HOLIDAYS DRAWING NEAR Fashions For The Seaside

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 58, Issue 35, 20 November 1937, Page 4

HOLIDAYS DRAWING NEAR Fashions For The Seaside

DECAUSE the smart woman who goes to the seaside is anxious to avoid that suggestion of having just stepped Off the set of a naval music-comedy film in the making, genuine seaside clothes are not) noticeably nautical in style. The fancy-dress element in trousered outfits with sailor blouses is distinctly out of date. Clips, items of “jewellery” and such small etceteras as handkerchiefs that peep from a breast pocket, or buckles on belts, are usually the only naval touches to be seen. On Promenade. On the seaside promenade, however, and even in town fashions for hot weather, the nautical note is often in evidence. Tailor-cut dresses and suits in clean colours and crisp materials introduce it in necklines that are* finished with bandanas knotted sailor fashion in front and in boleros with mess-jacket appearance. Dark blue and white, in themselves suggestive of naval smartness, were combined in an ideal town suit of linen that I noticed recently. The skirt, slightly 'high-waisted and flared at the hem, was worn with a neat little mess-jacket arid the white relief was visible in 'the buttons of the double-breasted small coat, in the highnecked blouse and the broad folded waistband of white linen. Favoured Materials. At the seaside, cottons, linens and silks printed with a variety of nautical details are strongly flavoured for frocks, jumpers, scarves, sun-suits, and some- ; times evening gowns. ■ White sea-gulls printed in regular lines on a blue background so that at a distance they look like stripes, dolphins and turtles are among the more un- -■ common motifs found in patterned fabrics, but there is also a wide choice of prints that make use of anchors, yachts, steam-boats, lifebuoys and so on. In some cases, plain materials are embellished with embroidery in novel fashion. I have seen a ship’s wheel boldly embroidered on the breast of a jumper and lapels of tailored frocks and coats adorned with code flags in the right colours. If your name is not too lengthy, it can be spelled out in flags. Cotton Suits. Cotton play suits in the prints look particularly well. These suits, by the way, are often lined With wool jersey, partly because the beach is so frequently a breezy place and partly because the jersey lining can be cut to act as some sort of control of the figure. , Waistcoat tops to go with shorts or skirt, or beneath the jacket of a walking suit, also find an attractive use for the prints. "• Long, loose trousers and very short ones are equally errors in judgment for those who are really perfectly built. Wide trousers of calf-length, just below the knee, are nOwer and definitely safer. If your legs are on the plump side, add a loose hip-length coat, in a suitable material, to your seashore or boatdeck outfit.

It will have a slimming effect on your legs, especially if you have the shoulders made broad so that the top of your figure is widened. Wide sleeves, short sleeves wide at the top and fitted into cuffs above the elbow, or no sleeves at all, are liked ?<■ • this type of coat.

Slacks. Should you be one of those people who can wear slacks; you may have them with smart permanent turn-ups and a crease down each trouser leg that is really permanent because a tiny pleat has been machine-stitched down the centre. , Red flannel, not the variety once used for grandmother’s petticoats, made some loosely-cut trousers of nautical style. A flag blue sailor blouse went with them and a white pique jacket. White duck, or white flannel, could be used for another outfit. With this, a red jersey wool, or linen bolero, could be worn over a white shirt. A girl who had adopted this colour scheme included a cummerbund of white silk printed in red and blue. She tied a square of silk about her head to form the “crown” of a hat that was completed with a brim of white straw placed on the head-separate-ly. Seaside Wardrobe. The seaside wardrobe this year mands hat and coat outfits for the sands. The hats, which may be wide-brimmed ones to shade the eyes, or little Juliet caps of pique to keep the hair in order rather than to protect the head, “go” with coats of the princess style, t the swagger, in cotton towelling. They are often brilliantly striped. Toeless Sandals. Toeless sandals are now constructed of string, or narrow bands of canvas, designed to allow the maximum amount of fresh air and sunlight to reach the feet while providing support for the instep. Brown and gold appeared in a pair of string sandals worn by a girl with a brown bathing suit. While resting on the beach, she wore a boldly striped coat in brown and golden yellow. Going ir. to bathe she put on a rubber cap of gleaming gold colour.