A Foot Pad: Make two feet square, stuff an inch and a half thick, and tack flat. Stand on it when ironing, washing, or preparing food. It saves strength and prevents cold feet.
A Floor Pad: For rubbing waxed hardwood or stained floors. Get a block of wood, brick-shaped, hollow the upper edges on both sides so it can be grasped, put a strap across, then cover the lower face with many thicknesses of flannel and chamois skin. Alternate them and have leather outside. Keep dry and away from dust.
A Water Wagon: Screw castors to the corners of a board a foot square. A pail set on it can be pushed about much easier than lifted.
Broom Bags: Have a set of six—two each of crash, Turkish toweling, and outing flannel. Keep clean, and be sure the drawing-tapes are not left knotted or broken.
Brooms: Have at least two brooms—one stiff, one pliant. Choose fine straw of a greenish cast rather than yellow. Eschew painted handles; sandpaper is the remedy for rough places. Put a screw eye in the tip of the handles and hang the brooms from hooks. Wash before hanging up.
Floor Brushes: A weighted brush needs to be kept dry and clean and so set that the bristles do not crush. Choose it light rather than heavy. See that the handle is set at the angle to suit your height and that the bristles are of the very best quality.
Dust Cloths: Make of many sorts and sizes, from a foot square to half a yard. Cheesecloth, flannel, old silk, and crash—all answer well. Overcast edges loosely instead of hemming. Keep clean and dry in a box or drawer.
Dust Swabs: Tie a handful of cotton, excelsior, or even crumpled paper inside a soft cloth and about the end of a light rod. Use to dust walls, floors, and ceilings, changing the cloth as it gets dirty. Sprinkling the cloth with alcohol, turpentine, or gasolene makes it more effective where the dust is grimy.
A Silk Duster: Crumple soft old silk into a big floppy rosette and fasten to a rod. Use upon pictures and picture moldings, also on waxed floors newly polished.
Ironing-boards: Shape the blanket, sew up, and fit smoothly, letting the small end of the board project bare an inch or two. Draw taut over the wide end and sew with flax thread. Make shaped covers of unbleached cotton, open at the small end, rounded to fit the other and hemmed. Draw on a cover and pin tight at the broad end. Let the seams come along the edge of the board. Change covers after use. Have a smaller board, similarly covered, to use when sitting down—it is laid on the knees. Have also a covered bosom board if shirts are home-ironed, and a smooth straight board of handy size, covered with two thicknesses of flannel and one of clean cotton, for ironing embroidery or anything raised.