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The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 14, Issue 6 (September 1939)

Our Women's Section

page 57

Our Women's Section

Fashion Ideas
From the Spring Collections

Grey silk crepe fashions a charming frock for house or street wear. The full bodice has soft ruching at the front neckline, the slim waist is narrowly belted in self fabric, and front flaring of the skirt is obtained by means of narrow godets. With this frock one can wear, very effectively, a hat of fine navy straw, dipping well forward, and held in place at the back by a band of navy ribbon. The hat is banded with wide cyclamen petersham. Accessories (shoes, bag, gloves) are in navy and cyclamen, e.g., cyclamen gloves and shoes, navy suede bag.

Keep your eye on the new printed silks and cottons. Colours are gayer, colour combinations more unusual. For morning wear later on, choose a gay print and have it made up with buttoned front closing, slim widelyshirred waist, and full, upstanding, short sleeves. Then for afternoons you will choose a colourful silk, simply made, with plenty of fulness in skirt and bodice. (See sketch.) An important colour accent may be lent by a wide, draped sash and perhaps a matching neck-clip. For wear under a wool or silk coat, for warm days in town or quiet afternoons or evenings at home, nothing will be smarter this summer.

If you want a very slim-waisted effect, wear a wide corselet sash and a dark bolero.

Demure, and flattering, is a dress of velvet with a short circular skirt, and lace cuffs and pockets.

More sophisticated is the tunic which has sleeves and pockets made entirely of patchwork.

Starched petticoat styles are not likely to find much favour in New Zealand, especially as they are almost dead overseas. But one doesn't lose sight of the “refresher” value of a peep of ruffled taffeta, moire or tie-silk below the hem of a slim dark frock. The same crisp silk may fashion a girdle or bow.

We're a bit wary of the new hats so far. Maybe the charming bonnet, reminiscent of the Salvation Army but with a red rose to the fore, is so skimpy that it will make the face look unnecessarily big. But we take comfort from the “dolly” hats which don't enlarge us unless we're already moonfaced. Most of us, luckily, have hair grown long enough to stay in position, down or up, under a ribbon band.

We're still dubious about flowers and veils. We're scared of over-doing it, and, unless our whole outfit is definitely smart, we shall do better to stick to the plainer styles—but with the new slant, of course! An upstanding ribbon bow in front, or a toque composed entirely of small ribbon bows, won't frighten us. And there's no doubt about the attractiveness of a wide, straight brimmed American felt with plain ribbon trimming, as sketched.

For summer chic, keep your eye on accessories. Plan your basic colours, and watch for bags, gloves, shoes, which will add the touch of colour contrast.

Test for Pure Silk.

Chinese silk merchants will gladly snip off a corner of silk and burn it in a saucer before the eyes of their customers. That there is no residue of ash whatever, proves that the silk is pure, with none of the “loading” which detracts so much from the value of silks offered on some markets.

So high is the reputation of silk merchants in China, that silk is often sold by weight instead of by length.

Your Pantry Shelves.
Banish Paper Bags.

Order in the pantry is as important to the housewife as is order among his papers to the business executive. The ever-recurring preparation of meals necessitates endless reaching for pantry supplies.

First it is necessary to decide which comestibles are most frequently needed (baking-powder, mustard, etc.), and which is the handiest position for them. Less-used commodities will occupy higher or lower shelves, mainly according to weight. For instance it would be foolish to keep cake tins or a large tin of treacle on a top shelf, which is the logical place for small supplies–spices, etc.

Having thought out the general arrangement of her shelves, the thorough housewife spends a day on a complete overhaul. She knows that, once her pantry is ship-shape, future cleaning need be done only a shelf at page 58 a time. On her “big” pantry day, she removes everything from the shelves. The shelves are scrubbed and allowed to dry thoroughly, after which white shelf-paper (usual price 10d. per pound) is folded and laid on them.

Many paper bags, some containing fresh supplies, and others with ends of sago, sultanas, etc., have probably been unearthed. The housewife wonders how the paper-bags managed to accumulate, and vows to put all supplies into jars or tins immediately on arrival in future.

She now studies the jars and tins at her disposal. Screw-top jars make excellent containers for all sorts of supplies—quart jars for icing sugar, rice, sultanas, etc., smaller sizes for herbs and spices, and tiny jars (of the peanut butter variety) for such things as cloves and caraway seeds. Glass is most hygienic, shows the contents without necessity for labelling, and indicates at a glance whether stocks are low.

Tins of varying sizes can supplement the jar supply. To please the artistic eye, tins can be painted a chosen shade (a simple home job) and labelled neatly. When labelling, print the name several times round the tin. A single label means that a tin has to be meticulously placed label to the fore, or else twiddled round to find out the contents.

A logically arranged pantry is a joy to the housewife, a great time-saver, and a guarantee against waste through “spoiling” and against running out of stocks. Incidentally, guests can find their way about in it (if the housewife permits) as easily as can members of the family.

Woodware.

For the “cottage” table, choose woodware. Oak, walnut or elm fashion delightful fruit-bowls, bowls, platters, egg-cups, toast-racks, cheese boards and butter dishes (the last named with glass inner dish). A little salad oil, rubbed in from time to time, preserves the wood.

A wood-turner would no doubt make table-ware to order out of New Zealand woods.

Hide That Flex!

Electric points are not always in the most suitable position in a room. That is no reason for having trails of flex looping across the floor to the radio, radiator or what you will. Choose the best permanent position for your electrical equipment, and lead the flex to it round the walls under the edge of the carpet.

Health Notes.

Anaemia.

The discovery of the liver diet for anaemia was made many years ago, and is now a well-established method for combatting the disease.

Here are some recipes which are quite palatable and may even tempt the jaded appetite.

Stuffed Eggs.

Take one hard-cooked egg, cut lengthwise and remove yolk. Mix yolk with cooked minced liver. Add seasoning and moisten with dressing or gravy. Fill the whites with this mixture and serve on lettuce leaves. Garnish with tomato slices.

* * *

Liver Stuffed in Tomatoes.

Stuff sieved or finely chopped liver (cooked) which has been moistened with tomato juice or broth in tomato, and bake. Onion may be added to the chopped liver for flavour. Carrots and onions can be stuffed in the same way.

* * *

Liver Aspic.

Steam liver in chicken broth until soft, cut liver or push through sieve, season with salt and a very little sugar. Use a tablespoon of gelatine to a quart of chicken broth. Add liver to this. Set in moulds.

Tomato broth may be substituted for the chicken broth.

Garnish with parsley and white of egg and serve on lettuce leaves.

* * *

Shepherd's Pie.

Mince 8 oz. cooked liver, season with salt and pepper, little celery salt, and pinch of sugar. Moisten with gravy and place in small baking dish, cover with mashed potatoes and brown in oven.

* * *

Stew.

Take 8 oz. liver chopped in small pieces, and a little water sufficient to cook the liver and prevent burning. Season and moisten with a little gravy, add cooked carrots, onions and other vegetable if desired.

page 59

Vitamin C.

Vitamin C occurs especially in oranges, lemons, grape-fruit, tomatoes and raw green vegetables.

At the present time oranges are very plentiful, and of all the fruits which come to us from abroad, they are perhaps the most appreciated by young and old.

The food value lies almost entirely in the juice, as the pith and rind are considered indigestible.

“Say it with oranges” when visiting the convalescent and aged people, as the golden fruit is unrivalled in health value.

Vitamin C strengthens blood-vessels and helps to maintain normal gums and teeth. Oranges are, therefore, very effective in arresting the progress of dental decay and pyorrhoea. In fact, so good are the medicinal values of the fruit that it should form a daily essential in the diet.

Miscellaneous Recipes.

Pear Chips.

Eight Ibs. pears, 5 Ibs. sugar, ½ Ib. preserved ginger, 4 lemons, ½ teaspoon salt.

Cut the pears in thin slices, rejecting core and stems; add sugar and let stand for four hours. Add lemons sliced thin (with seeds removed) and salt, and cook slowly for two hours. Fill sterilized, hot jars and seal.

* * *

Gooseberry Sauce.

Five quarts gooseberries, 4 Ibs. sugar, 2 cups lemon juice, 1 tablespoon allspice, 2 tablespoons cinnamon, 1 tablespoon cloves.

Put lemon juice, sugar and spices, on the fire and let boil for one minute before putting in the gooseberries which have been picked over and washed. Boil all together until quite thick. Pour into hot, sterilized bottles, cork and seal.

* * *

Celery and Walnut Salad.

To every three stems of celery—12 inches long—use ½ pint of walnuts.

Chop up celery and stir in walnuts. Mix together and add 2 tablespoonsful of a good mayonnaise. When served garnish with red radishes.

Tapioca Raisin Pudding.

One and a half ozs. tapioca, 1 pint milk, 2 ozs. stoned raisins, 2 eggs, sugar to taste.

Bring the milk to the boil, stir in the tapioca and continue to stir for about ten minutes until the grain is semi-cooked. Add the raisins, sugar to taste, and the beaten egg yolks. Pour the mixture into a buttered piedish and brown slowly in a moderate oven. Whip up the whites of the egg to a stiff froth and fold into them two tablespoonsful of castor sugar. Pile the meringue on the top of the pudding, return this to the oven, and cook until the meringue is a golden brown.

* * *

Ginger Pudding.

Four ozs. breadcrumbs, 4 ozs. shredded suet, 4 ozs. flour, pinch of salt, 4 ozs. crystallised ginger, ½ teaspoonful ground ginger, 1 egg, milk to mix, 2 teaspoonsful baking powder, 3 ozs. sugar.

Sieve the flour, salt, baking powder and ground ginger, into a basin. Add the suet, ginger (cut up small), sugar and breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre, mix in the beaten egg and add just sufficient milk to make a fairly soft mixture. Pour into a well-greased pudding basin, flour a pudding cloth and tie securely over the top of the basin. Boil for 1 3/4 hours. Decorate the top of the pudding with preserved ginger and angelica.

Cheese Toasties.

Slices of bread (brown or white). Cream cheese. Deep fat for frying. Cut the slices of bread in half and remove crust. Roll the cheese up in the bread. Secure with thread or a short skewer before dropping into the boiling fat and fry a golden brown. Drain before serving, remembering to remove the thread if this is used.

* * *

Jack-o'-Lantern.

Chill halves of pears. Make mould of cheese and nuts on individual nests of lettuce and mayonnaise. Cut off bottom of pear halves and stand upright around moulds. Top with ginger cookie and marshmallow, making Jack-o'-Lantern eyes, nose and mouth of liquorice candy.

* * *

Foundation Cream.

White of egg, 1; cold water, two tablespoons; icing sugar, about 3/4 lb.; flavouring.

Beat egg slightly, add cold water. Roll out icing sugar and stir in enough to form a very stiff paste.

page 60