Ift—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 6,1969 Mrs. Hess Assumes New Role As County Farm Women President By Mrs. Charles McSparran Lancaster Farming Stall Writer The new president of the So ciety of Farm Women of Lan caster County, Mrs John N. Hess (Helen) of Columbia R 2, is a very busy person. Assuming her role as county president Novem ber 1, she has attended Dauphin, York and Cumberland county banquets and December 2 held her first county board meeting. In February they will decide on county projects for this year. Her husband and son are proud of her and happy to have her fill this position and will gladly as sist with some home duties such as meal preparation when she has to be away. Mrs. Hess is particularly busy at this season of the year as she has a fascinating hobby of mak ing Christmas decorations and decorating eggs She shares the .know-how with many people as f she takes her exibit to Farm Women’s meeting, church wo men’s groups, senior citizens groups, fire company auxiliaries and Scout meetings and shows them how to make them. When she puts on a demonstration she often gives a door prize of one of her creations. If you could see all, the little bottle caps, curtain 'rings, tin cans, partly burned candles, weed seeds, leaves, broken jewelry and the like she uses and comes up with beautiful and new ideas in dec orations I’m sure you’d agree she is a genius in this field. Her basement is all aglow with a Christmas tree decorated with ornaments she has made. There’s satin balls of various colors dec orated with sequins, beads and gold foil medallions; a little green bird made from pieces of an egg carton and covered with glitter; a little red drum, the MRS. HESS has an electrically lighted, glass shelved display cabinet (upper left) for some of her decorated eggs. In the low er Lancaster Farming Photo, she is hold- FOR THE FARM WIFE AND FAMILY base of which is a little tin can cheese came in for a pizza mix. It is decorated with gold trim and the drumsticks are made from toothpicks and beads, then gilted; there’s styrofoam balls concealed under velvet, satin and flowered ribbons, metalic braids, beads and jewels; there’s real sparkling ornaments made from egg cartons, elongated with cor sage pins and long crystal beads and cut in shapes like flowers with different colors of glitter; and a deviled ham can decorat ed with a couple little deer in side. Atop the tree is a little white angel with a skirt of white turkey feathers. Beneath the tree is a white felt skirt with red fringe and a jolly red Santa face and red and green balls decorat ed with varicolored sequins. This tree has a string of red candles with electric flames and beneath each one is a red and green vel vet bow. i \ •. T 1 ' f 1 I One very unusual piece is a della Robbia wreath made ffom a garland of colored plastic fruits and green leaves mounted on a styrofoam wreath which has been covered with green satin ribbon. Small white electric fire proof Christmas tree bulbs are inserted in several of the pieces of fipit muchjek- in ine center of *th§ wreath is the 1 traditional Madon na and child cut from an Ideals magazine cover and mounted on a red velvet covered disk. Mrs. Hess makes a very simple inexpensive hurricane-style can dle holder from a 46 oz juice can and a dimestore snerbet. She re moves one end of the can, per forates the can in some design, then glues the bottom of the sherbet to the bottom of the can, thus having the large end of the sherbet as a base. She sprays yarrow, cockscomb, okra pods, , ~, , , , , , desert flowers, wheat, etc. Most mg a decorated black enameled, red lined 0 £ flowers and weeds are jewel box she made. Also shown are an dried by hanging them upside antique coffee grinder, a set of scales and down until dried. A glycerin and a hand-made Madonna. water mixture is used to dry THE NEW PRESIDENT of the Lan caster County Society of Farm Women, Mrs. John N. Hess, shows a kissing ball the whole thing with a dull-fin- brocade material and making ish black paint and applies eith- turbans to match. Pearls, gems er gold or silver me talk braid to sequins tfyem. very the top and bottom of the can rich look. Slie also makes a kiss and to the bottom of the base ing ball by using ,a large styro (the sherbet top edge). She then foam ball and decorating it with places a shorter candle than the satin, flowered and velvet rib can on a jar lid, which serves to bons. A cluster of grapes on top collect the melted wax. This is and a hanger loop and on the placed in the can. This makes a bottom a tiyig of mistletoe. J very romantic type of light Mrs. Hess makes beautiful cer which can be used anytime of a mic pieces. She made a* white year can even be used outdoors.- c g oni? £ W*wo forlightmg in summertime. F°rt.nran 'With patm lights or emergency lights a semicircle*" of' sytrofOam" with when the electric goes off, she o i d pi as ti C , satin or dried flowers removes the wick and globe hold- on t o p These were sprayed with er from a kerosme lamp and in- about three coats of dull fimsh serts a candle, replaces the globe wbl t e paint then a coat of pearl and puts some colored marbles looking pamt Y ou’d think this in the lamp base in place of was a ceramic piece also She kerosme to give it some color. bas made Madonnas, pitchers, Helen made the three wise halenna dolls, bowls etc. She men from light weight card mad e artificial grapes out of board, rolling it into a cone P ara ® n wax and colored them shape for the cloak and smaller with purple and green crayons, cones for sleeves A styrofoam '“ ien attached grape leaves to ball serves as a head Then cov- her ceramic bowl ering them with satin, velvet and takes a peanut or coffee can and sprays it with a dull black paint and covers it with two inch perforated metallic rib bon She puts metallic braid around top and bottom Artificial or real flowers, fruit 01 nuts can be put in this contained and used throughout the year Mrs Hess makes pictures, us ing dried flowers on a back ground of burlap She made one picture with an antique white frame She painted the back ground cardboard yellow, in serted half of a papiei-mache flower pot in it, touched the flow er pot and frame high spots with gold paint She puts artificial flowers in the flower pot and changes them with the seasons She also made three pictures from different parts of the scen ery of drapery material and us ed white frames then hung them over her bed. She used the same material to make drapes and bedspread. She dries flowers, leaves and weeds to make arrangements She uses dock seed clusters, and a Christmas tree full of ornaments she made. L. F. Photo colored leaves. It preserves sie color and makes them Helen, has made -gorgeOnS pine cone wreaths and other arrange ments in the shape of a tree. She uses all kinds of cones, nuts, acorns and slices of dried hedge apples and decorates with a Vel vet How. n* Decorating eggs of all binds and sizes is probably her great est talent. She makes hinged jewel cases, some lined and s&ne painted inside. She decorates the eggs with beads, gems, se quins, metallic medallions and braids, ribbons, curtain rings, plastic and metal bottle caps, little artificial flowers, little plastic or china figures such as deer, angels, bride, groom and bridesmaid, flowers and scenes from greeting cards. One un usual one so many people want to buy is one that looks like a Shnner Another unusual one is made into a vase with dried flowers in it Some are decorated with little flowers, painted white, and look like china It as delicate work to blow out the egg yolk and white from the shell, then saw out the desired shape. Last Mother’s Day her husband gave her an electric saw She says “I bet I’m the only mother that ever got a saw for Mother’s Day.” He gave her eight geese last Easter so she could produce her own goose eggs. The Hesses live on a 30 acre farm at 288 College Ave., Mount ville. The buildings are in Mount ville borough and the ground in West Hempfield Township. It was much larger before 'the By- Pass and the Mountville Elemen tary School took a lot of the ground Prior to that their farm v/as principally a dairy farm. Now they fatten 15 to 20 Black Angus steers a year. They for merly raised some chickens and sold the eggs locally. They raise about six acres of tobacco, also corn and wheat and have a small garden They use the corn and straw for the steers. Helen help ed to drive the tractor, plant the tobacco, string it up and strip it until this year. Now their 16 year old son John C. takes her place. It gets a little confusing when the telephone rings and (Continued on Page 21)
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