Sophisticated Mood Takes Charge

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31123, 28 July 1966, Page 2

Sophisticated Mood Takes Charge

(N.Z.P.A. Reuter—Copyright)

PARIS, July 26. ’ The baby doll suddenly grew up into a cool sophisticated siren in the Paris collections shown today 7.

The mini-skirts and nursery fashions had t heir day yesterday at Esterel, Feraud and Jean Louis Scherrer. Today Paris catered to the “real woman” with collections shown bv Pierre Balmain, Maggy Rouff, and Nina Ricci.

The Ricci collection, with its retrospective trends emanating from the 19305, is one of the best that this famous old house has ever produced. The intricate bias cut, worked with a minimum amount of seams, is the epitome of great French dressmaking. Buyers will find the bias cut difficult to copy, and this collection may never reach the popular level of mass production, but critics claim that the new Ricci collection is the most exciting; presentation viewed to date. There is no dynamic new silhouette, but the over-all j mood is new and different. Costs a Fortune

The Ricci dress is the “little nothing” dress that costs a fortune and shows it. It has a high plain neckline with a stand-up Chinese collar and long tubular sleeves. It is waistless and clings and flows along the natural lines of the body. The bias cut spirals, envelopes, or falls in deep oblique panels at the side, front or back. The Balmain dresses are similar in mood, though he sticks to the straight cut, worked with square yokes or horizontal seaming. Sleeves are back everywhere, ranging from Ricci’s wrist-length styles to the short-capped sleeves on Balmain’s simple wool jersey sheaths. Balmain made black look young for every hour of the day or night Black dresses.

suits and coats trimmed; round the neckline and cuffs with bands of bright colour bring back black for the first time in Parish fashion since Andrew Courreges made white the leading look two years ago.

l Hemlines remain at midj kneecap, and silhouettes are easy to wear. Furs are rampant in all collections, employed for lavish trimmings, or combining different types of pelts in the same ensemble.