HAMPSHIRE COUNTY FARMERS' MONTHLY 

 HOM e: M AKI NG 



WORTHINGTON GIRL'S CLUB 



Refinish F-urniture 



"The Own Your Own Room" club of 

 VVorthington has been quite busy fixing 

 over the bedrooms of the members. 

 Choosing the paper, liangings for the win- 

 dows and finishing- the floor and wood 

 work were some of tlie problems more or 

 less easily solved. But some of the girls 

 owned pieces of old furniture good in de- 

 sign but which showed it was old and did 

 not exactly suit in this new room. 



There are three characteristics which 

 the piece of furniture to be finished must 

 have in order that the time, patience and 

 much "elbow grease" may be justified. 

 These characteristics are good lines, 

 good wood and good construction. The fol- 

 lowing directions may be used in obtain- 

 ing a new finish on any piece of furni- 

 ture : 



1. Have any necessary repair work 

 done. 



2. Remove all unnecessary ornaments, 

 as meaningless machine carving which is 

 glued on. Remove by use of chisel. 



3. Remove varnish or paint. • 



i. Scrape off using a knife blade, 



piece of glass, steel or sand paper. 



(For smooth surface only). 

 2. Soften varnish or paint with 



varnish remover. Scrape and wipe 



off. 



4. Remove stains. 



Use oxalic acid — 1 teaspoonful to 

 one pint of water. If persisten- 

 ly applied will remove ink stains. 

 It sometimes bleaches the wood too 

 much. The color may be brought 

 back by the use of weak ammonia. 



5. Smooth Surface. 



(Wood must be dry before smooth- 

 ing is done) 



Sandpaper — Use over block of 

 wood on flat surface. 

 Steel Wool — Handle with gloves so 

 filings will not get in hands. 



6. Stain. 



Omit if natural coloi' is desired. 



7. Filler. 



8. Surface Finish. 

 Wax. 



a. Wax may be applied directly 

 after stain. 



b. Coat of shellac plus (a). 



c. Oil — well rubbed in then wax. 



Varnish. 



Apply one or two coats of shellac, 



HOW HIGH IS YOUR KITCHEN TABLE? 



Is it the Right Height for You ? 



The women in Westhampton have been studying their individual kitchens this 

 past winter. A series of four meetings were held. The meetings were held at 

 intervals of once a month. At the first meeting each woman was asked to draw a 

 floor plan of her kitchen. The second meeting as many of these floor plans as was 

 possible were discussed individually and the proposed changes noted. There was 

 a discussion of finish for kitchen walls and methods of cleaning them, at this meet- 

 ing. At the third meeting more of the floor plans were di.scussed individually 

 and finishes for kitchen floors and methods of cleaning them discussed. At the 

 fourth meeting more of the floor plans were discussed. There was also an exhibit 

 of kitchen utensils. Some of them were brought because of good points and others 

 because of poor points. 



While the regular meetings ended April 5th each woman had a definite plan as 

 to what she would work for towai'd making her kitchen more easily cleaned and 

 less energy consuming as a work shop. 



The following is a list of some of the proposed changes: 



Name 



Mrs. Frank Fousha 



Mrs. Bridgman 

 Mrs. Henry Parsons 



Frances Loud 



Mrs. George Burt 

 Eleanor Hathaway 

 Effie B. Edwards 

 Mrs. Carrie P. Gagnon 



Mrs. Dana Pelton 



Mrs. Grace Williams 

 Mrs. H. M. Clapp 



Mrs. Marion Fiske 



Proposed Change 



1. Window over sink. 



2. Oiled floor. 



1. Table for center of kitchen. 



2. Raise table. 



3. Floor — crack filled and finished. 



1. Table higher and with castors and 

 moved to front of sink. 



1. Table and couch changed. 



2. Castors on table. 



3. Floor finished — crack filer used. 



4. Table raised. 



1. Walls painted. 



2. Shelf in pantry. 



1. Table for stove and pantry. 



2. Floor finished. 



1. Table made higher or a higher table 

 moved to kitchen. 



1. Sink opened. 



2. Floor oiled. 



1. Hot water in kitchen. 



2. Table with castors. 



3. Floor — refinished. 



4. Window in door to shed. 



5. Position of oil stove changed. 



1. A wheel table for kitchen. 



1. Cupboard over table. 



2. Oil floor. 



1. Table at sink higher. 



2. Floor to be changed and linoleum for 

 kitchen. 



rub each down viath firm sand- 

 paper until perfectly smooth, then 

 apply a coat of varnish. After 

 the vai-nish is thoroughly dry a 

 "rubbed finish" may be obtained. 

 Oil. 



Not a common finish. Seldom used 

 except for old mahogany and wal- 

 nut. 



PAINTED FURNITURE 



Whether the wood is clean or whether 

 the varnish is left on, use a flat no-gloss 

 house paint for the first coat. If a dark 

 surface is to be covered by a light paint, 

 two coats of flat paint will probably be 

 needed. When the flat paint is thorough- 

 ly dry, apply a coat of enamel paint. 



Further information will be given upon 

 request. 



