HINTS ON CHOOSING HATS.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 57, 6 March 1912, Page 8

HINTS ON CHOOSING HATS.

THREE "WISE COLOURS i FOR LOOTED PURSES. FASHION" NOTES FROM LO>TX)X. (From Our Londcn Lady Correspondent.) • LONDON. January '26. Most of the London world holds its handkerchief to its nose, because it has a cold, or is afraid of catching someone else's: all of it is red-e.-scd. because we've had a fog every day this week: most of it wears a worried look, and women, at least, have even" excuse, for fog is an enemy to anything dainty "in dress or millinery, and certainly in gloves. The skv misht be fashioned of solid lead, the "road'all the week, and before that, would only amuse the being who set out with a business interest in.mud. In short, there have been only four bouTs sunshine in twenty-four dap, and I the world in general looks like it.

CHEER TN THE GLOOM.

And yet, in the -very, midst of all this sulkiness of atmosphere, and these disi comforting sondrtions. West End shop •windows manage to smile -with all the elegance, allure, and even Kindness that they exercise in the -cheeriest summer weather. ' I have -written hefore of the extraordinarily vivifying effect that brightly dressed shop windows can have on tired eyes, and in this weather, when srardens and trees are bare, and one lire* under an umbrella when'out of doors, they represent for a little while, magic doors into quire a. fairyland of exquisiteness. An unattainable on*, qnite probably, hut there are so many beautiful tempting things, and one could not buy all anyhow. Since in so many other things in life we must be philosophical, why not in this also? The very perfection of window-dressing where feminine things are to be shown, met the eye this morning in the windows of a French shop. This place lays all its most delicate lingerie—and for handmade things, not very expensive, it is noted—on the floor, showing only furs, evening coats and blouses on stands. So. the indelicate effect of the windowdressing, generally beloved by English shopkeepers, of displaying corsets, nightgowns, stockings, etc., on very human looking- -figures is done away with, as it. should be. Instead, to-day all kinds of filmy underwear lay on a carpet of bi]owed silk, •with a bunch of pink roses here and there on specially elaborate garments. Electric light, in soft-coTonr-ed shades, showed up everything to the prettiest advantage, and a great green vase at one side of the deep wind-ow. filled with golden brown chrysanthemums and deep crimson roses, finished off appropriately, a very feast of loveliness.

THE VIRTUE OF BLUE SERGE. One supposes there was a time when, though dresses were -worn, navy blue serge was not in existence. It must have been a sorry period. Nowadays, if one could only have two dresses in the world, it would be wise to have one of navy, and the other, perhaps, of pither grev. or mole colour. These ItliTee colours are staunch friends to the woman not well-to-do. for each will look well till it dies. save, of coarse, for spots which mole, for instance, shows with no reserve, each need only be simply trimmed to be effective, and with eac* l . there are several colours that will "30.'' so that a millinery biil can be kept within economical limits. Several dre&ses. and coats arid skirts of navy eerjre, are displayed just now. and in all the former, in spite of threats, short waist* arc the order of fashioning-. One neat little one had no other embellishment on it than a thi.-k lace motif in various shades of preen in front of the Utile yoke or black net. and the same shaped 1 motif, only turned upside down, at the slight panel just above the waist in front. Another very smart navy gown had wide turn-back ruffs. Just below the elbow, and a wide single rev,-r of navy foulard striped with white, the snort waist outlined with a very narrow band of black satin. Red. in cloth, etc., often makes a Woe serg» gown into something quite original. One coat and skirt hod a plenitude of smallish smoked pearl buttons, with four holes in stitched on* wi£b bright, red silk—others sport small red enamel buttons, or large ones. Yet another bright-looking coat and skirt had no other trimming than one wide white cloth rever on the coat with three large mock buttonholes stitched in navy. Another had band? of violet cloth, at the edge of the narrow rever and the-caffs, bat violet -with, awry-

NARROW LEATHER CUFFS with collar to match, the body of coloured kid. with surrounding bands of black patent leather, and ornamented - with black or coloured leather buttons. are now being sold, and could be used, of •course, with several different—coatame*. IX THE HAT WORLD fak-silk-fruit-still rule the d»y, even if jtbe hat is all black, but there are, of course, lots of other methods-of trimming—long feathers and large plumes. for instance,.are still very popular. In floaapTs, the mountainous method of grouping'is the most fashionable. A-XEAT TOILETTE tha.t-look.ed so, even in this-discouraging \V43ither. was of mole cloth, with which a small black hat trimmed with black winijs was worn. The blouse was of can--vas voile over a foundation of white : t he- voile* being all of pin tucks, cut round at the--n-eck, with a little neat cream vest. the collar of which was faggoted with black, the voile neck outlined with small black -knobs, and the voile cuffs also fag.goaed with black: a narrow black belt the coat. A RIBBON" QUTLL is • one of the newest methods of hat trirnur-.ng. This is built on a background of velvet or silk on buckram and may hase loose billows of loose coloirred'silks. One that I saw was on a small navy tagal shape, and had bright navy and emerald loops. Sometime* more than two-colours were blended. Other large bale with upturned (brims have a taffetas ruehe round the edpes. generally of shot silk, which is held implate -with thick silk cord. BAsRBARIC MTLXIXERY is a harsh name, and one must acknowledge a mischievous delight in dubbing it perhaps unjustly and stupidly, but the htuge-fprices>-attached' justify childishness. sbop, under cover of a sale has its window full of weird models destined or draped for—one wonder* what sort of woman? One hat, large in shape, was of striped biscuit plush with its edges bound in black glace. At one side rose a huge mount of Mack eock"s feathjers. and on the crown was stretched a piece of smooth grey fur terminating, at both ends, in long and skinny clawsj! Another naked looking creation was of brown felt with, as its only trimming, two large square 'buckle-shaped ornaments made of ordinary white cotton crochet. CHOOSINO- A HAT is'always a serious-business, and should -be, for the woman who always wants as we all do. to look her best. It is well to remember -that millinery should be chosen, not-onry—because it suits our ■stye of head, but to harmonise wit3i one's figure also. For this reason the purchaser should always- stand up before a mirror whole she tries on various modsels—then the "whole effect is evident and the body will not be dwarfed for the»sake-of a creation that shows of hides the shape of the head, a* may ha jdesired.