156 
fie iftoroJ iattfiiRet ixii3 JHeiorml 
ome 
lompmifm. 
%\i IJstratfotjtt* 
SWISS HAMLET. 
A winter scene under glass shade, for bracket. 
The shade and stand for this can he of home make, 
or obtained from a fancy store. Those made by 
hand consist of a square piece of board set on four 
feet, ornamented around the edge with a wooden 
beading obtained at a furniture store, of leather 
leaves, or rustic work, of cones, acorns, and little 
branches of oak or grape-vine. Pretty feet can be 
made of spools, with a long screw passed through 
them and into the stand , then ornamenting with 
acorns or any other article corresponding with the 
edging of the stand , or the common curved clothes- 
hooks make really beautiful feet 
for these, and various other arti¬ 
cles, as they look precisely like the 
feet upon sofas, bureaus, etc., in 
miniature. Having finished the 
stand with a coat of copal varnish, 
the shade is made of a sash of de¬ 
sired size, filled with four panes of 
glass for sides, and a square one 
for top. Pass a piece of chenille 
around the base after the shade is 
placed over the picture. In the 
centre of the base-board place a 
piece of mirror to imitate a lake; 
place stones, moss, groups of wav¬ 
ing grasses, ferns, etc., around the 
edge at the sides; on the front, 
sand and flat pieces of moss to 
imitate grass. At the back form 
rocks of stones piled upon each 
other, with pieces of evergreen cut 
and formed into little trees; low 
evergreen bushes upon the sum¬ 
mits of the mountains, with a few 
trees sparsely covered with autumn 
leaves. All the foliage and grass 
of this picture should be of the dun 
and brown colors usual in winter. 
Make a number of little houses, of 
the Swiss style, also a little church 
with spire. The house may be 
made of card-board, wet with thick 
glue and sanded, and then marked 
out in form of stones; or of thin 
pieces of wood rubbed with brown paint-powders of 
different hues. Tiny windows and doors, porches, 
etc., may be formed of stiff card and glued on. 
Chimneys must be sanded, and smoke formed of 
white and lead-colored cotton batting. Little fig¬ 
ures may be formed by hand or of wax, and dressed 
in Swiss costume, or purchased at a toy-shop. The 
beautiful little piano dolls are admirable for this 
purpose, but care must be taken to have them and 
all portions of the houses, etc., in perfect proportion. 
Boys skating upon the lake, and a tiny bridge across 
the rocks in the distance, will add to the beauty of 
the scene. Mery much depends upon the taste and 
designing qualifications of the artist. Ice upon the 
sides of the lake is made by touching with clear mu¬ 
for about one quarter of a yard; then, working the 
same stitch but only? one of the wools, knit about one 
yard, and make the other ends to correspond with 
the beginning. Cast off. The ends are further de¬ 
corated with a narrow strip of crochet and a fringe. 
Use wool like that in the centre of the scarf, and a 
crochet needle of medium size. Crochet on the 
edge of the knitting a row of 5 chain and t plain, 
then two rows more the same, working the plain 
stitch in the 5 chain of the preceding row. This, of 
course, makes three rows of the ordinary looped cro¬ 
chet. For the fringe cut the wool in length of about 
eight inches, and loop them into the last row of cro¬ 
chet. 
Drying Ferns. —The dried fronds of ferns are 
frequently employed informing screens under blinds, 
etc., and as they are easily obtain¬ 
able, collections of ferns being gene¬ 
rally grown, some, hints as to the 
preservation of them cannot fail to 
be acceptable. Get a carpenter to 
plane two deal boards, about half 
an inch thick, a foot wide, and a foot 
and a half long. Between these place 
one or two quires of common blot¬ 
ting-paper. Bound the boards put 
two narrow but strong leather straps. 
These must be drawn as tightly as 
possible and will secure a great 
amount of pressure on the fronds in¬ 
side ;. and the whole may be strapped 
on the top of a box in travelling, so 
as not to take up much room. In 
gathering the ferns cut them as low 
down in the stem as possible; and 
in small specimens get up the root, 
if you can. In putting them to dry 
in the blotting-paper, have respect 
to the natural position of the fern, 
and also to the size of the sheet of 
paper on which they are to be finally 
placed. When the fronds are long 
and the specimens large, they may 
be bent so as to lie in a smaller space 
than they otherwise could, and if 
dried in a certain position will retain 
the form easily. It is best at first to 
make the pressure lightly, so as to 
alter the form of the plant, if needful, 
before it is completely? dried. Then 
increase the pressure day by day until the specimens 
are ready to remove. Ferns dry quickly and easily, 
and may without injury be kept in drying paper some 
time. When, however, they are removed for final 
use, they? should be secured, if necessary?, by little 
strips of gummed paper, which is best prepared be¬ 
forehand by? covering a sheet of note-paper with a 
strong solution of gum, which, when dry, may be kept 
for a long time ready for use. The thinner the strips 
are cut the better, so as to hold the parts of the plant 
in their right position. This plan is preferable to gum¬ 
ming the whole plant or portions, of it, as the little 
strips can at any time be removed with a penknife, 
without injuring the paper or book in which they are 
fixed. — Exchange. 
cilage, and putting large pieces of frosting upon it. 
After all is finished touch various parts with muci¬ 
lage, and dust with arrow-root mixed with fine frost¬ 
ing- 
SCARF IN KNITTING. 
Materials. —8-ply Berlin wool or 4-ply fleecy, 
selecting any? two colors that contrast prettily for the 
ends, the centre being made of one of the colors 
only?; two needles, No. 8 Bell gauge. Cast on with 
the wool seventy-four stitches—that is, three stitches 
for each pattern and two over for the edge stitches. 
First row : Bring the wool in front of the needle in 
the right hand, then turn the wool quite round the 
needle, so as to bring it in the front again, and purl 
two stitches together; * the wool will now be in the 
Swiss Hamlet. 
front; turn it round the needle so as to bring it in 
the front again; pass the needle down the next 
stitch, and take it off without knitting it; then purl 
the next two stitches together, and repeat from * to 
the end of the row. Second row ■ Bring the wool in 
front of the needle and turn round as before, then 
purl two stitches together; turn the wool round 
[the needle, bringing it in the front; then slip the 
next stitch thus-; put the needle down at the 
| back of the stitch, and, bringing the needle in the 
front, take off the front part of the stitch without 
knitting it—this stitch slipped is a long loop ; then 
I purl the next two stitches together, and repeat from f 
to the end of the row. All the rows are the same as 
! the second. Knit six rows of each color alternately 
