Greetings from Texas, my friends!

How are y'all? As a salute to Mary's fine cake-baking project here I would like to share with you a few helpful household hints. No Moffatt cake secrets. That wouldn't be "cricket." But maybe a few little ideas will help you, as they have helped me. Did you know that a few drops of Clorox in your jars or vases of "pungent" flowers, like zinnias or 'mums, will prevent that bad odor and discoloration"? Did you know that a burning match will remove bad odors in a small room? Did you know that you can renew hat veiling or any veiling by laying wax paper over it and pressing with a medium hot iron? It makes it crisp as new. Another use for wax paper is the "greasing" of pancake griddles. It works like a charm. Did you know that a sponge (in a shallow pan of water) is an invaluable aid in going over dry spots when ironing? Did you know that you can glamourize sickly pink salmon with dilute orange and red vegetable coloring? (My own little experiment). Of course this is for salmon loaf or similar casserole dish. The taste is just as good as red salmon. Did you know that a small, fat, sofa cushion, encased in a heavy paper bag, makes a dandy knee pad when you are scrubbing, waxing, painting, or doing fine-comb weeding? Did you know that, when you move your worn stair treads down a notch, you can camouflage that worn strip with dye? (Since Dr. Phillips' stair carpet is dark red, I used some Mercurochrome and disintegrated argyrol). As Aunt Caroline used to say, "A man on a galloping horse would never know" the worn part. Did you know that these delightful circus animals (painted cardboard) add, much to the thrill of a 4 or 5-year-old's birthday cake? (It should be one layer - but BIG). To go back to coloring, you can make your pale pears most interesting by adding pink or green coloring. I think we all like baked beans - Boston style. It takes a heap o' baking to get them dark brown. I hasten the process by adding a teaspoon of Kitchen Bouquet to the beans in their second water (after they have been soaked, parboiled and degassed).

Now, this is enough for today. But if you have a good household hint, pass it along. "The happiness of life is in sharing." I did not copy from any book or magazine. But no doubt some of these ideas have been published. Here's hoping they help.

Faithfully yours,
Florence B. Taylor
4904 Ave. F, Austin, Texas

Next - 8/19/48 - Westminster Presbyterian Encampment, Texas. O. Henry.
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