket
folded several times or Turkish towel
folded, covered with a piece Of soft
white material.
Lay the lace right side downward. and
turn the cloth up over It, Press with
a medium hot iron until almost dry, then
iron the wrong side Of tho lace itself.
taking care to keep the edges in good
shape and spread out on towel. every
point being carefully pinned down In
place.
This method should be followed with
Irish crochet and similar laces which
also require no stiffening.
m ~ .All Rns