464 



Popular Science Monthly 



A Clever Woman Discovers Handy 

 Location for the Kitchen Towel 



THE kitchen towel should hang within 

 hand reach of the sink, as the cook 

 requires it many times a day. In some 



The roller is attached to the ends of the sink 

 drain. The towel thus serves two purposes 



kitchens this can be arranged upon a wall 

 rack above the sink drainboard. One clever 

 woman attached a roller-towel rod across 

 the front of the sink, fastening it to the 

 edges of the two wood drainboards. This 

 arrangement makes the towel serve two 

 purposes, as it protects the dress when a 

 person is standing before the sink. When 

 sitting on a stool to wash dishes or to pre- 

 pare vegetables the towel is drawn up over 

 the lap. — Avis Gordon Vestal. 



A Method of Keeping a Rabbit's 

 Cage Glean 



MAKE half of the flooring of a rabbit's 

 cage of slats with 3^-in. openings 

 between them and you will never be 

 troubled with cleaning it. Ordinary laths 

 are nailed to the supports for the bottom 

 instead of a solid board. The other half 

 is made solid. — R. L. Bird. 



Holding a Nut Steady Without the 

 Aid of a Locknut 



THE old method of battering a bolt-end 

 to hold a nut makes it difficult to 

 replace the nut after removal. A simple 

 way to prevent a nut from turning and 

 still not spoil the threads on the end of 



the bolt is to bore a hole in one side of the 

 nut and after the nut is turned home, take 

 a small center-punch and insert it in the 

 hole and strike it a few blows with a 

 hammer. The punch will raise a small 

 circle of metal inside of the hole and 

 prevent the nut from turning. When the 

 nut is removed no trouble will be had in 

 starting it true again. 



Making Wall Plaques in Plaster 

 of Paris 



PRETTY pictures are easily obtained 

 nowadays, but framing them is as 

 expensive as ever. Many magazine covers 

 and illustrations are real works of art and 

 are worthy of a place in the decorative 

 scheme of the home. To frame a picture 

 of this sort plaster of Paris may be used to 

 good advantage. The process complete is 

 shown in the illustration with A represent- 

 ing a large pan, in which an elongated dish 

 is placed. The picture to be mounted is 

 first dampened and then pressed flat on 

 the dish with its face down. A mixture of 

 plaster of Paris and water of thick, creamy 

 consistency is then made and poured on 

 the picture. While the plaster is in a soft 

 state a second dish B is placed over the 

 mass. A sectional view of this arrangement 

 is shown at C, with that of the finished 

 plaque at D. A hanger E consisting of a 

 ring and a bent 

 strip of tin, is 

 thrust into the 

 mass while it 

 is soft and left 

 there to fasten 

 itself in during 

 the hardening 

 process. After 

 24 hours set- 

 ting the plaster 



A plaster of Paris plaque with a picture 

 embedded in it and details of the process 



is removed by pressing at the edge with the 

 blade of a table knife. The edges of the 

 plaque may be tinted or gilded. 



