THE FROCK AND THE WOMAN.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 116, 8 February 1908, Page 11

THE FROCK AND THE WOMAN.

A great deal has been said—in fashion papers and the like—about dressing to suit an emotion. Actresses have made a special study of the emotional frock, and at least one London 'dressmaker developed it in'marvellously complex -ways:. But - these things arc for tho wealthy and the extravagant, for tho people who can afford to have twenty emotions and moods, and to dress them ailappropriately. ],t is an art that will remain unattainable by tho rank and file of womanhood. , .

; There is-the other side of the question—the influence,of .the frock upon the mood of the woman. And this is ,a thing that is known to women everywhere, rich and poor alike. It enables a woman to.assume with.a certain dress a certain mood, indeed even a certain phafcOi of character quite apart from that • which is to bo. attained in any other frock. Of course some.girls and, women are moYe susceptible to this sort of thing than others, and .of some women ono would declare. that they .were, absolutely not to bp influenced, but that is..never.so. There is not in the whole wide, world one woman with eyes to sec who is not to bo influenced to a greater or less extent by; some sort of dress. Tho favourite example of this in fiction is the middle-aged lady with hair drawn tightly back from her forehead,, and prim gowns, .who is persuaded to "let tho little curls escape and lie, lightly on her brow," and to don a ravishing frock. Wo all know how in one shoft'hour that middle-aged lady is resolved into a society beauty with—and this is ■ most manner of a beauty. But this is a very extremo case,'and ail obvious one. What,l want to draw attention to is the way that everyday, frocks in an everyday wardrobe influence; tho. mood of the wearerthe extraordinary, feeling of loss of self-respect that, is inflicted by the wearing of a cbtton .frock-..just, the; least little bit dabby; tho feeling of efficiency and practicalness that comes with.a shirt blouse; and the half a ; dozen emotions, produced by half a .dozen' other costumes: Some of the feelings are traditional and infallible, such as the expectancy of; delight, the glamour, shyness, and excitement that the ; young debutante puts on with her whito frock. Perhaps the mental scientists-would say that these feelings do not really belong to the confections of silk and filmy lace, and that they arc the effect'of tho thought of thousands of people in;many generations. It may bo,so, but pertain it is that, - whatever sho may feel like on her coming out day, or h'er wedding day, tho debutante and''the. bride woukl bebreliaud be scandalised at the thought cf wniViing anything but white, simply because she knows that v.ithjho garment she niiist inevitably put 011 certain feelings appropriate to tho occasion. THK DOMINANT FROCK.

Nearly every woman has some one frock' in which she feels at her very best, a chiffon or tulley evening gown, in which'slip believes herself to bp most effective, which sho feels 'gives'her a grace -and charm unknown to her .better best lafterrioon frock—a black—but the feelings of' a' woman iii black aro so complex, and yet so individual that uio, cannot enumerate them. .Suffice.-.it'to .say that in black a' woman ,accustomed to wearing colours' feels quite a new'creature; "probably sho often feels a little liko Marie Stuart. I knew 'a, girl; who was. a perfect chameleon. Sho did not-recognise, tlio &ct. herself,;but all'her friends used to be amused 'to see how slip; changed in manner and thought with every 'different froelc she !put on; .'Xater on she became a deaconess, and. with ' her deaconess . costume ' ■ she donned "an" "appropriate) character which , was . permanently fixed long before the influence of the'ilniforiii wore off.

■It is jn. these, changes',of mood that- all ..the fun' of dressing,'and all the charm of the art of dress, lies. It is even here that the summer, -sales. find .their greatest assistance,'.in' the .delight it. gives a woman' . to' contemplato tho infinite'changes of mood, and feeling possible/to .0110 with"an unlimited purse. She may ablo.to buy all'the costumes slie sees, hut she may imagine herself iii half of them; and in so "doing'slie niakes little .excursions into the dramatic world'that .lies near.,every woman's mind.',: ; •

; AS-' DRESSMAKLES •It .'is because *:'of"this; also,;' that -it is - so: much to : be regretted.-that modern novelists do' not describe'the dress of. their heroines. In the old days,- when every gown. worn on an; important •: occasion'' was minutely described,, tho male reader might jeer, "but tho woman/who-had.read:had a-cortain key-to tho-feeling and mood of tho,-heroine that' was worth pages of the' present-day. analytical writing. •

In that delightful old book "Tho Wooing O't," for instance, when the young ..heroine is .described as 'going to -a ball; at ,the Tuilcries' with her. rich vulgar: patroness, we are told that she wore- "a white cloudy gauzo all flecked over with silver sparks,• and her fresh,' cool-looking bouquets, ot moss and • violets,; •artel- tho 'long leaves, sparkling as - if; with 'dew, intertwined with her- soft brown hair, 'and'-' drooping on her shoulder, gave her a :Wood nymph air, very charming and perfectly suitable tocher style:" Of.-course it did, anil the woman reader- follows:the ; adventures- of Maggie at - that ball with : a ■ perfect ■ compro--hension only possible when this description' ■ has been read. • . : Miss Marie G'orelli, on •: tho other haiid, hinders the effect sho strives to produce becauso she dresses, her heroines, anddoes not allow them to'dross themselves.- Some time ago sho wrote a book, called' "God's Good, Man," in which-tho heroine is represented as riding to bounds in a violet velvet habit-, with a violet picture-hat ;at least that is tho momory of: her statement left in .my mind. But it was not' to be believed. Her heroine, who.',did many silly things,.certainly 'stopped short of that-, ''and the' attempt to' picture it made uio rest of the story hazy/ and pven unreal.' - ' ;

Tho good manager knows- that it is tho detail which will . bring her clothcs up-to-date, and sho keeps her eyes open for something -new and attractive in tho way of'a linen collar, and I make no. doubt-that she is taking'full advantage of- tho jabot. ' Her belts, too, will bo out of the ordinary, and sho will search'for buttons and ties and cravats which ■ are redeemed from the commonplace. - For an afternoon gown sho will choose a design which is not too strongly characteristic of the fashion of the moment, and. sho certainly will'always pay great caro to the lace neckband and chemisette, .for -grubbiness in that direction spells disaster. ■>*■>. — ~ ' "7" ! ■ .