Evening star., 1923-10-12
Shopping for Bargains

weakens the fibers, causes splitting
and small holes to come in the fabric
and renders the silk more likely to
rot from perspiration. Because this
cheaper silks. 1t is practically impos-
sible to fnd even the best taffeta silks
entirely free from weighting. Even
the slightly weighted silks rot
quickly. so the older they are, the
more frail the fabric.
To test silk for Weighing. burn a
sample. Pure silk burns quickly and
| leaves a small quantity of carbon.
Weighted silk blackens, but remains
In practically the same form. When
buying silk 1t is well to crumple up
| a corner in the hand. If it creases
rapidly and cannot be easily smoothed
out again, 1t should be avoided. but If
1T smooths out readily it Is not liable
wearns shiny. A heavy silk should be
very soft and very pliable IL 1t is to
be bought as pure silk.
| There are tests, not only for tex
colors for even the best textiles cam
not but result in disappointment.
When selecting a colored fabric you
| should look to see whether the color
has penetrated well to the wrong
side. This is especially desirable In
| figured fabrics, as these are the most
doubtful of all colors.
! Linens, Blankets and Comforts.
| The prospective linen buyer should
| examine the linen for two things
faults in weaving and weak spots
which have come from bleaching.
weaving. hold the cloth up to the
| light. Any thread which has broken
and been Joined will then show as
/ darker line. 1t is at these spots that
! the article will wear out first For
| the best wearing qualities, the double
1 tAhlecl0fh
| to select double damask, as the pat
tern shows more distinctly on the
| under side. 1t Is not easy to tell that
| there is cotton in a tablecloth you
! bought for linen damask until 1t is
laundered, and then 1t is easy enough
| to tell. The cotton washes out in the
form of lint, and tablecloths and nap
kins of linen mixed with cotton al
ways leave lint on ones clothes.
Our grandmothers taught US that
| -, could recognize linen by wetting
the finger and moistening the ma
terial. If the moisture Is quickly abb
| method is by breaking the thread.
! A linen fiber Is longer than a cotton
| fiber. Place a sample Of cotton and
The linen In the sample will absorb
the oil much more rapidly than the
cotton will. BY holding the sample
against a dark background the linen
will show up darker. Cotton cloths
| are made with a finish SO nearly re-
sembling linen that 1t is hard to tell
| the difference. The best linens re-
Quire little or no dressing. so that one
with great deal Of dressing should
arouse suspicion.
When buying sheets the extra-long
| ones cost a little more, but are we'll
worth the money. Nothing is more
| annoying than sheet that Is too
! short. When using everyday sheets
ar,1 all 1IDx ,I~ 20
| take fresh supplies each time from
the bottom of the pile. SO that all
| will get equal wear. The simplest
way to finish the ends of sheets is
| pretty as hemstitched ends. This
| can be done on the machine. The
| decoration on pillowcases should match
the sheets.
Cheap bath towels have an unfortu-
| nate way of shedding their fuzz.
Linen towels are the incest to use.
but with care a good quality of mixed
linen and cotton will answer for ordi-
nary use. Dish -toweling remnants
can frequently be bought at much less
than the regular price.
1t Is false economy to buy cheap
blanket If you want 1t to wear well
and to continue to look well, which
Of course you do; For this reason
cheapest in the end. 1t will outwear
by several years a cotton and wool
blanket, and it will wash far better
and is much lighter. Beauty. serv-
iceableness and lightness combine to
make the all-wool blanket well worth
the price demanded for 1t.
Just little cotton in blanket Is
good, as 1t prevents shrinking. Cot
ton adds weight. but not warmth.
An all-cotton blanket has very little
warmth. although in the store 1t may
look almost as inviting as the all
wool blanket. BY looking closely at
the edges. you can very often dis
cover whether the foundation Is made
of wool or Of cotton. When cotton
is used. it is easily seen In this
foundation.
1t is a good plan to provide all
bed comforts with an adjustable pro-
tective piece for the top and bottom.
This piece may be about eighteen
inches wide and finished on each edge
with a little colored crocheting or
feather-stitching. These extra pieces
can be basted or buttoned in place
and easily taken or and laundered.