Adding whole meal flour helps to thicken sauces and gravies

Brown Gravy

Fry a chopped onion in a very little butter until a dark brown. (Do not  burn, or the flavour of the gravy will be spoilt.)

Drain off the fat and add 1/2 pint water.

Boil until the water is brown. Strain. Return to saucepan and add flavouring to taste.

A teaspoon of lemon juice and a tomato, skinned and cooked to pulp, are good additions. Or any vegetable stock may be used instead of the water.

If thick gravy be desired, mix a dessertspoonful wholemeal flour with a little cold water. Add the boiling stock to this. Return to
saucepan and boil for 3 minutes. Add a small piece of butter just before serving.

Another method: Add a little “browning” (see recipe) to any vegetable stock. Thicken. Read more »

Rinsing your mouth after every meal helps lead to a lovely smile

Femininity may be heir to many beauty woes, but ugly teeth is one trouble which is often caused by sheer neglect. How many of us can recall the days of childhood and girlhood without remembering the fibs we told to escape cleaning our teeth? The blessed mothers implored and begged and threatened and fussed, but we went our way joyful and serene, making all due preparations for future unhappiness.

But when the girl began to think more about her personal appearance, and less of the frivolities of advanced babyhood—oh, that we were all back at that jolly time of life!—things were very different. The neglected teeth got good attention then, but often the mischief had already been done. I trust that the younger readers of this volume on beauty will remember that this is hopelessly true, and something not to be forgotten—like yesterday’s toasted marshmallows or to-day’s lesson in political economy.

I have heard it said that too much brushing will injure the teeth, but don’t you believe it! The sooner you become accustomed to a moderately stiff brush, that will do its work well and thoroughly, the better. All foreign matter must be constantly removed, else decay will come as sure as fate. A perfect state of cleanliness cannot be unless the teeth have proper and constant attention. By this I do not mean that you must cease all other occupations and take up that of eternal scrubbing. Simply keep your teeth clean. Toothpicks must not be used excessively, cold water should not be applied—or very hot, either, for that matter—and all powders containing gritty substances must be tabooed.

It is quite unnecessary for me to add that you must not bite thread or break nuts with your teeth, for all of us have had this bit of information dinned into our ears since the time when “little children should be seen and not heard” made life a worry and a care. I must confess, however, that I have seen women untie knots and do various bits of very remarkable mechanical work in this unique manner. My experience has been so broad in this particular line of observation that the expression “biting ten-penny nails” has never appeared to me to be much overdrawn.

If one seriously desires fine, beautiful, white teeth—and who doesn’t?—one must treat them well. Just before going to bed, give them a thorough cleaning, using waxed dental floss to remove any large particles which may be between them. Use only a pure powder, the ingredients of which you know. Be sure that all powder is well rinsed away. See that your brush is kept scrupulously clean.

Upon arising in the morning rinse the mouth with diluted listerine. This makes an excellent wash, especially when the gums are tender and liable to bleed. Brush the teeth with tepid water. After breakfast, luncheon and dinner, wash them again, letting the last cleansing be the most searching and thorough. Once in a while it is wisdom to squeeze a little lemon juice onto the brush. This will remove the yellow appearance that often comes, and will also keep your teeth free from tartar.

Every six months visit your dentist and have your teeth thoroughly examined. The smallest cavities should be filled at once, and the pain will be less than when these agonizing crevices get so large that you feel that it’s a flip-up between going to a dentist or jumping into the lake.

I know that most of us  are cowards when it comes to seances in dentist chairs, but all such things—like house-cleaning and writing letters to folks you don’t like, and entertaining your husband’s maiden aunt—all these things are heaps nicer when they’re well over with. They are the events which we prefer should ornament the past instead of the future.

To Whiten and Beautify the Teeth

Take gum tragacanth, one ounce; pumice stone, two drams; gum arabic, one ounce; cream of tartar, one ounce. Dissolve the gums in rose-water, and adding to it the powder, form the whole into little sticks, which are to be dried slowly in the shade, and afterwards kept for use. Use on the brush like soap.

Various homemade toothpastes naturally whiten teeth

Read on for more recipes for toothpaste.

Read more »

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The mouth cannot be too frequently rinsed during the day

The influence which the teeth are capable of exercising on the personal appearance is usually known and admitted.The teeth have formed especial objects of attention, in connection with the toilet and cosmetic arts, from almost the earliest ages of the world to the present time. History and tradition, and the researches of archæologists among the remains of the prehistoric nations of the East, show us that even dentistry may trace back its origin to a date not very long subsequent to the “confusion of tongues.” Read more »

There is nothing more disagreeable to people with whom we associate than for them to be able to detect a bad odor from our breath when in their company. Yet a great many are afflicted in this way. Read ahead to help you figure out how to eliminate offensive mouth odors. Read more »