June, 1908 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



Xlll 



WINDOW CURTAINING 



M. T. S., of Oklahoma, inquires about 

 window curtains that are suitable for her use. 

 "The dust here is very bad and the curtains 

 require washing so often that they last only a 

 short time. What material would you select? 

 How should it be made up ?" 



Under the conditions described by this cor- 

 respondent no material would prove very 

 lasting. The practical need, however, may be 

 met by using one of the new grenadines, a 

 madras, a scrim, fish net or muslin, as any one 

 of these may be easily laundered in the home. 

 The grenadine comes in wide widths, forty- 

 eight and sixty inches, and costs from eighty 

 cents a yard upward ; the madras is thirty-six 

 and forty-five inches wide, and the price be- 

 gins at twenty-five cents a yard. Fish nets 

 come in various widths, at twenty-five cents a 

 yard or more, according to the width. The 

 domestic muslin in a narrow width costs as 

 little as twenty cents a yard, and in a wide 

 width in the French or Swiss as much as one 

 dollar and a half a yard. A plain scrim may 

 be made up prettily by hemstitching two rows 

 of drawn work around the sides and across 

 the bottom, finishing with a wide hem. 



COVERING FOR A SOFA 



A South Carolina correspondent, J. C. C. B., 

 is puzzled about selecting a new covering for 

 an old mahogany sofa. 



If the wall covering and carpet show much 

 of a pattern and a variety of colors, a plain 

 material will look the best on this sofa. If 

 the seat is to be tufted, a plain fabric is desir- 

 able. If, however, there is a lack of design 

 in the other parts of the room and the sofa 

 is to have its covering applied smoothly, a 

 tapestry or other figured material will be the 

 most appropriate. 



Among the plain materials a linen velour in 

 dark red or olive green will look well with 

 the mahogany frame of the sofa. The price 

 of this fabric varies with the quality, but it 

 may be had for one dollar and a half a yard. 

 A shaded velour is newer but costs more. 

 Striped velvet in two or more tones of one 

 color is another durable fabric. 



Cotton tapestries in quaint effects may be 

 had from a dollar and fifty cents a yard up- 

 ward, and this material is especially recom- 

 mended for the covering of an old-fashioned 

 sofa. 



SIMPLE FITTINGS FOR DRESSING TABLES 



"Please suggest something simpler for the. 

 dressing tables in my summer cottage other 

 than the silver and lace that we use during 

 the winter." (F. H. D., New York City.) 



A neat cover for the top of a dressing table, 

 and one that is easily laundered at home, may 

 be made from coarse white linen, hemstitching 

 the edges. Another material that is useful for 

 this purpose is the white pique with a swan's 

 down backing that is sold in the shops for in- 

 fants' bibs. This may have the edges scal- 

 loped and finished with a buttonhole stitch, 

 or a narrow white cotton lace may be sewed 

 around the edges as a finish. If a plain white 

 cover is too severe, it may be embellished with 

 a border of flowers and ribbon cut from cre- 

 tonne or taffeta. The border should be care- 

 fully cut out and basted upon the material, 

 and the edges secured by a coarse buttonhole 

 stitch, using linen floss. Cretonne with a 

 striped design is especially adapted for this 

 work. If the pattern is too intricate to cut 

 out and apply in this way, the border may be 

 used as a plain strip, with the edges stitched 

 with the machine. 



In a room where there is no white-painted 

 woodwork or light furniture, and where the 

 beds are not covered with white spreads, a 

 cover for the dressing table looks better made 



Daffodils, 

 that come before the Swallow dares 



FROM NOW UNTIL 



July 1st, Not Later 



There is no more useful garden material 

 than what are known as Dutch Bulbs, Hya- 

 cinths, Tulips, Narcissi, Crocus, etc. They 

 give for a small outlay of time and money 

 an abundance of flowers in the house from 

 December until April, and in the garden 

 almost before the snow is off the ground in 

 the spring until the middle of May. These 

 Bulbs are grown almost exclusively in Hol- 

 land, and in enormous quantities, where 

 they are sold at very low prices. Usually 

 they pass through the hands of two dealers, 

 and more than double in price before reach- 

 ing the retail buyer in America. 



By ordering from us now instead of wait- 

 ing until fall, you save from 20 to 40 per cent, 

 in cost, get a superior quality of Bulbs no* 

 to be obtained at any price in this country, 

 v and have a much larger list of varieties to 

 B select from. Our orders are selected and 

 Y packed in Holland, and are delivered to 

 our customers in original packages immedi- 

 ately upon their arrival from Holland, per- 

 fectly fresh and in the best possible condition. 



If you wish to take advantage of our very 

 low prices, we must have your order not 

 later than July 1st, as we import Bulbs to 

 order only. They need not be paid for until 

 after delivery, or taken if not of a satisfac- 

 tory quality. (References required from 

 new customers.) 



Our import price-list, the most compre- 

 hensive catalogue of Bulbs published, is now 

 ready and may be hao for the asking. 



A Few of the Prices : 





Per 100 



Per 500 



Fine Mixed Hyacinths 



S300 



S14.00 



' Tulips . 



.80 



3.50 



Extra Fine Mixed Tulips . 



1 00 



4.50 



Narcissus Poelicus 



.65 



2.50 



Double Daffodils 



1 85 



S 50 



Narcissus Bicolor Empress 



2 50 



11.00 



Emperor 



2-75 



12-00 



Golden Spur 



2.50 



11.00 



Narcissus Mrs. Walter T. Ware, 







splendid free flowering . 



3.50 



1600 



Spanish Iris, splendid mixture . 



.30 



1 25 



ELLIOTT NURSERY CO. 



PITTSBURGH 



of ecru or brown linen. On this material a 

 stencil pattern may be painted around the 

 edges as a border, or the corners and center 

 may have each a detached design. Of course, 

 the proper fluid must be used with the paints 

 to allow the cover to be laundered. 



The toilet pieces may be selected from the 

 imitation celluloid that is now on the market 

 — brush and comb, clothes brush and hat 

 brush, nail cleaner, file and scissors, hand mir- 

 ror, shoe horn and shoe buttoner. In a guest 

 room these articles are often kept in the drawer 

 of the dressing table, leaving the top free for 

 the individual supply. 



A suitable pin cushion, a china tray for 

 hair pins and a china holder for hair comb- 

 ings are among the needful fittings for the 

 dressing table. A tiny bowl for collar but- 

 tons and a receptacle for jewelry are often 

 provided by the thoughtful housewife. Some- 

 times a pair of candlesticks ready for use with 

 candles and shades are an advantage in the 

 country. 



GARDEN WORK ABOUT THE HOME 



{Continued from page 254) 



autumn the leaves turn crimson, perhaps the 

 most brilliant color that our woods can show. 



It is a good vine for arbors and fences, and 

 is often seen to great advantage on a cedar 

 tree or clinging to the trunk of a great elm. 



Trumpet Vine, Bignonia radicans, will 

 grow to great heights on a tree, reaching the 

 top and flowering there, or it will grow to the 

 top of a house with a little help. 



It clings to wood, and should be grown on 

 trellises, arbors, etc., rather than on wires. 

 Its large orange-scarlet flowers attract the 

 humming birds. If it is grown on a post three 

 feet high in the garden it makes a handsome 

 bush, supporting itself when the post rots 

 away. 



Sometimes it will winter-kill north of the 

 latitude of New York, but it is otherwise 

 hardy and free from insects and disease. 



