Tighten rickety drawers so they slide easily. Remedy bad feet by chiseling out shattered wood and putting in plugs of sound wood to hold the castors. Glue in the new plugs, also nail them fast. Grease the points of nails to save splitting the old wood. Set them invisibly and drive gently, but see that they go fully home. Remove glass or brass mounting while resurfacing. Clean and brighten them (see section Brass) before replacing. Tighten metal linings about keyholes with putty, put on inside. All padding, upholstery, or baize tops must, of course, be taken wholly away. Save them, no matter how ragged, as patterns for new stuff. Refinish and repair frames thus stripped before recovering. Very handsome things had better be put in professional hands unless you have practised upon plainer ones. It is a waste of strength and material to put handsome new covers over musty padding or to botch and pucker hopelessly through inexperience. In the courage of her economies a clever woman learns quickly the knack of upholstery. Minute directions are impossible—each sofa or couch or easy chair is so much a law unto itself. In a general way, have all necessary things handy—as covering muslin, webbing, springs, tacks, twine, upholsterer’s needles, moss or curled hair, brads in variety, sharp shears, and stout pliers for dragging through reluctant needles. Press out old covers and use as patterns for the new. Model your work as nearly as possible on what you took away. Remember always before fastening on covers to mark the middle of them and set it accurately to the middle of the frame, tacking it thence both ways. Pad arms and backs first, then basket-weave webbing across the bottom, drawing it very taut, put on springs, fasten them with twine to the webbing, lay thin cloth over, put a thick layer of stuffing upon it, then fit the muslin cover and tack smoothly to the frame. Tuft or leave plain according to style and period. Cut the ornamental covering very accurately, sew together, following the original, fit smooth, and cover the edges with gimp. With figured material, cut so the boldest figure shall appear in the middle of back and seat or equidistant from ends of the panels of long sofas. Practise upon something cheap—here as everywhere else experience is the best teacher.