Here is a very pretty idea of a skirt sale, which the designer has transposed to a “skirt sail.” The illustration will give you a fair idea of the window. The background and floor were of pink colored material, the boat being covered with white crepe paper and trimmed with red, white and blue ribbon. The sail itself was a handsome skirt of illuminated silk, thrown into stronger relief by having all the other skirts black. Water, of course, was represented by light blue goods, and ladder effects with rope covered with 3-inch strips of fringed crepe paper. The boat was given a rocking motion by means of a simple device which we illustrate, attached to a ⅛-horse power electric motor, geared down to a 5-inch crank. A rope is run through a small pulley on the floor to another pulley under the boat, and then attached to the end of the boat. A roller shade spring is fastened to the other end, the boat being hinged in the middle.
MECHANICAL SHIPS.
Another method of imitating a ship riding the waves is shown herewith. The hull, A, is a plain piece of board, and the masts are strips of wood nailed to this. Purchase a common bed spring and attach it to the center of the keel, as at B, and attach the lower part of the spring to a piece of wood on the window floor. If the balance is right it will be simply necessary to tip the ship a little to set it rocking to and fro in imitation of riding the waves. A little wheel can be set at C, and a cord put under it and connected with the hull. The cord can run to a point inside the store, where it can be pulled occasionally by hand, thus setting the ship to rocking. Or this cord can be connected to a door or to an electric motor. Next, the ship is trimmed. The hull, railing, mast, etc., are covered or wound with white or colored stuff, and the sails are made of lace or any desired fabric. The surface of the sea is represented with appropriate cloth. A slit should be cut, into which to put the hull, and the edges are tacked to the wood several inches below the ship’s rail. The cloth will then follow the motion of the ship, and closely represent waves.
A WINDMILL.
A cheap windmill frame and wheel can be made as in the accompanying drawing. The stand is wood, and the two upright pieces are bored out at the top for the broom handle shaft A. A hub of wood, B, is attached to one end, and four blades cut from thin wood are inserted. A large spool, C, is put on the other end of the shaft, and a cord run over this to a wheel, D, below. The frame, shaft and wheel should be trimmed with appropriate material, and a pasteboard front put up in representation of the old-fashioned grinding mill. The pasteboard should be painted in imitation of stone work.