e sponging. After cleaning, lay a
piece of paper over the ribbon and iron; paper is better than cloth.
The ribbon will look like new.

TO CLEAN BLACK LACE. No. 2.

Black laces of all kinds may be cleaned by alcohol. Throw them boldly
into the liquid; churn them up and down till they foam; if very dusty,
use the second dose of alcohol; squeeze them out, "spat" them, pull
out the edges, lay them between brown paper, smooth and straight;
leave under a heavy weight till dry; do not iron.

TO WASH WHITE LACE. No. 1.

First, the soiled laces should be carefully removed from the garment
and folded a number of times, keeping the edges evenly together, then
basted with a coarse thread without a knot in the end. Now put them in
a basin of luke-warm suds. After soaking a half hour, rub them
carefully between the hands, renewing the suds several times; then,
after soaping them well, place them in _cold_ water and let them come
to a scald. Take them from this and rinse them thoroughly in luke-warm
water, blued a very little, then dip them into a _very thin,_ clear
starch, allowing a teaspoonful of starch to a pint of water, so thin
that it will be scarcely preceptible. Now roll them in a clean, fresh
towel without taking out the bastings; let them lie for an hour or
more, iron over several thicknesses of flannel, taking out the
bastings of one piece at a time, and ironing on the wrong side, with a
moderately-hot iron; the laces should be nearly dry, and the edges and
points pulled gently with the fingers into shape, before ironing.

TO WASH WHITE THREAD LACE. No. 2.

To wash white lace, cover a bottle with linen, stitched smoothly to
fit the shape. Wind the lace about it, basting both edges to the
linen. Wash on the bottle, soaping and rinsing well, then boil in soft
water. Dry in the sun. Clip the basting threads and do not iron. If
carefully done it will look like new lace.

TO CLEAN SILKS OR RIBBONS.

Half a pint of gin, half a pound of honey, half a pound of soft soap,
one-eighth of a pint of water.

Mix the above ingredients together; then lay each breadth of silk upon
a clean kitchen table or dresser, and scrub it well on the soiled side
with the mixture. Have ready three vessels of cold water; take each
piece of silk at two corners, and dip it up and down in each vessel,
but do not wring it; and take care that each breadth has one vessel of
quite clean water for the last dip. Hang it up dripping for a minut