28o MORE POT-POURRI 



leaves. The surface of each of these was entirely cov- 

 ered with the eyes of peacock feathers stuck one over 

 the other, like the scales of a fish, each eye having the 

 long feathers round it cut off. The other side of the 

 panel was gilt, and I have lately found that thin oak 

 takes the gilding best. I think in the original Rossetti 

 screen it was gilt paper or leather. On this, long pea- 

 cock feathers, split at the back to make them lie flat, 

 were arranged in groups of three or five or six, at 

 various heights, according to fancy. They look best if 

 the stalks nearly meet at the bottom. The panels are 

 glazed on both sides. A square firescreen can be ar- 

 ranged in the same way. The effect is most satisfac- 

 tory, and it has that great merit in furniture — unchange- 

 ableness. The colours, being natural, never fade ; and 

 the glass preserves the feathers from perishing. 



The following is a receipt for varnishing plaster 

 casts, given me many years ago by Sir Edward Burne- 

 Jones : 



Quarter of an ounce of gum elami, two ounces of 

 white wax, half a pint of turpentine ; add a small 

 squeeze from an oil-paint tube of raw umber when a 

 small quantity of the varnish has been poured into a 

 saucer ready for use. Apply with a brush, and spread 

 quickly and evenly. This has to be done three times, 

 with a day between each coating, and rubbed hard with 

 a silk handkerchief between each painting. It gives 

 casts and plaster figures the colour of old ivory, and 

 makes them useful and decorative in a way they can 

 never be without it. The varnish on the easts lasts for 

 ever, never becomes dirty, and the dust can be rubbed or 

 even washed off quite easily. The best place in London 

 for plaster casts is Brucciani's (40 Russell street, Covent 

 Garden) . I know few decorations more satisfactory — for 

 those who appreciate them and in certain rooms — than 



