Advice on the best way to clean a mirror, how to wash the whitest whites and save gas shows the pride they took in keeping a perfect home in an age when cleanliness, thriftiness and ingenuity were elevated to an art form.
The answers to 1,250 such questions – together with the names and addresses of the women who submitted them – have been brought together in the largest collection of what are now called “life hacks”.
Among some of the quirkier entries are placing a cut onion on the plate rack above the cooker to freshen the air when chips are fried and not to throw away empty tea packets without unfolding the bottom because a teaspoonful of tea is generally tucked away inside the folds.
And, to get better value out of your Daily Express, to keep warm walking home on a freezing day, buy a newspaper and wrap it round your chest and midriff before buttoning the coat.
The book, Pass It On Tips From The 1950s, edited by Scottish journalist Steve Finan, is culled from the columns of the Sunday Post newspaper.
Mr Finan said: “These tips are a mixture of very useful and heart-tugging nostalgic. You can almost see all those strong women in their sensible shoes, sleeves rolled up, a just-scrubbed kitchen table at their hand.
“They are your mother, your aunt, your grandmother.
“Thrift was greatly valued, but it would seem that labour-saving tips weren’t so popular.
“The culture of the time wasn’t to take shortcuts, it was to do the best possible job in a time of austerity.
“You can’t read this without feeling admiration for the tipsters. However, in a strange way, some of the tips are also very funny.
“This is probably the best Mothers’ Day present it is possible to buy.”
The “Pass It On” column ran for decades every week and housewives, and some men, would write in with clever, innovative and frankly brilliant tips for cooking, cleaning, mending, ironing and saving money.
The contributor of the week’s best tip was rewarded with a half-guinea or a pair of towels, but the prize was only part of the reward.
In those house-proud times, the woman who had a tip printed was regarded as a housewife of distinction. A woman who was thrifty, clever and kept her home spick and span.
The legend in The Sunday Post office (although never proved) was that when the Queen Mother was in residence in Scotland she read the paper, and her favourite part was the Pass It On tips.
She would regale the rest of the family and staff with the homely and clever advice.
HERE ARE TEN OF THE TOP TIPS:
1 – To clean behind a wardrobe too heavy to move, put a dust sheet over the top at the back and pull it from side to side, working to the bottom. Dust and fluff comes down with the sheet and is easily gathered up.
2 – Put table tennis balls that are dented into a bowl and pour boiling water over them. This takes the dents out.
3 – After pouring boiling water from an electric kettle never leave any below the element. Always fill up with cold water. This helps to keep kettle in good condition.
4 – Place a feather pillow at children’s feet in bed. Then you’re sure they’ve warmth without fear of burns from a too-hot bottle.
5 – Before boiling potatoes in their jackets, cut off a thin strip of skin right round the centre of each. After being boiled, the remaining skin will slip off easily. This prevents waste of the best part of the potato, which is next the skin.
6 – To clean a smeary windscreen or window, wet it, then rub with a penny. Chamois in the usual way.
7 – When toasting or frying cheese, Sprinkle it with a drop of milk to prevent it going tough and leathery.
8 – If tea has to be carried in a flask, it is better to carry tea bags. Fill the flask with boiling water and pop in a tea bag just before required. Let it infuse for a few minutes. This gives much fresher-tasted tea.
9 – When examining nylons for ladders, wear a dark glove. Flaws can be seen more easily and the glove prevents stockings catching on fingernails.
10 – The unsightly spotting and clouding that spoils a mirror is caused by damp penetrating the silvering at the rear. A protective measure is to coat with varnish the back of a recently-purchased mirror.
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