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TWO PRETTY ROOMS. 
We lately entered a family sitting-room, where is 
household adornment in all its beauty. The first 
thing that meets the eye is a beautiful illuminated 
text, “ God bless our home,” which seems to throw an 
atmosphere of safety over all. On the mantel is a 
deep frame, filled with exquisite flowers, made of shells, 
all painted and arranged with great skill. In one of 
the corners, between two windows, is a rustic stand 
whose dark crimson leaves are intermingled with 
the green, and whose Ivy climbs lovingly over an 
arched frame. 
In each window is a box—fitted to the sill and up¬ 
held by a bracket—filled with delicate dainty plants 
and vines which clamber up each side of the windows. 
In front of the rustic stand, is a small centre table, 
which holds a lovely bronze image, with a background 
of Ivy, and stray green leaves peeping here and there 
over its dark beauty. 
On another side of the room is a lounge, with a soft 
cushion, both covered with cretonne ; at the head of 
the lounge is a wall-pocket which contains a weekly 
paper, a monthly magazine, and one of the dailies. 
Then there were fine engravings, one or two bright 
pictures, and, above all, or rather under all, a pretty 
carpet, a dark green with trailing vines. Here is a 
beautiful cross, covered with dried moss, gathered 
during summer’s ramblings, and twined around it are 
bright tinted wax autumn leaves, forming a beautiful 
ornament. All is bright and cheerful; none would 
imagine that here some deep sorrow lingered in their 
hearts. 
But though we have taken so long to describe the 
room, we had perceived its contents at almost a glance, 
and were now giving our attention to the slowly-recov¬ 
ering young girl. See how confusedly she turns from 
one face to another ; all seems a maze whose intrica¬ 
cies she cannot unravel. 
But just now the door opens. Alice—for such is 
the young girl’s name—looks up and a brightness of 
great joy breaks over her wan features, and, reaching 
her hands out entreatingly, cries, 
“ Mother! ” 
For a few moments all is confusion, and we, being 
strangers, were of course unable to guess the meaning 
of this strange scene ; but by dint of patient listening 
we discovered that Alice was the beloved and eldest 
daughter of the family. She had, years ago, married 
a man who possessed every requisite to make his bride 
happy. His home was far away in the sunny South, 
and thither they directed their steps. Letters were 
sent often by Alice to her dearly loved home, till a 
few years had passed, then they ceased suddenly, and 
she had never been heard of from that time till now. 
Alice, with tears of sorrow falling fast, told how, after 
a few years of happiness, her husband had shown a 
fondness for the wine-cup, and, after many bitter trials, 
and finally the sad one of his death, Alice resolved to 
return to her former home. She wrote to the old ad¬ 
dress, hut after weary waiting, and no answer, she 
started with what money she had to find her friends. 
When we first saw her she had been in the city a few 
weeks, hut her family having moved far to another 
part of the city, Alice knew not how to find them, till 
Chance, or rather Providence, led her to the very spot 
she had so longed to reach. 
After long and interesting conversation, the mother 
said that Alice must hava rest, and forthwith led the 
way upstairs. Again we followed, and oh ! that such 
an ideal of a room for rest should he iu existence, un¬ 
known to any one. 
In the first place the carpet; it was a delicate pearl 
tint with blue Forget-me-nots thrown occasionally here 
and there. The wall paper matched the carpet, and 
had been placed on the wall by Alice’s sisters. The 
furniture was a cottage set, all pearl and blue; hut, 
oh ! such beautiful hangings over the bedstead, of pearl 
silk, lined with blue. 
In addition to the dressing-case usually sold, there 
was one something like the one pictured in the Flo¬ 
ral Cabinet ; hut in this one the Swiss was lined 
with blue paper muslin, and blue silk bows outside. 
On the dressing-case was an elegant pincushion, a 
beautiful and new-fashioned hair-receiver, a very 
pretty comb and brush box. Then the window cur¬ 
tains were white Swiss looped hack with blue cord 
and tassel; the lambrequins were blue with a large 
A. worked in pearl colored silk. There were pictures 
and two or three pretty statuettes. 
“ My daughter,” said the mother fondly, “ this room 
was fitted up for you when you first left us, and it has 
waited for you untouched all these years, but now rest 
and peace awaits you.” 
The mother left her, and Alice, gazing dreamily at 
the little Forget-me-nots peeping forth gently from the 
carpet, sank back upon her pillow and was lost in the 
happy oblivion of sleep, and the evening star shone 
peacefully on, and the moon smiled serenely on the face 
of the happy sleeper. 
TO MAKE A PRETTY CHAIR. 
Buy two pieces of dress braid, only about an inch 
wide, one drab and one blue. Cut into strips the 
length of the seat of a chair ; place them over and un¬ 
der each other, like the darn of a stocking, blue and 
drab alternately. Fasten securely by sewing. Pre¬ 
pare another piece the same way to fit the back of the 
chair, hut twice as long. Take a seatless chair, tack 
old carpet, or any strong cloth, where the seat ought 
to be ; fill with straw, cover again with carpet, then 
tack the joined braid neatly over the seat. Tack one 
end of the braid for the back of the chair, to the back 
of the seat; bring the piece over the top of the chair 
down again, and tack the other end over the same 
place as the first end, thus finishing an easy made hut 
very pretty chair. Those who wish to make the other 
pretty things in Alice’s room, must try to obtain that 
much-to-be-desired book, “ Household Elegancies.” 
C. E. C. 
GUEST CHAMBERS. 
In the first place have a guest chamber. However 
welcome you may make a guest, if she finds that an 
inmate of the family has given up a room for her, she 
will feel disposed to shorten her visit, and will hesitate 
long before she repeats it. 
She will feel sure that the person will be glad to 
get back to her own room, and that is about equivalent 
to rejoicing at her departure. In the next place, warm 
it in some way. A room that has been unoccupied, 
and that is not affected by the fire, is not a comfort¬ 
able or even safe place for any one to sleep in cold 
weather. The attention that was called to this sub¬ 
ject a few years since, and the articles that appeared 
in our papers, produced a change in this matter. 
Housekeepers generally expect to warm the guest- 
chamber in some way. The room should also he pro¬ 
vided with matehes. Many persons are somewhat 
nervous when away from home. If startled iu the 
night, it is a great comfort to be able to have a light. 
Our homes are much more beautiful than they were 
ten years ago. Particular attention has been paid to 
ornamenting sleeping apartments. 
Blue rooms are very attractive for guest-chambers. 
Let the wall be kalsomined in blue, and finished with 
a blue paper border. Place white shades in the win¬ 
dows with blue tassels. Put a blue and buff carpet 
on the floor. The set of furniture must correspond 
with the taste and purse of the purchaser. A black 
walnut set, with marble tops, is both elegant and 
durable. 
Before the dressing bureau and washstand lay bur¬ 
lap mats, embroidered with Wue shaded Germantown 
wool, with a fringe of the same. These mats are or¬ 
namental, and will also save the carpet where it is in 
most danger of being injured. 
A white Java canvas tidy, worked with blue wor¬ 
sted, may be put on the rocking-chair. A toilet set of 
the same kind of canvas as the tidy, worked in blue 
and huff’ worsted, should ornament the dressing bu¬ 
reau. The set should consist of four pieces. A large 
mat—upon this a pincushion should he placed—and 
upon each side of the cushion there should be a small 
mat. Upon the dressing bureau there should also he 
a hairpin-cushion. This may consist of a small bas¬ 
ket, filled with horse hair, covered with a very coarse 
white net. Over the net place a piece, knit or cro¬ 
cheted in loops, from blue worsted. The hair-receiver 
can be made of perforated card in the form of a cor¬ 
nucopia, trimmed with plaited ribbon, blue, and orna¬ 
mented with one or two decaleomanie pictures. It 
should he attached to the dressing bureau by a bow of 
blue ribbon. 
The pictures upon the walls may be framed in blue 
and gilt frames. Spatter work pictures, worsted 
wreaths, home paintings, and many other things that 
are not regarded as pretentious enough for the rooms 
below stairs, are just the thing for the guest-chamber, 
and will he interesting to the visitor. The stand 
should he provided with a few entertaining hooks. 
Let the guest-chamber be a room to which you can 
invite your guest with satisfaction, and which the visi¬ 
tor will leave with regret, and feel constrained to go 
home and make her guest-chamber as attractive as the 
one she has left. M. R. T. 
Directions for Making Blackberries. —Take 
a piece of wire, bend the end and tie on cotton. Dip 
this in melted wax colored with lampblack. Mould 
the berry while the wax is soft. After the shape is 
perfect, dip the berry ouce in melted wax to give a 
smooth surface. Take the seeds from asparagus ber¬ 
ries, and rub them carefully. Put these on the wax 
berries, with dissolved glue, colored with lampblack. 
After the berries are thoroughly dry, varnish them 
with copal varnish. Make the calyxes and cover the 
stems with green wax, and then rub them over with 
brown powder. 
Blackberries can also be made by using small 
globules instead of asparagus seeds. These are formed 
by melting rosin and wax, colored with lampblack, 
then dipping a brush in the mixture, aud shaking, it 
over cold water. 
I have recently made very natural blackberries in 
the ways described, and, having placed them under 
glass, expect them to last a generation or more. 
M. R. T. 
$ 
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