How To Clean Alabaster

Alabaster is so called from Ala-bastron, the name of a small town in Upper Egypt, near which the stone was very abundant. There are two kinds of alabaster, one a white semi-transparent sulphate of lime, and the other a compact crystalline carbonate of lime, The former is the real alabaster, and is so soft that it may be scratched with the nail, while the latter is quite hard and effervesces in acid.

Alabaster must not be cleaned with soap and water. It is cleaned by rubbing it with lemon-juice by the Italian manufacturers of it.

How To Clean Brass

Rub it with a little sal ammoniac finely powdered and wet. Warm the brass first: polish with wash leather. Or: -

Rub with a soft wash-leather dipped in sweet oil; then with finely powdered rotten-stone. Polish with wash-leather. The Americans use powdered rotten-stone, well mixed with a pint of water. Then a tea-spoonful of sulphuric acid is added. This mixture is applied gently, then rubbed off, and the brass polished with powdered whiting which has been sifted through muslin. Use wash-leather in all cases. Some oersons wash the brass with the sulphuric acid and water, and then polish with rotten stone, etc., etc.

How To Clean Ormolu Ornaments

The best way to clean ormolu ornaments is to rub whiting, moistened with gin, well on the articles with an old toothbrush. Rub it off with a clean one, and polish with a leather.

How To Clean Real Bronze

Wash the ornaments gently (with a sponge) with soap and water, then rinse them in beer. Do not wipe it off or rub the ornaments at all, but place them in a warm room, at a little distance from the fire, until they are quite dry. Use very little soap.

Bronzed chandeliers, lamps, etc.. should be only dusted with a feather brush or soft cloth. Washing takes off the bronzing.

How To Clean Gilt Lamp And Chandeliers

Wipe off the dust with a soft cloth, and wash gently with fine soap-suds and soft lukewarm water. Any wrought work may be carefully cleaned out with a very soft toothbrush.

How To Clean Steel And Iron

One ounce of soft soap, two ounces of emery, made into a paste; then rub the article for cleaning with wash-leather, and it will give a brilliant polish.

For Removing Paint From Wood

Mix llb. of soda, such as is used for washing; 2lbs. of lime, un-slacked. If the paint is very strong on the wood, add Mb. of potash.

Mix these ingredients together, and dilute with water until the mixture becomes rather thicker than whitewash, and then rub it on the paint with a piece of wood folded up in rag. The person who uses this preparation must be careful not to touch it with his hand.

How To Clean Japanned Waiters, Urns, Etc

Rub on with a sponge a little white soap and some lukewarm water, and wash the waiter or urn quite clean. Never use hot water, as it will cause the japan to scale off. Having wiped it dry, sprinkle a little flour over it; let it rest a while, and then rub it with a soft dry cloth, and finish with a silk handkerchief. If there are white heat marks on the waiters, they will be difficult to remove. But you may try rubbing them with a flannel dipped in sweet oil, and afterwards in spirits of wine. Waiters and other articles of papier maclie should be washed with a sponge and cold water, without soap, dredged with flour while damp; and after a while wiped off, and then polished with a silk handkerchief.