CARNIVAL COSTUMES FOR ALL AGES

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 72, 18 December 1928, Page 25 (Supplement)

CARNIVAL COSTUMES FOR ALL AGES

BY

MADAME DOREEN

(All Rights Reserved)

At heart, we all retain a childish pleasure in the game of “dressing up,” and fancy dress parties at this time of year are almost always a great success. When choosing a carnival costume, one or two important factors must be borne in mind. To avoid self-conscious-ness and discomfort, it is most important to dress in accordance with one’s personality. Another important point is to select a costume that “hangs well,” requiring very little management, and is fit to Stand a certain amount of hard usage. The sort of costume that needs to be explained by carrying something, such as a banner, a tray, , or bottle, a basket. and so on, is also fatal unless you are prepared to give up all idea of dancing and spend the evening on parade. My Lady Crinoline. A most adaptable costume is the Charming crinoline shown here. While

it look* #8 best on a slim young girl, it is not at all unsuited to the woman Of mature figure. For the making, either a patterned or a plain fabric could be used. It is necessary to fill out the skirt with at least two petticoats—one, very wide, of tarletan, and the other of muslin. The bodice should be fitted and boned. The fichu can be made of organdi, Breton net or chiffon. Remember that curls, either real or artificial, must be jvorn with this dress. Dresden Shepherdess. Nothing could be prettier for a petite woman or a very young girl than the little Dresden Shepherdess Costume, With its quilted skirt of satin, or sa-

teen, and its panier overdress of figured taffetas, embroidered muslin or cretonne. It is a costume that could be reproduced for a few shillings, or a pound or two, according to the costliness of the materials used; and in these days of pretty, bright colours, the cheap interpretation may really be just as effective as a more expensive one. This is an ideal costume for the girl who considers “dressing up” incomplete unless she covers her own hair with a wig of some kind. Any Pompadour wig, either in white hair or artificial silk, would be suitable for the Shepherdess, and the final finishing touch is a little hat trimmed with ribbons and roses. An Eastern Belle. Tl>e “trouser costume,” always a favourite, attains the summit of feminine charm in the Eastern dress shown

beta This would look admirable on a tall, fine woman, and even a small

person could wear it with success, as it is a very easy costume to manage. The hair can be entirely hidden by the tinsel turban. Jade green and gold, with gold fringe and plenty of bead embroidery, interpret this costume to perfection. The veil is of gold net. CARNIVAL COSTUMES FOR THE KIDDIES. Little folks, like their elders, get many invitations for fancy dress a ' at this time of the year. It is a flattery to which most mothers promptly succumb: for who could resist the charm of a child impersonating a fairy, or venting natural high spirits in the guise of a wild, wild Indian? Competition grows keen, and every mother hopes that her particular infant will look the jolliest and prettiest in the room. Perfectly effective costumes can be made for a shilling or two with the exercise of a little ingenuity; and although there may not be many official occasions which the dress can grace, every mother knows that there are innumerable unofficial dressing-up times, when the carnival attire provides no end of amusement. Besides, it is now quite in order for many little peop’ to use their discarded fancy dresses as summer sleeping suits, and two of the ideas given here have been specially designed with this end in view. Great Big Chief, Eagle. Light-weight brown flannel, or, if you consider this too warm, tobacco brown easement cloth, would be an excellent choice for the Indian rig-out. Select the sort of fabric you might buy if you were making a slumber suit, but get the colour best suited to the fancy dress idea. Ready-made wool fringe w 'uld be tidier than slashed strips of material, and would produce an equally good effect—l should have them either red or bronze.. For the other decorations, braid could be used, or applique motifs. Orange, red, choco-

late brown, and cream make an excellent cornbli ation. The head-dress consists of dyed quills, sewn to a band of braid which fastens with a press-stud behind.

Maiden of the Moon.

An appropriately picturesque name for the little Chinese lassie! This costume can be as inexpensive as you please (cotton crepe will Interpret it) ; or, if you wa l it to look really elaborblue satin, and the kimono of chysanthemum patterned, peach-tinted crepe de chine, with gold embroidery on the neck, front, lower edge, and sleeve ends.

The Chinese dress is most comfortable to wear, and makes an admirable

sleeping suit when its party days are over. Little Kose-Bud. Here is the very perfect party costume for a wee mite of two or three, just getting her first taste of social life! The long-waisted, sleeveless top is made of green sateen, then comes a

frill of sepals to match. Then two rows of pink sateen petals, held out by a very wide petticoat of pink tarletan. Wee knickers of pink silk are worn under this. The cap repeats the scheme of pink petals and green sepals, and the “stem” is a little tube of green sateen stuffed ,with wadding.