A Case for Protecting Costumes when Hanging Up - Folding and Care of Garments in Drawers - A Perfumed Cover for a Drawer - The Perfumes that Give Personality to Clothes - A Hint for Their Use

The furnishing of a wardrobe or dress cupboard belonging to a woman who wishes to take care of her clothes when not in wear is not complete until some provision has been made for covering the garments.

All light-coloured dresses should be protected by a cover if not in constant wear, and dresses of delicate, crushable fabrics should be provided each with its special case.

For these cases choose a closely woven washing material, such as sateen, holland, linen, or a close muslin.

Such a case, sufficiently long to take the full length of the garment when on the dress-hanger, is quite simple to make.

Take two pieces of the material, one the required length, with an inch or two to spare for turnings, the other some six or seven inches longer. Place these together, and at one end shape to curve of hanger, join along both sides and curved end, leaving an eyelet-hole through which to pass the wire of the hanger. Hem both ends left open, turn up the flap of single material, and secure with buttons and buttonholes. The dress on the hanger is slipped up from the bottom of the case, the hook passing through the eyelet. When the dress has fallen into position by its own weight, the flap is buttoned, and all is secure from dust. An alternative method is to draw the bottom together by tapes.

The muslin bag containing sprays of lavender should be made with separate compartments and tacked to the under side of the cover

Drawer Covers

An outworn cotton dress can well be adapted to the purposes of a dress-cover, while for protecting skirts an old washing underskirt will often prove most useful.

If clothing has to be laid aside in boxes or drawers the question of careful folding is of paramount importance, and has been dealt with already in Every Woman's Encyclopaedia (page 3150, Vol. 5).

A cover with which to protect lingerie or light dresses from dust when in a drawer, and, if liked, pleasantly to perfume them, can be arranged quickly and simply. For a medium-sized drawer-cover will be needed half a yard of linen or holland, from thirty-six to forty inches wide, but by measuring the drawer and making allowances for turnings the cover can be arranged to tuck well down over the contents at sides and ends of the drawers. Hem neatly all round, finishing off on the right side with a fancy feather-stitch. The cover can be left quite loose, to be placed in position each time when taking anything from the drawer, or it could be fixed with drawing-pins to the back of the drawer, and turned aside when required.

A Lingerie Sachet

To scent the contents of the drawer a lavender or other scent sachet can be attached to the underside of the cover.

Take a yard of muslin and fold over selvedge to selvedge, wrong side outwards. Backstitch along one short end and side. Turn the work to the right side and fill the bag with sprays of lavender, placing the flower heads some one way and some the other as evenly as possible. Turn in the raw edges of the bag and sew them together. To keep the lavender in position, set three or four rows of running at equal distances apart through both thicknesses of muslin. This will prevent the sprays all falling to one place. Tack this lightly to underside of cover so that it can be removed easily for washing.

The cover itself can be embroidered with sprays of lavender or flowers representing the scent used, in washing threads, and thus embellished would form a really dainty yet useful gift. A flat sachet of lightly quilted cotton-wool, scented with any preferred perfume, can be substituted for the lavender.

A sachet filled with fragrant pot-pourri composed of the dried leaves of every sweetly scented flower in the garden is delightful. If it is not possible to make it at home, a box of the most delicious potpourri costs less than a shilling.

The Discreet Use Of Perfume

The perfuming of the contents of the wardrobe must be most carefully done. The scent must on no account be too strong; nothing is in worse taste. The merest suggestion of violet, roses, or the summer garden of flowers is allowable. Also choose one perfume and keep to it, so that it becomes part of the personality, the elusive, subtle charm of the dainty woman.

Suggested design for the ornamentation of the cover. If considered too elaborate, simple feather-stitching would be a pretty finish

Orris root gives a very delicate odour of violets. Cover a wire clothes-hanger first with a piece of sateen as a foundation, and then with a loose silk bag cover, and stuff this tightly with orris.

Tiny bags containing orris can be provided to hang among the skirts.

Another device is to use strips of perfumed kid. Take the tops of old white kid gloves, thoroughly soak them in a scent essence, and allow them to dry in a dark place. When dry, cut the kid into strips, and lay amongst the clothing in drawers or boxes. These kid sachets retain the perfume for a very long time.

An ottoman box sufficiently long to take skirts without folding is a great boon, but there is a tendency for the under things to be crushed by the weight of those above. Try the use of two long dress-boxes without their lids, placed one on the top of another, to act as trays. Small articles, such as blouses and bodices or delicate chiffons, can be placed in them, while if the lid of the top box be retained a flat surface is provided for the larger articles.