Mrs. Hale's Receipts for the Million: Containing Four Thousand Five Hundred and Forty-five Receipts, Facts, Directions, etc. in the Useful, Ornamental, and Domestic Arts
John Stuart Mill · en
584. _Tincture of Roses._--Put into a bottle the petals of the common
rose, and pour upon them spirits of wine; cork the bottle, and let it
stand for two or three months. It will then yield a perfume little
inferior to attar of roses. Common vinegar is much improved by a very
small quantity of this mixture being added to it.
585. _Honey Water._--One ounce of essence of bergamot, three drachms
of English oil of lavender, half a drachm of oil of cloves, half a
drachm of aromatic vinegar, six grains of musk, one and a half pint
of spirits of wine. Mix and distil.
586. _Honey Water._--Take one pint of spirit as above, and three
drachms of essence of ambergris; shake them well daily.
587. _Sweet-scented Water._--Put one quart of rose-water, and the
same quantity of orange-water, into a large and wide-mouthed glass:
strew upon it two handfuls of jessamine flowers; put the glass in the
_balneum mariæ_, or on a slow fire, and when it is distilled, add to
it a scruple of musk and the same quantity of ambergris.
588. _A very fine Scent._--Take six drachms of oil of lavender, three
of the essence of bergamot, sixty drops of ambergris, and two grains
of musk. Mix these into a pint of the best rectified spirits of wine.
589. _To whiten the Hands._--Take a wine-glassful of eau de Cologne,
and another of lemon-juice; then scrape two cakes of brown Windsor
soap, or the same quantity of pure white soap, to a powder, and mix
well in a mould. When hard, it will be excellent for whitening the
hands.
590. _Camphor Cerate for Chapped Hands._--The following receipt was
given to the contributor by a maid of honor to Queen Victoria. It is
an excellent one. Scrape into an _earthen_ vessel one ounce and a
half of spermaceti and half an ounce of white wax; add six drachms
of pounded camphor, and four table-spoonfuls of the best olive oil.
Let it stand near the fire till it dissolves, stirring it well when
liquid. _Before_ the hands are washed, rub them thoroughly with a
little of the cerate, then wash them as usual. Putting the cerate
on before retiring, answers very well. This quantity costs about
twenty-five cents, and will last three winters. The vessel it is kept
in should be covered, to prevent evaporation.
591. _Paste for Chapped Hands._--Mix a quarter of a pound of unsalted
lard, which has been washed in soft water, and then in rose-water,
with the yolks of two new-laid eggs, and a large spoonful of honey.
Add as much fine oatmeal or almond-paste as will work into a paste.
_Or_:--Blanch one pound of bitter almonds, and pound them smooth in
a marble mortar; add half an ounce of camphor, one ounce of honey,
quarter of a pound of spermaceti, pounded and mixed with the almonds,
till it becomes a smooth paste. Put it into jars, and tie it down
till wanted.