Page:Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management.djvu/2025

Rh made properly in this manner, the starch will require no further boiling; but should the water not be boiling when added to the starch, it will not thicken, and must be put into a clean saucepan, and stirred over the fire until it boils. Take it off the fire, strain it into a clean basin, cover it up to prevent a skin forming on the top, and when sufficiently cool that the hand may be borne in it, starch the things. Many persons, to give a shiny and smooth appearance to the linen when ironed stir round two or three times in the starch a piece of wax-candle, which also prevents the iron from sticking.

Mix a teacupful of starch to a paste with warm water, adding about an inch of composite candle, 3 or 4 drops of turpentine, and a tiny piece of spermaceti, then pour into this boiling water, stirring all the while, till the starch becomes clear.

Mix the starch to a smooth cream with cold water, then add borax dissolved in boiling water in the proportion of a dessertspoonful to a teacupful of starch.

The gloss, or enamel, as it is sometimes called, is produced mainly by friction with a warm iron, and may be put on linen by almost any person. The linen to be glazed receives as much strong starch as it is possible to charge it with, then it is dried. To each pound of starch a piece of sperm or white wax, about the size of a walnut, is usually added. When to be ironed, the linen is laid upon the table and moistened very lightly on the surface with a clean wet cloth. It is then ironed in the usual way with a flat-iron, and is ready for the glossing operation. For this purpose a peculiar heavy flat-iron, rounded at the bottom, as bright as a mirror, is used. It is pressed firmly upon the linen and rubbed with much force, and this frictional action puts on the gloss. "Elbow grease" is the principal secret connected with the art of glossing linen.

Make a solution of ¼ of a lb. of chloride of lime and 1 quart of soft water and keep the bottle closely corked: dilute what is required for use with an equal quantity of water. This will remove stains from table-linen. etc, that resist milder treatment.

Take finely powdered indigo and starch in equal quantities, and make them into a paste with warm water, then form the mass into small lumps or cakes. The quantity of indigo must be increased if the blue is required to be of a very deep colour.

Scour with dry salt and beeswax.