299 RECREATIONS FLORAL MOSAICON A Fascinating Hobby — Materials Required— How to Do the Work — Suitable Objects upon which to Work, and other Practical Suggestions MANY women nowadays are at a loss to find congenial and remunerative employment, but floral mosaicon is a hobby with which even the most fas- tidious cannot find fault. The chief materials needed for this fascinating work are the special paper, liquid glue, a pair of nippers, and, of course, the card, frame, box, or other object to which the particular decoration is to be fixed or attached. To carry out the work satisfactorily, nimble fingers, good taste, an eye for colour, and persever- ance are essential. The latter may seem to imply that the work is really difficult. This is not so. But no hobby or accomplishment can be mas- tered fully in a day. The " mosaicon " — a material is made specially for the purpose — is sold, in strips of about 12 inches long and |- inch wide, in every imaginable colour and shade, and some with silver or gilt edges. Forget-mC'not design How the Work is Done Having secured a varied selection of strips, the operator must decide on a design to carry out. The beginner will be wise to begin with a simple one, and, when she can roll the paper deftly, then to attempt more elaborate schemes. Each petal of the flower selected has to be formed by rolling the strips between the first finger and the thumb, and then the round balls of rolled paper are shaped by pressure. When a sufficient number of petals and leaves are com- pleted, they must then be fixed with. glue to the article for which the design is wanted. Only a very little glue should be used, and care must be taken to see that it does not ooze or show beyond the flower or foliage. The glue should be applied with a very fine brush, and the nippers used for picking up the different parts and then placing the flower hi its proper position and pressing it down until it is firmly fixed. The stalks are formed of the strips in their natural form, and, if thick stalks are wanted, two or more of the strips can be used together. In plate No. i a forget-me- not design is carried out, a facsimile of which was pur- chased by Queen Mary. The frame was a well-made one, in khaki - coloured chamois leather, on which the pretty blue flowers with their light green foliage, the two sprays meeting at the top and finished off with a pink bow, showed a charming piece of handiwork. Anyone who can accomplish such a result will find it a most engrossing occupation, and the outlay necessary is very small. A great feature and advantage of this particular work is that it is nearly everlasting. It does not fade, tarnish, or fall to pieces when once it has been securely fixed. When preferred, the frames can be covered with glass like a photograph. This arrange- ment adds but little to the cost, and helps greatly to preserve the work against injury, dust, and so forth. Plate 2 shows a frame of rather large dimensions, com- posed of white watered silk with gilt rim, and an orna- mentation at the top. On the silk in each comer is a design of scarlet pimpernel, the bow being of silk mosaicon. A similar frame was recently purchased at a bazaar by Miss Marion Terry. There is a great field for the display and sale of this particular kind of work. Another pretty design was a frame purchased by Queen Alexandra, composed of white forget- me-nots worked on a pink linen foundation. Then there is the " Empire " frame, with a chaplet of bay- leaves, connected at the base by what appears to be a jewelled true -lover's knot. Not only are frames used for this special work, but also large or small screens of plain white wood. The stained green or brown, and even polished screens, can -be decorated with some bold designs, such as long-stemmed annunciation lilies or sun- flowers, both of which look charming on a greyish blue background. Branches of red rowan-berries or barberries would be equally effective. In fact, the variety of schemes is almost endless. Decorating Bridge-boxes, Blotters, etc. Bridge and other card-game boxes, match-boxes (either of wood or leather), hat or hair- pin boxes, cigar, cigarette, or stamp boxes, clock - stands. frame worked with scarlet pimpernel design
