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Show WOMAN'S WORLD Let Your Lights Shine Bright Through Cleaned Lamp Shades By Ertta Haley HAVE you sometimes noticed that the lights in your rooms seem dimmer than they were some time ago? This frequently happens when lamp shades become dusty or dirt-Imbedded. dirt-Imbedded. Light has to filter through the dust, and naturally it cannot be as bright as when the shades were new. Before you hurry out to Invest In more lamps or brighter lights, look to your shades. Many lamp shades can be renovated reno-vated at home, and many, many more shades will need less frequent replacement if you have the know-how know-how to care for them. The proper way to clean shades may also be a determining factor in your purchase of shades in the future. Certain types of shades can be cleaned and will, because of this factor alone, gives much more service serv-ice than others. The ease of cleaning, clean-ing, too, will have an Important bearing on their selection. Don't become too attached to any lamp shades which are merely decorative as you shop for them. You can always find colors as well as materials which are attractive for your home In those kinds which permit cleaning. Wash Shades Quickly, Then Dry Rapidly Daily dusting and weekly cleaning clean-ing with a soft brush attachment of the vacuum cleaner will keep most shades in good condition for a long Dust sbtdts with toft ' brushes . . . time, for this keeps dirt from becoming be-coming Imbedded in the fibers. No matter how elaborate a shade you have, if it's fabric and it's sewed rather than glued to the frame It can be washed. Contrasting trimmings, if any, can be removed and cleaned separately. Shades that are glued may be wiped off with a damp cloth. If this is done while the shade is new, it can be kept looking nice for a long period. Rims of shades, 1 when heavily soiled, should be pre-treated before the shade is washed. Apply soap or detergent suds with a soft brush. Now for the washing of a shade: plan to do it quickly and when you will have no interruptions. Both washing and drying must be done quickly so that the wire frame cannot can-not rust or stain the fabric of the shade. Make suds In some large vessel, In bath tub, large dishpan or even the washing machine (after the agitator agi-tator is removed). Lukewarm water is best for this. Dip the shade up nd down in this first, then wash both Inside and out with a small brush easy enough to manipulate readily. Rinsing is done inhe same way as the washing, dipping up and down in clear water which is just luke- liquid wax or turpentine, applied with a soft cloth. Plastic shades which look almost like any fabric yield easily to treatment treat-ment with a sponge and mild suds. Rinse with a sponge and lukewarm, clear water. Colored trimmings on many of the shades, which you feel might not fare well with soap and water can be removed. Cleaning fluid is indicated indi-cated for these. Shade Covers Give Protection or Camouflage After you've cleaned your shades or if you've Just bought some new ones why not protect them with a cover? These can be decorative as well as protective, and you may even want to make some for shades which need to be camouflaged. Materials required are an oblong one inch longer than the circumference circum-ference of the shade, at the lower edge, and three Inches wider at the top of the bottom measurement of the shade; elastic, y-lnch wide, enough to go twice around the top edge of the shade and cotton or plastic ruffling. To make the cover, stitch short side of the material together with a seam to press flat, thus giving a continuous band. Hem top and bottom bot-tom edges with a Vi-inch first turn and a -inch hem, leaving a small opening unstitched, through which elastic is Inserted. Stitch one row of the pleated trimming trim-ming on the right side of the hemmed hem-med band one inch from the top edge, then another row of the trimming trim-ming at the bottom edge, this one Vt inches from the edge. Cut the two pieces of clastic four Inches shorter than the circumference circumfer-ence of the edge at which it Is to be inserted. The bottom one, usually usual-ly will be longer since this is usually usual-ly wider than the top of the lamp shade. Insert the elastic through the hems and then join securely. These shade covers may be laun- dered since you will undoubtedly choose a material which withstands tubbing. If the elastic is removed, the tjovers may be ironed flat. A good grade of pliable plastic material may be used for making the shade covers. This will sponge off easily, and, of course, needs no further preparation. Clear plastic will let the color of the shade show easily, especially if you don't want the cover for camouflage. Cover Shade Frames With Attractive Paper Many lamp shades are considered worthless, especially when they cannot can-not be properly cleaned, but a wise homemaker can remove the cover and use the frame if she'll take a bit of time to make a cover. Wallpapers are an Inspiration for many lamp shade covers, and so are certain types of durable wrapping wrap-ping papers as well as other decorative decora-tive papers; such as old maps. You may use coated papers or you can shellac the papers for durability. To make the pattern for a paper shade, paint the frame, and while still wet, roll it over a piece of paper pa-per to give you the outline from which to cut the shade. If the shade is not round, turn it evenly. Wet paint leaves perfect marks on the paper. As soon as the paint dries, cut the pattern from the desired paper, and make certain you leave enough at the edge for proper joining. cover them for attrtctive protection. warm. If you have a rubber spray which attaches to your faucet, this does an excellent rinsing job as you can run a soft spray of water all over the shade, inside and out. Dry the shade by placing on a large terry cloth towel or on something some-thing like a cookie jar which stands high to keep it from touching anything. any-thing. Place the shade where you have a good air current, or turn an electric fan on it to speed drying. Turn shades frequently while drying dry-ing so they will dry evenly. This means turning upside down as well as around and around. Here are Shades Easily Cleaned Parchment and metallic shades are easy to clean because they yield so easily to simple dusting, and the material is such that it cannot be penetrated by dirt easily. When more strenuous measures are required, mix together one part of turpentine with ten parts of mineral oil. Use a soft cloth with this and apply, firmly, but gently, to parchment or metallic shades. Vellum or imitation parchment shades which need occasional heavy cleaning may be treated |