Ladies
Have You
Heard?
By Doris Thomas
Lancaster Extension
Home Economist
GIVING SMALL
ELECTRIC APPLIANCES
If you’re considering
giving a small electric ap
pliance as a Mother’s Day
gift, be selective. Truly
thoughtful gifts are ones that
mv.
fulfill the real needs of the
recipient. A gift is much
more appreciated if it is
useful and used than if it is
one season’s “hot item” that
occupies valuable storage
space ever after. How many
electric knives, waffle irons
and fondue pots have gone
this route?
Today it’s difficult to think
of a food preparation task
that can’t be done with one of
the small electric appliances
on the market. You can
make crepes, cook a single
hamburger, fill cream puffs,
seal fowl'storage bags and
even sift flour electrically.
Many of these appliances
are useful; most are
relatively inexpensive and
consume little energy. Does
this make them ideal gifts?
Maybe yes, maybe no.
Ask yourself if the person
you are considering the
appliance for has a place to
put it. If the answer is “no”
you might turn your
thoughts to a magazine
subscription, a book or to
apparel. If the answer is
“yes”, consider whether or
not the person will actually
use the appliance.
Some other questions the
would-be gift giver should
answer are:
Does the appliance do a
task now performed by
another appliance? If so,
will it do the job faster? Less
expensively?
Will it serve more than one
function? If so, are these
functions truly useful?
Will it be easy to clean?
Does it have immersible
parts? Is it totally im
mersible?
Does it have UL (Un
derwriter’s Laboratory)
listing certifying electrical
safety on both the appliance
and tiie cord?
Is adequate wiring
available? Too many small
appliances can overload a
circuit.
Is there a warranty? Does
it cover parts? Service?
SMELLS SELL
PRODUCTS
Ever wonder how the fresh
lemon scent got into your
dishwashing liquid or the
herbal essense into your
shampoo? The fragrance
industry is best known for its
perfumes and colognes.
Almost unknown is its much
larger business of producing
smells for a variety of
household products soaps
to floor wax.
Consumers like
fragrances because they
associate a good smell with a
job well done like clean
clothes or a scrubbed floor.
Pleasant-smelling products
are more enjoyable to use.
Years ago, smells were
added to soap to hide foul
odors caused by the
chemicals and fatty acids
Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, May 10,1900—C0
used as ingredients. The
purpose of the fragrance was
not to please but to keep the
produce from displeasing.
But pure flower oils are
expensive. It takes 700
pounds of petals to gather a
pound of essential oil.
Synthetic smells have
recently been developed
which can be produced at
low cost and in large
quantities. Their use has fed
the craze for perfumed
products. At the moment,
the “back to nature” scents
are popular.
Smce the late 1960’s when
Calculating price
of egg protein
HARRISBURG - The
basic versatile egg is one of
nature’s most perfect foods.
It has long been a staple in
Pennsylvania’s diet because
of its nutritional value and
its relatively inexpensive
cost.
The egg is .also the least
expensive source of protein
on the market today, ac
cording to Vicky Wass, Egg
Promotion Specialist with
the Pennsylvania Depart
ment of Agriculture. “Egg
prices have remained vir
tually stable for 20 years,
aum
pu
I’asp,
I
lemon-scented dishwashing
liquid was first marketed,
advertising firms began to
emphasize the pleasing
aromas of their products.
The smell-that-sells has
stampeded the market,
especially in the last ten
years.
Manufacturers now use
smells to make their product
different from competing
products. Some advertising
executives say that with
many products so similar,
fragrance promotion is the
only technique left for use in
selling consumer products.
while other prices have
soared with inflation,” Wass
said.
“Calculating the price per
pound of protein for one
dozen eggs is easy,” said
Wass. “Simply divide the
price per dozen large eggs
by two-thirds to get the price
per pound of complete
protein. As an example, if
one dozen large eggs cost 75
cents, two-thirds of 75 equals
50 cents per pound of
protein.”
Because the egg is an
economical source of
protein, eggs are excellent
for stretching the food dollar
when combined with other
foods, by enhancing flavor,
extending dishes and by
contributing to the overall
nutritional value of the food
dish.