Evening star., 1930-12-12
Christmas Decorations
Wreath Is Symbol Chosen by Many Persons for
This Season-Dinner Table Offers Opportu-
nites-Gifts for Children.

pure white, accompanied by amber
glassware. In the center of the table
place an amber glass bowl filled with
red and yellow roses or other flowers
in these colors.
For the Christmas breakfast table for
family and house guests use a center
decoration for the table which can be
placed there at that time A tiny arti-
ficial tree. a mound of fruit and holly. OF
clever arrangement of fruit alone is
all that is necessary.
Dinner Accompaniment.
Provide the first course with a bit
of holiday Coloring, which may be in
the form of a canape decorated with
pimentos or tomato bisque garnished
with parsley. A vegetable Christmas
wreath is made by pressing cooked well
seasoned spinach into a creased ring
mold. Turn out onto a serving dish
and fill the center with buttered beets
Another Christmas dish is sweet DO
tatoeS and apples. Boil or steam the
sweet potatoes until tender, then mash
sweeten slightly, season with butter and
add few nuts, raisins and quartered
marshmallOws. Mold in a ring molc
and fill the center with apple rings
Core the apples, but do not peel them
and cook them in a sirup made by
boiling one cupful of water with half &
cupful of sugar. A few drops Of rec
color may be added to tint the apples
Arrange several whole marshmalloWs or
the potatoes and place the completed
dish in a slow oven to become heated
through and for the marshmallowS tc
melt and family brown. This is a gooc
dish to serve with baked ham.
Gifts for Children.
The selection and buying of TOYS and
playthingS for children should have
more consideration than most people
give. Whether they are of constructive
quality or destructive, and whether
suitable to the childs age, size and dis
position, requires real thought. Follow
ing are few suggestions according to
different ages:
One Year of Age and Under.-Soft
stuffed animals, dolls, balls, pull-and-
push toys, toys that make a noise
walker or stroller.
One to 3 Years of Age-Balls, blocks
dolls, soft toys, puSh-and-puI toys,
water and sand toys.
-Four to Years of Age.-Dolls
doll carriages, doll furniture, seWine
kits, parasols, coloring and drawing
outfits, pets, scooters, tricycles, outdoor
playthings, animal toys, balls, blocks
puzzle maps and pictures, sleds, mold.
ing clay, books, games suitable to age
and toilet accessories.
Eight to 10 Years of Age.-Outdool
equipment, slides, swings and similar
apparatus, sleds, toboggans and Other
sport equipment, bicycles, games of al
kinds. character suits, such as Indian
cowboy and others; mechanical toys
writing equipment, pOcketbooks, fOun-
tain pens, jewelry toilet accessories
musical instruments, furniture or pic.
lures for their own rooms, books anc
pets.
Every childs room should have its
toy cabinet The toy box of a few years
ago has gone, together with the broker
toys for which it was in part response
BILE. Toy cabinets can either be built
in the house or made in separate units
like sectional bookcases, which fit into
any room. The chief requirements are
that it shall be low have ample shelf
space to avoid the irritation of crowded
and tangled toys and that the fasten-
ings or catches are simple and easily
operated.
Very attractive Is the specially de-
signed furniture for children con-
Structed of unpublished wood, with
rounded corners to minimize the risk
CT bumped heads. The chairs are low
problem to buy that they were formerly.
Most school supply companies are build
ing chairs with the posture require
ment in view Tables also are of pro-
portionate height, 50 that there is no
need to prop up a child on cushions at
meal times. Most bureaus are too high
for children. The drawers are too long
for their arm span, and too heavily
filled fer them to open without help.
Avoid these defects when selecting gift
furniture for children. If lesson age
has been reached, a child can have an
adjustable desk, which will act as an
incentive to the orderly storing of books
and writing materials. Children like
the gaily decorated painted furniture,
which needs only damp cloth to keep
spotlessly clean.
Gayly Wrapped Gifts.
A little imagination. spool Of fine
wire, and pot OF paste or glue, as well
as a pair of scissors, are needed when
gift wrapping is in progress. A few
l0-cent toys and tiny tinkling bells,
bits of bayberry, nistletoe, holly, cedar,
pine and fir cones from Natures de-