More handy hints

by Noellen Newton and Naomi Newton

This week we share more of the interesting handy hints from yesteryear. Included are hints on how to treat ink stains, how to banish flies and, in keeping with our cooking experiments, we have included some pudding hints.

To remove inkstains

If you have multiple ink stains – and let's face it, who doesn’t wake up in the middle of the night wondering how to get rid of those stains – then these are the hints for you. Thank goodness that we have mostly dispensed with ink bottles and quills, and now have correction fluid to clean up the mistakes!

When ink is spilled on a carpet it is found that if salt is at once spread thickly on the place, and left on for some minutes, it will absorb the ink, and when removed no mark will be seen.

Milk will remove ink stains from linen and calico if applied at once. Soak the spot affected in the milk for a few minutes, then wash in clean water.

To banish flies

Do you have a fly problem? This handy hint might banish flies but it may leave you wanting to leave the house as well!

A simple way of getting rid of flies from a room is to heat a poker, and to put it on a piece of camphor, which will give off fumes which are most disagreeable to flies and other insect pests.

Steamed puddings

The following pudding hints appear to be tried and true. See our Queen of Puddings bake-off.

In steaming a pudding never have more than two inches of water in the saucepan. Never put lid on the mould or basin, as the lid prevents the steam from escaping, and is liable to make the pudding heavy. Cover the mould or basin with paper, buttered on both sides.

A pudding cloth should always be returned to the saucepan, allowed to boil, then thoroughly washed in hot water, without soap, dried in the open air, folded, and pat neatly away in a drawer.

Source: Home Cookery for Australia: All Tested Recipes, 1913, Arbuckle, Waddell & Fawckner, Melbourne.

Share your household hints

We hope that you enjoy these household hints from 1913. Do you have any unusual ones that you would like to share?

Back to the Mixing Bowl

Glorious Days: Australia 1913 was on show at the National Museum of Australia from 7 March to 13 October 2013.