The Gastonia Gazette from Gastonia, North Carolina • Page 8

12- -THE GASTONIA GAZETTE, Jon. 23, 1966 Color Is The Key Toward Brightening Drab Home By VIVIAN BROWN AP Newsteatures Writer Color is the key to brightening up the winter -weary home. At the beginning of a New Year we are likely to bear the burrien of 3 drab home more than any other time. During the holiday period, even spartan users of color are forced to admit some gaiety into the hone. Brilliant and glittering touches are then removed, leaving a backgrowid ebecriess grays or blues perhaps.

and we are -aware that something is wrung. The answer tics in: a quick injection of color contrasts to 3 cheeriul home atmosphere. But some people soon get used to the pattern of somberness they have learned to live with most of the year until another beliday season or party setting permits a colorful lift to seep througa the fog they call home decoration. A sear ago one young couple set up for themselves a sonal plan for replacing the warmth of Yuletide. Being, amatuers at decorating.

they decided to use the areas that had becn decorated joyously as a pattern for future highlights. They are thrilled with the ef. fect. First the welcome. They replaced the door wreath with 3 smail busket of holly and pine.

It provided a cheery touch through the winter. in spring they filled the basket with spring flowers. in summer with geraniums and variegated ivy. In fail, they filled it with dried grasses, weeds and flowers. Around Thanksgiving they put a spray of many dried flowers 00 the door with brightly pointext gourds and fruits, Inside in the traditional Christmas tree corner, they put up a bome-made step arrungement about seven feet high, built for use int that corner.

It is wedge-shape with Darrow steps at the top, wider at the base and fanning out. Each upper step has a plant or three two on it, lower steps have or four. The effect is great. The pints were chosen for variety. and even in the cool North such plants as gardenia, lemon, orange and bamboo are thriving In summer, gardenia, lemon and angelwing begonia were moved outdoors.

They brought in colorful fuscias. tuberous begonias, gardenias, lantana and so vu. Trailing plants lock especially lovely at the top of a step arrangement of this sort, They replaced a green wreath used at the fireplace with an inexpensive colorful Italian della rubbia pottery plaque. There is nothing gaudy about the house, and it is always more cheerful than others in the same housing development. They found some good permanent arrangemen's of flowers far tables.

inclutting a handsutne basket of beaded flowers. Tiny waxed flowers such as pinoccho or tea roses offer more realistic effects than waxert flowers. Dried Nowers were used also. At one end of the fireplace they put a conical shape rangement of artificial fruit, having laquered each piece to brighten the: colors. Oranges.

lemons. apples. crabapples were placed in a -high arrangement. gived one to the other. Golden sprayed apples were placed in between.

Spray paints make a project of this sort fairly simple. But it can't be rushed. Fruits must be sprayed before one attempts to fit them together. They should be sized for fitness before they are glued. A glass compote dish from six to cight inches may be weed as the THE WE WEEDER'S GUIDE By EAKL ARONSON AP Newsfeatures A Favorite pastime of many of the 20 million men and women senior citizens or ever! is pot plent gardening.

National Clay Pot Manufacturers' executive secretary, Stones Maces of Jacksoo. says: satisfactions and bonefits of container gardening 25 a recreational activity for the elderly have long been stressed by medical and sociological experts." Manes added that "more than 60,000 Americads reach the age of 65 every month and they and their families arc receptive to ideas and assistance that will help provide them recreational activities at costs within their Florists have stimulated this interest through special "open days for senior citi. zens, with displays for care-for plants. forums on house plant selection and care. special offerings of plants priced for limited budgets and assisting Senior Citizens' Clubs to stage flower shows.

The new president of the American Rose Society is 2 busy man. Dr. Robert M. Zollinger is chairman of surgery at Ohio State University and is ude of three persons to have held the three highest honors in American surgery- leadership in the American Surgical Association, American College of Surgeons and American Board of Surgery. Dr.

Zollinger's hobbies include flower photography, growing espuliered fruit trees and growing add exhibiting roses and gourds. He and Mrs. Zollinger are accredited flower show judges. 4 The more you mow, the better the lawn, says a man wito makes his living growing grass. Gene Comely, head groundskeeper at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio, explains: Frequent mowing will help eliminate weeds in lawns because it chops off the unwanted weeds before trey have 2 chance to 20 LO seed and eventually healthy grass will crowd them out.

Mowing alone isn't the ahswer to the beautiful home lawn. Comely advises fertilizing in spring and fall fu: most lawns. A well-established lawn in climate similar to Ohio's should be thinned every third year to prevent grass suffocation and disease. good stand of bluegrass gels so thick after three vears that it can't breath," he says. "When this happens.

I recommend detbatching-simply verticully trimming thin grass as a barber would the hoir on your head." Comely close clipping, with mower blades sat at 119-2 inches above the ground. Mowing should start in: spring and continue until the grass stops growing in the fall. Many gardeners, he srid. make too much watering their lawns. Puddles of water can be just as hard on grass us drought.

Some lawns need loosening the soil with a pitchfork- give the grass needed air. "It is more 3 matter of getting to know your soil and than buying fancy Inaterials, he feels. Here's The Answer By ANDY LANG QUESTION: l'en having my home resided soon with prefinish mineral liber siding shingles. The remodeling contractor recommends preFinished metal corner pieces in the same coior. Are these 25 good as wood corner Camera By IRVING DESFOR AP Newsfeatures FIRE can be either a ing or a scourge of mankind depending on whether it is urider- out of--control.

When it is a destroyer, it takes a tremendous toll of lives und property. The men who fight fires, therefore. risk their health and their lives to minimize loss to our munities and to protect or save the hornes. belungings and lives of the public. Photography is becoming an increasingly important tool in this continuing civic fight against destructive fire.

With the help of still and motion pictures taken when Gres are in progress, fire departments can study and improve their firefighting techniques, pip base of this fruit tree. The glass may be sprayed any color that is desired. In warn climates and summet beach houses one may use a bare tree stuck in a large pot as the basis for interesting decoration, making it a focal point of 3 room, Starfish. shells, other crustacea may be used on branches as is or painted. silvered or gilded for an especially pretty effect.

More homes arc discovering the joy of hanging baskets. These may be bung from brackets attached to the wall and filled in season with trailing things. in summer there are inany colorful plants, especially begonias with their bright flowers. In it can be loaded with philodendroa, rhododendron. ground pine.

fir true limbs, holly, Ivy is pretty at any time, especially cornhined with colorful THE GASTONIA GAZETTE Weekender Published Each Sunday By The Gazette Publishing Co. Editor TON McINTYRE CONTENTS Books Page 3 Music Page 4 Movies Page 5 Feature: "Teacher, Musician, Poet" Brockman Page By Zoe Feature: "When And How Do Infants Learn To Talk?" Page 8 Eddie Albert Page 10 Profile: Television Guide Page 11 COVER What goes on in the mind of an infant? From their reaction to people and situations it's hard to tell, but sometimes it's almost. as if you can see what they are thinking. Wha tabout the 11-month old on this week's cover? What does she say to you? ON THE HOUSE That pesky bit of plumbing known as a Nush tank, water Lank or just plain toilet tank is still being used in a large mijority of homes in the United Stutes. And the chances are Urut.

more often than nw, the tank is working less than perfectly. One reason why 50 many tanks are in a state of disrepair is that they can continue to work fairly efficiently when something is wrong. Meanwhile, however, millions of gallons of water ure being wasted by the continuous dripping or flowing of water from the Lank into the bowl. This leakage into the bowl can be caused by a number of reasons. The most common probably is the failure of the Noal-a metal or plastic ball -to operate properly.

The float is attached to a borizoncal rod which stretches from By ANDY LANG AP Newsicatures right to left near the top of the tank. When the float lases its buoyancy. it fails shul off the valve at the top of the supply pipe. Water keeps rising in the tank and pours into the overflow tube, a long vertical tube usually about midway in the tank, times a Little to the left. (You can get Andy Lang's helpful booklet, "Make Simple Plumbing Repairs," by sending 25 cents and a long, stamped, self-addressed en elope 10 Know-How, P.O.

Box 954, Jamaica, N.Y. 11431.) This overflow tube is very important. if it were not there, water would continue to rise in the tank and spill onto the Nour. Instead, the waler goos into the overflow tube. When the tank is operating properly, the level of water in the tank will stop before it reaches the top of the tube.

To check the float. unscrew it from the horizontal rod and shake it. If there is water in it. replace it with a new one. 10.

it apparently has no water in it and appears lo be in sound condition, bend the horizonal rod slightly downward. Do this with both hands and work carefolly so 34 not to throw the tank mechanism out of aligunent. Replace the float and flash the tank. the level ol the water stops below the top at the overflow tube. the tar.k is working properly.

As mentioned above, this in only one reason fur the leakage of water into the bowl, but it is the one that will be causing the trouble most of the time. Other posible reasons are: a worn ur broken washer at the top of the supply pipe, rust or grit the on valve Lite valve seat, failure of to drop exacily on the valve scut every time and a broken or worn valve that needs replacement, HOMES FOR AMERICANS 821 0. TERRACE beq LAUNUPY BATH 2 UT A ITY MASTER TO BEDROOM DEN OR SE DROON FAMILY KITCHEN BATH TE' ROOM 1418 BEDROOM LIVING a 3R' 8 DINING OVERALL E. TWO CAPS 12' x11'4" 121 8" x110 DON HA 430C IN LARGE SCALE -all areas family room, kitchen and utility space and of this striking ranch home are large. the Family, three or four bedrooms plus two bathrooms plus lavatory are all generliving and dining area, 1,955 square fect, excluding utility areas.

Architect is ous. Lester Room 704, 48 W. 48th New York, N.Y. 10036. Plan IA430C has Cohen, Fred posts? ANSWER: Both individual metal corner pieces and wood corner pasts will provide protectior: from the weather, as weli as being equally attractive.

The advantage of the prefinished, metal corners is that they match the color of Angles point the causes or possibility of arson, search cut fire vioJations and train new tiremen recruits. Photography's importance is evidenced by a growing suembership in the Lional Photographers As sociation, all professional tiremen who are trained in photography. Wilh about 250 municipal fire departments in the country interested in fice photography. the lead for a coordinated firemen's organization was started in Chicago. sparkplugged by Bataltion Chief George Schulter.

The Chicago Fire Department has 2 fulltime Photography, Division under his leadership with three officers and eight men, a well darkroom and two mubile units in gino-red station wagons. the prefinisned mineral fiber siding and do not require painting. On the other hand, wood corner posts are preferred in some cases because they can be painted an accent color to match the shutters or house trim. QUESTION: We bouzht an unfinished bookcase from a lumber yard several months uno, but never got around to finishing it. 1 would like to use one of the clear finishes, perhaps varnish.

Can I put it right on over the wood or must something be done to it first? ANSWER: This is stifficult to answer without knowing what kind of wood it 16 or how smoothly it already has been sanded. However, you can't go wrong by sanding the wood and then cleaning it with denatured alcohol. Apply a coat of shellac. thinned 50 per cent with denatured alcohol. ollow it to dry thoroughly, sand lightly and then proceed with the varnishing.

can get Andy tire Home." by sending 25 the by sonding cents and a long. stamped, sell-addressed envelope to Koow-How. P.O. Box 954, Jumaica, N.Y. 11431.).