Finding Decoys Hasn’t Been Duck Soup

G. J. Peairs of Arroyo Grande wants to know where to find some of the old-fashioned, full-size duck decoys that used to be so plentiful; now they’re difficult to flush out. Can you help, or will Peairs be tempted to duck the entire problem because of all the quackery involved?

Macy of Newport Beach is about to hit the ceiling--in more ways than one. She has just found out that Nordstrom has discontinued their department for larger sizes (32 and up); now she is looking for stores in the Orange County area that sell Evan-Picone and Pendleton clothes in large sizes . She would also like to know the names of some other manufacturers that make good-quality clothes for working women in these sizes. Can you help with this tall order, or will Macy shrink from the task of finding suitable clothing because of the sheer size of it?

Last month, we were looking for Argo starch. This week, Roslyn B. Katz of Marina del Rey is trying to locate some Perma Starch. She says she has had trouble locating the product, and nothing else will do. Can you help, or will an unbending Katz continue to stay hot under the collar?

B.B., an Alta Loma reader, is in the market for a 100% cotton sweat shirt in tall or extra-tall sizes. So far, B.B. has been able to find only 50% cotton and 50% polyester. Can you help cotton to our reader’s taste, or will B.B. have to sweat out this problem a little while longer?

Reader-to-Reader Help Line: Mrs. Maund at (213) 378-6535 is trying to locate a nail-buffer kit made some time ago by the P. Shine Co. of Tokyo. The beauty-supply houses and department stores she has contacted do not carry the item, but she understands that the Broadway did several years ago. Please help before this problem becomes a real nail-biter. . . . Sue at (714) 675-3680 needs additional plates for her set of Stangle pottery in the Amber Glo pattern; the item, at one time made in Trenton, N.J., has been discontinued. Please help with some Amber Glo and light up Sue’s life. . . . Carol at (213) 928-6690 would like to find a copy of the “Teenie Weenies” book that she read to her children years ago and now would like to read to her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Her now-grown children would be disappointed if she couldn’t succeed. Please help and reaffirm Carol’s conviction that children should be read to and not be hurt.

Note: The Reader-to-Reader Help Line is only for one-time items and for products that are no longer available in stores. And you must give us written permission to publish your telephone number, so that other readers may contact you directly.

Better late than never. Early in January, Mark Johnson of Artesia was looking for a refrigerator-freezer that is mounted on a wall and is less than 20 inches deep. At that time, we had not a single response. Now this may be of cold comfort for Johnson, but we just heard from a private party who has this type of refrigerator, and if Johnson is still interested in coming in out of the cold, we’ll be happy to forward the information along to him.

Kitty Norman of La Puente, who was looking for a wall cabinet that opens up to make a dining-room table, can forget about her Space Age problem and start making plans for a sit-down dinner. Sidney Malin of Port Hueneme writes that Best Furniture carries the item in their catalogue, with pickup at the retail stores. The catalogue number is 131458 KEP; additional chairs ($16.97 when on sale) are ordered under No. 131431. Malin and Alice Pierret of Santa Barbara state that a wall cabinet was listed also in Sears spring catalogue (Page 1,066) for $349.99; however, that store shows only the table, not the chairs (which also fold up, by the way). If neither of these sources is of help, Norman still need not cancel her dinner party. Three readers said they might be willing to part with their folding dining-room tables; if she, or anyone else, is interested in names and prices, please send us a stamped, self-addressed envelope.

We have a potential source for Merry Brooms. An unidentified Pasadena reader writes that the broom might be available from Corcoran Manufacturing Co., P. O. Box 4465, Anaheim 92803.

Herb Hain cannot answer mail personally but will, space permitting, respond in this column to readers who have--or need--helpful information. Write (do not telephone) to You Can Help!, You section, the Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles 90053.