HAMPSHIRE COUXTY FARMERS' MONTHLY 



HOME MAKING 



MY KITCHEN 



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The kitchen was oiiginally just a rough 

 back kitchen or summer kitchen, such as 

 is found in many farmhouses, but as the 

 family gi-ew it became necessary to make 

 it into a permanent kitchen. The roof of 

 the ell has been raised and an extra bed- 

 room put in over the kitchen, but the ceil- 

 ing had never been finished off. At fre- 

 quent intei-vals, to prevent cobwebs and 

 dust from falling into the food and onto 

 the workers, the joi.sts of the floor above 

 had to be carefully swept, and it was no 

 small job to go over the room, bru.shing 

 each side of the beams in turn. The wall 

 beams and .supports, rough and uneven, 

 were many of them in evidence also, so 

 the first necessity seemed to be to put up 

 some smooth and sanitary wall and ceil- 

 ing covering. The man of the house re- 

 belled a little at this as the exposed beams 

 were "picturesque" and .some of the sup- 

 ports "so handy to put things on". Up- 

 son board was finally chosen for the cov- 

 ering and home talent put it in place, 

 first carefully planning out the panelling 

 of the molding strips to make the whole 

 thing decorative. 



It was then painted a light gray on the 

 ceiling with a deeper shade for the walls. 

 This coloi' scheme will be changed to 

 cream and pale buff at the next painting 

 as the kitchen needs lighting. The floor 

 was already covered with linoleum. 



As the kitchen was small, advantage 

 was taken of several spaces under beams, 

 with the result that several inches were 

 gained here and there. For instance, be- 

 hind the three-burner oil stove the wall 

 recedes five inches and con.sequently re- 

 ceives fewer spatter from the cooking. 

 Another jog of the same depth behind the 

 door leading out from the dining room 

 allows space for a "cleaning corner", no 

 "cleaning closet" being available. Here 

 in a space 5 ft. by 25 ft. are grouped the 

 stiff corn broom, the soft dust brush, dry 

 mop, long-handled dust-pan, ordinary 

 dust-pan, six different types and sizes of 

 brushes, coal shovel, hammei- and yard- 

 stick. The various cleaning cloths are 

 accommodated in four three-cornered 

 wire baskets such as are used for sink 

 drainers, which are fastened securely, one 

 below the other, in the corner of the jog 

 in the wall. The upper one contains the 

 broom cover for dusting ceiling and walls, 

 the others graduating down the scale 

 until the lower which holds the floor cloth. 

 Wire baskets were chosen becau.se the air 

 can circulate through them and dry out 

 any dampness, and because they don't 

 hold the dirt as a solid container would. 

 Cleaning cloths hanging on nails are not 

 ornamental either, while this tier of wire 



baskets is not offensive to the sight. 



.^gainst the wall opposite the cook 

 stove is the kitchen table, covered with 

 zinc, and elevated on wooden blocks to 

 the proper height. A drawer in the table 

 holds the usual as.sortment of knives and 

 cooking spoons. An oblong wire basket 

 jutting out fiom under one end of the 

 table holds four holders of different sizes 

 and thicknesses, and under the opposite 

 edge of the table is another shallow wire 

 ba.sket just the right size to hold a few 

 newspapers. These baskets were found 

 after a long .search for the right_ thing in 

 a department of office supplies. Time 

 pent in hanging v.p holders seems like 

 timo wasted and the table drawer and 

 table top were needed for other things. 



Another table, covered with oilcloth, at 

 the south side of the kichen, under a win- 

 dow, has drop leaves and is on castors. 

 Here the men are at liberty to work 

 when they want to, but woe unto them, if 

 they spread their tools and fixings over 

 onto the zinc-covered table, sacred to the 

 housewife. The outside door opening on- 

 to a little enclosed porch is at this end of 

 the kitchen and behind it ai'e hooks for 

 the farm coats and hats. Below these is 

 an open front box divided into compart- 

 ments to accommodate some of the out- 

 door foot-wear. A similar box is on the 

 back porch, the top being the right height 

 for a seat. 



The kitchen sink, with hot and cold 

 running water, is against the north wall 

 under the window, which has a very con- 

 soling view for the dishwasher. Owing 

 to the situation of a north door opening 

 on to a screened porch, which holds the 

 built-in refrigerator, a drain-boai'd could 

 be placed on only one side of the sink. 

 This is covered with zinc and extra room 

 for dishes is furnished by a large wall 

 drainer manufactured by a Springfield 

 fii'm, which is the finest thing for the pur- 

 pose that I know of. 



Relow the drain board is a cupboard 

 which holds cleaning compounds and the 

 various things which should be near a 

 sink. This, as you will see, is not the 

 kind of a kitchen whose walls are cov- 

 ered with utensils in plain sight. This 

 housewife does not find that arrangement 

 restful and does find it hard to keep 

 clean. The space under the sink is not 

 enclosed, but has a broad shelf which 

 holds the di.sh pan and vegetable pan. 

 Underneath that sits the garbage pail. 



Continuing the line of the drain-board 

 is the broad shelf of the little pantry, 

 which is not quite 5x6 ft. This shelf 

 faces a window which also gives a pleas- 

 ant outlook — of untold value to the health 

 and happiness of the housewife. Every 

 inch of the little pantry is of necessity 

 utilized, .so much so that one man on see- 

 ing it remarked that it reminded him of 



i.'Diitinucd on piige 5. column 2 



AMHERST GROUP TO 



START TESTING CIRCLE 



lo Test Kitchen Savers 



I>o you own an egg beater that skids? 

 One with sadly worn teeth or a loose 

 wheel so that it functions less than half 

 the time? If you have, you have much 

 in common with many other housekeepers 

 in Hampshire County. One of the short- 

 comings of the average woman is that 

 she insists on buying three or four cheap, 

 inefficient egg beaters during the year 

 when one good one will last longer than 

 three of the other kind and work more 

 efficiently. 



At an organization meeting of a group 

 of women representing North, South and 

 Amherst Center there were sixteen 

 women who were interested in the study 

 of home equipment and so a testing circle 

 was organized. 



At this meeting the equipment to be 

 tested was decided upon, and one week is 

 to be the testing period for each piece of 

 equipment after which, an exchange for 

 a different piece will be made with an- 

 other member. The exchange and test- 

 ing continues until each group member 

 has tested all of the equipment in which 

 she is interested. 



Each member of the testing circle is 

 to keep a record of all the ecjuipment she 

 tests. A report of the value of each 

 piece of tested equipment is to be given 

 at the leg-ular meetings of the group, and 

 to anyone interested in the equipment. 

 The group members may purchase such 

 pieces of equipment as meet their special 

 needs and as are found satisfactory in the 

 home test. 



Among the equipment to be tested are 

 the following: fibre broom, several small 

 brushes, stainless steel knives, long 

 handled dust pan, pressure cooker, dish 

 drainer, bread mixer, self-wringing mop, 

 Vacuette sw^eeper, egg beater, cream 

 whip, knife sharpener, jar opener. 



The testing circle plan not only makes 

 possible a wise selection of good workable 

 equipment, but makes it possible for the 

 homemaker to test the equipment and de- 

 cide if it is equipment she needs before 

 making the purchase. 



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I Vintinvicii rrom p;tg'e I. column 2 



attached. At very little cost, a sink can 

 be raised. It may add years to one's life, 

 and certainly adds pleasure to one's years. 

 If it is not feasible to alter the sink, 

 much relief may be had by placing a box, 

 from four to six inches high, as the case 

 may I'equire, under the di.shpan while 

 washing dishes, or a stool may be used to 

 sit on while dish-washing. 



