Monday, January 13, 2014

What did a middle class home look like during the 19th century?

electric fireplaces big lots on ... island, wood burning fireplaces, outdoor stone fireplaces, big lots
electric fireplaces big lots image



LE SOLEIL


what was important during that time?


Answer
It would have varied depending on what part of the 19th century people lived in ,and the degree of prosperity of the family concerned. Some middle class households were larger than others.

Generally speaking, anyone who considered themselves middle class would be likely to have at least one servant. Even a family on quite a modest income, the family of a shopkeeper or schoolteacher say, would probably have a maid of all work, and an upper middle class family, on a larger income, would have two or three servants, perhaps a cook, a housemaid, and maybe a parlormaid as well. They might also have a nanny to take care of the children when small.

Most rooms would have a fireplace, and fires would be lit in cold weather, cleaning out the grates, laying fires etc, was one of the jobs that a housemaid would do. Smoke and cinders from fires made rooms dirty very quickly, so a lot of dusting, sweeping, etc, would need to be done.

In the early 19th century, candles and oil lamps were the main form of lighting. In the late 19th century, electricity and gas began to be used in private homes, a middle class house might have gaslight or even electric light.

Virtually every middle class household would have a piano, and the daughters of the house would learn to sing and play to entertain themselves and any company. In the late 1800s, the gramaphone began to be popular, but making your own music remained popular into the 20th century.

In an upper middle class household, the children would generally have a room of their own, usually upstairs, which was used as a day nursery for them to play in etc. This might become a schoolroom when they were older, or they might have a seperate schoolroom if the house was big enough.

In an upper middle class household the master of the house would be likely to have a room of his own, called the study, where he could work, or just spend time by himself, reading, etc. The mistress of the household would be likely to regard the drawing room as her own particular domain, this would be where the piano would be likely to be, and where she would entertain her friends.

The more modest household of a lower middle class family would not have so many rooms, but they were likely to have a parlour, where company would be entertained, and where the piano would be.

In the early 19th century, most middle class households would not have a bathroom. Baths would be taken in a tub in front of the fire, which would be filled and emptied by hand. Most people would not bathe every day, as filling and emptying a tub was a lot of work. But they did wash. People had washstands in their bedrooms, and would wash themselves down with a sponge. Toilets were normally outside, and people often had chamber pots under the bed to use in the night, since most people did not fancy going outside in the dark.

By the late 19th century, many upper middle class households would have had bathrooms, but maids would still be expected to bring hot water to bedrooms for washing. Many people also had flushing toilets by this time, but they were still regarded as something of a luxury.

Ways to take away the smell of smoke other than incense?




Ramen Ever


I burn incense in my room because it's the only thing I could find that would keep it from smelling like an ashtray. The problem is they give me a screaming headache. I love the way they smell but I can't go into my room without my head hurting. Sprays and candles don't work. Is there any other way I can kill the smell of smoke?

Yes, I know smoking is bad for me. If that's all you have to say please don't answer.



Answer
I'm surprised your parents aren't saying anything about this. Surely they're not unaware of this problem in your room. Of course, there are always tales of teenagers smoking in their rooms by hanging their heads out the window. You can also try dishes or cups filled with vinegar & some filled with baking soda. However, then you'd have the smell of the vinegar, plus it wouldn't really be enough, about the same as the candles.

There are electric ashtrays that you could try. I don't know how well they work. There are also e-cigarettes or something like that, which are supposed to be smoke free, only giving people the nicotine rush. They seem to be getting a lot of attention lately. They are probably far more expensive than regular cigarettes & subject to strong regulation of the sales.

Your only real choices are smoking outside or buying a really good air cleaner, which could cost you almost $200 + replacement of the filters. Hope you have lots of money. If you smoked in the rest of the house, & if it were only a few times a day, you might be able to smoke near the kitchen stove with the exhaust fan on, but I'm not sure if that's safe from blowing up near a gas stove or if it would completely work in hiding the smell. If you smoked in the bathroom with the exhaust fan on in there, you'd still have the smell in the towels & in the bathroom curtain & shower curtain. If you had a wood-burning fireplace, there are ways to set the flue when it's not in use & smoking with your head almost in the fireplace so that the smoke would go up the chimney. I'm not sure how well that would work in hiding it from your parents. They might smell it right away when walking into the house.

You would also need something over your head to keep your hair from smelling like smoke + wearing a smoking jacket to keep the smell off your clothes. Then you'd also need to brush your teeth every time you had a smoke, not a bad idea.

Of course, in advising a teenager about something that is illegal for the teenager, I hope I'm simply showing what a hassle that it is, & that none of these is really a very good solution. Otherwise, I would be in big trouble, wouldn't I?




Powered by Yahoo! Answers

Title Post: What did a middle class home look like during the 19th century?
Rating: 100% based on 99998 ratings. 5 user reviews.
Author: Unknown

Thank FOr Coming TO My Blog

No comments:

Post a Comment