Amazing Recipes...

In the "old days" folks made a lot of what they needed... later we love to recreate that "I did this" feeling. Here's some interesting recieps to help:


Thin Paste
¼ c Sugar
¼ c non-self-rising wheat flour
½ t powdered Alum
1 ¾ c Water
¼ t Oil of Wintergreen
Mix Sugar, flour and Alum
Gradually add 1 cup Water stirring quickly to prevent lumps.
Boil until clear and smooth stirring constantly.
Add rest of water and Oil of Wintergreen stirring to mix thoroughly.



Page-Mending Paste
¾ c Rice flour
2 T sugar
¾ c Cold Water
2 ½ c Boiling Water
½ t oil of Wintergreen
Mix rice flour and cold water until smooth
Add Boiling water
Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens.
Remove from heat and add Oil of Wintergreen.
Cut or tear white tissue paper to the size and shape of the ear or cut in the page.
Brush tissue with paste and lay on tear being sure to smooth out wrinkles and bubbles.
Will be transparent when dry.

Stamp Gum (for making your own stamps or stickers)
1 packet Unflavoured gelatin
1 T cold water
3 T Boiling water
½ t White corn syrup
½ t Lemon Extract
2 drops boric acid solution
Sprinkle gelatin into cold water to soften.
Pour softened gelatin into boiling water and stir ‘til completely dissolved.
Add corn syrup, lemon extract, and boric acid solution and mix well.
Rub stamp on it and stick down.


Waterproof Glue
2 packets Unflavoured Gelatin
2 T cold water
3 T Skim Milk
¼ t oil of wintergreen
Sprinkle Gelatin over cold water and allow to soften.
Heat milk to boiling point and pour into Gelatin, stirring ‘til dissolved.
Add oil of wintergreen
For porous to Non-porous or porous to porous use glue warmed.
For non-porous to non-porous use gelled.


Sawdust Modeling Compound
1 c Fine Sawdust
1 c thin paste
Old newspapers
Shellac or Clear Varnish
(Optional: colour saw dust with food colours before making compound.)
Mix sawdust and paste to make a thick dough, kneading well.
Model as you like. Will air harden in 2-3 days depending on thickness… maybe longer.
Can be sanded smooth.
Crystal Garden
Shallow bowl
A few rocks
6 T Salt
6 T Bluing
6 T Water
1T Ammonia
Food Colours
Put rocks in bottom of bowl
In a separate bowl mix the salt, water, bluing, and ammonia
Pour mixture over rocks
Drop food colours here and there
Let stand a few hours
Coloured Flame Pinecones
1 gallon Water
1 pound Chemical of choice
Orange: Calcium Chloride
Purple: Potassium chloride
Blue: Copper Chloride
Red: Strontium Nitrate
Emerald Green: Copper Sulfate
Carmine: Lithium Chloride
Small Plastic tub or dishpan
Pinecones
Plastic mesh bag (like from oranges)
Mix water and chemical in plastic tub
Fill bag with pinecones and tie shut
Submerge pinecone-filled bag in liquid chemical and weight with rock.
Soak 10-15 minutes
Spread on newspapers to dry

Bath Bags
1 ounce Rose petals
½ ounce lemon Verbena leaves
OR
1 ounce Rosemary
½ ounce Peppermint
4 ounces Oatmeal
OR
1 ounce Rose petals
1 ounce Lavender
½ ounce Thyme
4 ounces Oatmeal
Put into a muslin bag and hang under tap while filling tub.





Powdered Incense
Grind to a powder and sprinkle on charcoal.
Juniper (recipe from 1662)
1 ounce well crushed Juniper Berries
2 t gum benzoin powder
2 t musk
3 drops lemon oil
3 drops clove oil
3 drops rose oil

Rosemary Rose
4 T Powdered Rosemary
1 ounce powdered rose petals
1 ounce powdered Frankincense
1 ounce powdered Myrrh
1 ounce powdered Sandalwood
6 drops rose oil
3 drops rosemary oil

Formed Incense Sticks
1 c fine sawdust, sifted twice like flour
1 c gum Arabic syrup: 2 2/3 T gum Arabic powder
1 cup water and mix until no lumps
1. Put sawdust into a glass or stainless steel bowl and 1 recipe scent (recipes follow)
2. Add syrup a little at a time until powdery mixture holds together enough to form into
3. 1 ½ inch stick about ¼ inch thick. (Will make 30-40)
4. Allow to dry a few minutes and insert a toothpick as a stem.
Scent Recipes
¼ c gum benzoin powder
¼ c gum benzoin powder and 6 droppers (1 dropper = 20 drops) ambergris

2 t semi-liquid Storax, ¼ c gum benzoin powder and 1 dropper oil of clove
6 T powdered Frankincense, 15 droppers tincture of musk

6 T powdered angelica root, 8 droppers oil of orange, 8 droppers oil of lime and 12 droppers oil of lemon
¼ c gum benzoin powder, 8 droppers tincture of ambergris, 8 droppers tincture of musk, and 4 droppers tincture of civet


Very Basic Soap
Makes two Bars
1 cup Distilled Water
2 cups Lard or Crisco
10 level teaspoons Lye (often sold as a drain cleaner… Red Devil is a good brand. Make
sure it’s pure lye!)
Prepare mold: cardboard box on several layers of newspaper and lined with two layers of brown paper bag, dampened.
Put water in a glass jar and stir in lye (DO NOT let it get on your skin!) Stir until dissolved and allow to cool to 85 degrees F
Put lard into an enameled kettle and melt it.
Allow to cool to 90 degrees f
Add lye SLOWLY, it will turn pink then slowly turn to white
Stir until thick, a spoonful will kind of plop rather than trickle… takes about 20-30 minutes of stirring.
When the compound feels like thin pudding and looks satiny on the surface, pour into the mold and quickly cover with towels to keep it warm.
Allow to sit at 24 hours, it should be firm.
Cut into bars and allow to age (air dry) two weeks before using
Variations:
Add these just before pouring into the mold. Be sure to stir well to mix properly.
Add a handful of finely ground oatmeal
Handful of Lavender flowers
Use Chammomile, green, white, of other herbal tea instead of water.
Store bought soap scents
20 drops favourite essential oil
or any combination of these