Household science and arts

Prepare the water in which the clothes are to be soaked, by adding sufficient soap solution to make a suds. If two tubs are used, put the contents of the first pile into one tub, and the contents of the second pile into the other. Colored clothes and flannels should not be soaked. Rub the most soiled parts of the garments with soap, fold these parts in and put the garments into the tubs, covering the entire mass of clothes with warm soapy water. Then cover the tubs and let the clothes soak overnight. In the morning, rub the clothes on the washboard, or, if they are soaking in the washing machine, work the machine until all the dirt is loosened. Rinse the clothing thoroughly in at least two waters, examining all soiled parts, to be sure they are clean. Treatment of Water. — Water is the great solvent of dirt. Water that is used in the laundry should be clean and soft. It should be free from odor or any trace of iron. Most of the water supplied to us by the public water supply is hard, due to the lime salts it gets from the earth. Rain water is soft. Water can be made soft by boiling it and by adding alkalies and soap. The cheapest and best alkalies are wash- Digitized by Google LAUNDERING 195 ing soda, lye, borax, and ammonia. Alkalies, unless used very carefully, make holes in the clothes. Your teacher will show you how to make the proper solution of alkali to soften the water you have to use in your locality. Soap is made of fat and lye. It is considered the best cleaning agent. Strong soap has alkalies in excess. It should be used when the clothes are very dirty and on cotton and linen. Mild soap contains a small amount of alkali and should be used on fine materials, colored clothes, and flannels. Soap loosens the dirt and emulsifies the grease in the clothes. These are both finally removed by the process of washing and rinsing. Bluing. — Unless clothes are thoroughly rinsed, they become yellow. Bluing is used to whiten them and is necessary even when clothes are carefully washed and rinsed, if a pure white is desired. Bluing is sold in small packages with directions for use printed on the wrapper. Dissolve a little in a bowl of hot water. Add enough of this to a tub of lukewarm water to give the desired blue. Clothes should be properly rinsed or the bluing will not have the desired effect. Some bluings contain iron, which will turn the clothes yellow if they have not been rinsed perfectly clean. Starching. — Starch penetrates the fabric and becomes part of the cloth, giving it a hard, smooth surface when ironed. Starched clothes keep clean longer and are warmer. Borax and oily substances added to starch increase the gloss, and prevent the starch from sticking to the iron. THICK STARCH THIN STARCH 1 c. starch I c. starch i c. cold water J c. cold water 1 pt. boiling water 2 qt. boiling water 1 ts. borax 1 ts. borax i ts. lard i ts. lard Digitized by v. Google Mix the cold water and starch together, add the boiling water gradually, stirring the starch constantly. Add the borax and lard, cook the starch slowly twenty minutes. Thick starch may be made and diluted to the desired thinness. RAW STARCH J c. starch J c. cold water 1 pt. warm water Stir the mixture until it is smooth. Garments that are to be very stifif, like shirts, collars, and cuffs should be starched in the thick starch. Petticoats and dresses should be starched in thin starch. If the underwear and table linen are to be starched at all, they should also be starched in the thin starch after the petticoats and dresses. Clothes like shirt bosoms, collars, and cuffs will absorb more raw starch and are consequently stiffer. Rub the starch well into the clothes and dry them in the sunshine and fresh air. Clothes dried in this way are sweet and clean smelling.