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The Toilet and Bath: Face

To Wash the Face. - When the face is red or dry from exposure to sun and air, or grimed with dirt or smoke, it is well to put on it a quantity of cold cream and rub thoroughly with a soft cloth. After the irritation has been somewhat lessened, the face should be thoroughly washed and cleansed. Fill a basin two thirds full of fresh soft water.

If your source of water supply is hard water, put a teaspoonful of powdered borax into the basin. Dip the face in the water, and afterwards the hands. Soap the hands well, and rub with a gentle motion over the face. Dip the face a second time, rinse thoroughly, and wipe with a thick, soft towel. After the bath a slightly astringent lotion is very refreshing.

The use of a good cleansing cream before the face bath and a suitable lotion afterwards has a really wonderful effect in improving the complexion. The effect of a clean face, however, is itself altogether delightful. Such a bath tends to rest and refresh the bather and put her in a good temper. Many a bad complexion is due to neglect of a proper cleansing process. If more faces were kept really clean, a great improvement in the complexion would be noticed. Face Cloth. The hands themselves, in the judgment of many persons, are the most effective means of washing other portions of the body. To those who prefer face cloths we suggest scrim as the most sanitary material. Scrim is porous and free from lint, so that the air circulates through it freely. It is so thin that it can be quickly washed and dried.

The Toilet Sponge. -The wash rag and the sponge, while convenient and regarded by many as indispensable, are often sources of injury to the skin. Children, especially, are prone to take a sponge from dirty water and. squeeze it dry without rinsing.

The decaying organic matter caught THE TOILET AND BATH in the pores of the sponge gives rise to certain acids and ferments very injurious to the complexion.. Both the sponge and the wash rag should be thoroughly cleansed and rinse after use. To clean a sour sponge, put 1 teaspoonful each of ammonia and borax into a basin of warm water, wash the sponge, rinse in clean soft water and hang in the air, exposed to sunshine if possible, until dry.

TOILET SOAPS or Soaps.-Pure soaps do not irritate the skin. There are two principal kinds of soaps: those containing free alkali in the form of potash or soda lye, and the so-called neutral or fatty soaps. The former increase the swelling and softening of the horny parts of the skin. When these are removed, they of course take the dirt with them. The latter are better adapted to persons of sensitive skin, although their detergent effects are not so marked. Among these are castile, glycerin, curd soaps, and the like.

Medicated and highly colored scented soaps should rarely be used, and we recommend purchasing for household use only well-known soaps which have an established reputation for purity and general satisfaction.

It must be borne in mind that toilet preparations which may give good effects on one skin are sometimes injurious to another. Glycerin is said to burn some skins, and benzoin cannot be used by some persons.

This shows how important it is for a woman to know what ingredients are used in making up her toilet preparations. It is not always safe to "try" some compound, the contents of which are unknown, because it is highly recommended by others.

On the other hand, the difference in results obtained by two women may often be attributed to the difference in the method of use. One woman will cleanse her face thoroughly as above indicated, while the other will merely apply a cream or lotion when the skin may be covered with grime and the pores filled with dirt. The result may be to still further clog the pores and produce an eruption of pimples and blackheads.

No preparation can give satisfactory results in the absence of absolute cleanliness.