San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1924-03-23
When Properly Finished,
They Add to Beauty
of a Home.
WAXED FLOORS PRETTY
They Will Amply Repay
Time and Labor Spent
on Them.

In the general appearance OF q
home, the floors and woodwork play
q very important part. Beautifully
finished floors and woodwork convey
an impression of richness and refine
ment to the entire interior of the
home. If. on the other hand, the floors
and woodwork are unattractive, the
general impression of the home will
be cherries and uninviting. Dis
tinctive and lasting beauty in n home
can only be obtained by dignity and
beauty of woodwork and flooring. and
10 scheme of interior decorating. how
ever elaborate. can atone for poorly
finished and poorly kept woodwork.
Any home can have the charm of
beautiful floors if the home-owner will
take the pains 10 see that the floors
are properly cared for. Floors of
beautifully grained hardwood can only
retain their beauty by exercise of the
proper care. and floors of softer wool,
such as pine, can be given an added
distinction and lasting lovelincss If
they are properly and artistically
treated. Proper waxing at frequent
intervals does not require much labor,
nor is the waxing of floors an expensive
operation. but it is the best way of
making beautiful floors out of dull.
neglected ones.
Wax Them Often.
Careful and systematic floor wax
ing will repay the housekeeper for
her time and effort by making the
floors in her home smooth. translucent.
rich in soft reflection. and ever glow
ing with delicate lights and shadows.
The floors should be waved until
they have acquired a rich, subdueI
lustre which adds cheerful warmth to
any room. and enhances the beauty
Of the whole interior. The finish
should be lustrous without being giar-
ingly glossy. A little experience will
teach the housewife just the proper
amount of wax and rubbing necessary
to bring out the natural beauty of the
grain of the wood.
Different woods and different grains
require slightly varying amounts 1T
wax to produce satisfactory finish.
and it will be found that some woods
require several additional coats Of wax
before they are satisfactory. The ger
eral rules for the application OF wax
are very simple. If applied by hand,
a small quantity of the wax should
be placed between two or three thick-
nesses Of cheesecloth. so that the wax
will pass through the meshes of the
cloth as il is rubbed over the floor.
thus insuring a thin. even coating
OF wax. After allowing fifteen min
utes for the wax to dry. the floor
should be polished with clean. soft
CLOTH. This operation should be re-
peated once or twice until the de-
sired lustre has been obtained. If q
regular floor polisher is employed in
stead of the cloth, the work IF reno
vatine the floors will be further sim
plified.
Enhances the Beauty.
This process Of waxing will bring
out the natural beauty of the grain
without changing the color Of the
floor. If r change in the color is de-
sired stain must be used. This pro-
cess is simple enough to be accom-
plished by any clever housewife. A
good. penetrating stain. obtainable at
any paint store should be applied. AMI
then "filler" should be used. After
staining and filling. thin coat Of
denatured alcohol-shcllac. diluted with
denatured alcohol should be annlied to
act az binder for the stain. When Nh"
shellac is thoroughly dried. two thin
coats Of wax should be applied MS di.
rected in the preceding paragraph.
Floors waxed in this manner at
monthly intervals are floors If ne~-
manent beauty. They are beautiful in
summer, when the sunlight brings our
their lights and casts shadows in their
gleaming depths They are equally
beautiful in winter when the soft re-