Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 126, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 May 1915 — The Things We Want [ARTICLE]

The Things We Want

The worn hose of the grown-up girl or woman may be utilized in making comfortable little drawers for the very small child. Cut off the worn feet of the stockings, slit down the upper part of the legs from the hem or ribbing for eight or more inches, sew these slit edges together after the fashion of any ordinarily made drawers, but do notjelose entirely where the slit places meet the unslit part of the stockings, instead, insert here a square of the same material or similar material: this will give room and prevent the tearing out of the small drawers. A piece of the knit top of a small stocking or the wrist of old underwear may be used to form a snug ankle for the child. These little drawers can be worn over a over other underwear, and will save the latter a great deal and will give pretty fair service. A rubber band may be run in the waist part by making a casing for the same.

Some long silk gloves very much the worse for wear were discovered in looking over some old things, and at once the daughter of the house said “Let’s make some little silk stockings for a baby out of these,” and sure enough the long wrists cut to very good advantage for the tiny stockings. The foot was shaped and a sole put in, overhanding the seams In a fine stitch and leaving them flat so they would not hurt the softest little foot.

Pretty good underwear may be made for the tiny ones by using the lower parts of the old union suits. The wear comes hardest in the center of such suits, and these often- become ragged, when the lower and upper parts are fairly good. The legs of tbe old underwear from the knees kown may be made into tiny drawers as were the stocking legs mentioned above. The upper parts of the union suits may be cut into small shirts, and finished neatly with soft bindings or crochet edges will help keep the cold from the little one, and also conserve the actual money expenditure. The lower parts of old knit shirts may be made into comfortable little petticoats for little children. They may have a simple crochet scallop put around the bottom edges, or they may be neatly faced up with something not too bulky. Or if the material is not too heavy a simple feather stitching of heavy thread will give a neat appearance to these little old-new garments.

Old shirts may be used in various ways. There is always the small petticoat which can be made from the lower parts. But there are other things. One girl took a fine flannel shirt of her father’s, ripped it up, and cut a shirt waist from it, reversing the shirt, cutting the waist from the lower parts and getting the sleeves out of the upper parts of the old sleeves and the best parts of the upper part of the shirt itself. Over the piecing she put a plain band of a contrasting color, for instance on a blue shirt a red band Is stitched, and vice versa, or even a bias band of the same material. There had been a necktie to the shirt mentioned and this was washed, pressed and turned, and the result was a neat school or home waist at almost no cost.

Sometimes a good quality percale or Madras shirt may be utilized the same way, after it is pretty well worn in its original purpose. Quite a smart little apron can be made out of the lower part of a worn cotton shirt, if it is of a pretty material. The tiny aprons now used admit of a variety of ways of making. One very useful little apron was cut the width of the shirt tall, and was shaped up a little towards the top. The second piece of shirt tail was used over this, and the two lower edges were stitched together, the upper part of the outside piece was shaped and stitched through the center of the front into two large pockets. This made the apron really a good deal like a clothespin bag, but it is an extremely useful little garment as it is worn when mending, or sewing, or doing any of the various things when a number of utensils and pieces are needed handy. The pockets offer a place for all these needs, and save the time of hunting around or of picking up the scissors, thread, etc. In fact, an apron made this way would answer very well for a darning bag. The stockings could be slipped into the pockets and the darning materials could be kept there so that when ready to do the weekly darning there would be no looking around for things. Merely tie the apron on and the needful things are at hand.