SPANISH RUFFLES

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 15, 17 July 1937, Page 19

SPANISH RUFFLES

QUEEN'S LONG NECK

ANCIENT DISGUISES

Nowadays the grea* fashion designers of London, Paris, and New York plan gowns- and accessories which will glorify the already lovely women of the. world. And though, occasionally, something may be especially evolved to flatter the matron whose lines are no longer slender, little thought is actually paid to disguising figure defects, states a iter in an exchange. It was not so in olden days. To be sure, sometimes a notable lady broke away from the current fashion to wear something which would enhance her own particular charm, and this whim of hers was adopted by the rank and file. " But, more often, some great lady had a defect to conceal, and set a fashion which would be an effective camouflage. The fact that a person of quality chose to adopt such and such a quaint conceit of dress was sufficient for other women to follow suit whether or not they possessed the same defect. For example,- the gown; with a train 1 came into vogue because the daughters of Louis the Good had such ugly, flat feet that they insisted on concealing them. What the Court wore in silks and velvets, the commoners copied in rougher materials. i At- the Spanish Court, cumbersome ruffles were worn because the wife of Philip .ll'had'a'long, thin neck like a swan - The gallant- ladies of . the Rococo period'concealed'their skin blemishes under beauty patches. These also , reflected the current, tendency towards ■ over-adornment of all things, .■ from the person to public buildings, by wearing the most amazing head-dresses.; Ladies, of this period exaggerated their natural, figures. They wore shoes with fantastically high heels; added width by ultra-wide crinolines; and height by their soaring hair ornaments. ' ■ More lately, fashions have been in- ' fiuenced by ■• events in history. Designers have derived inspiration from serious world-shaking episodes or interesting discoveries. ' This, however, is not as recent a development as women perhaps think. Most of us can remember what the discovery of the Tutankhamen relics in Egypt did to our clothes, and they have not yet shaken off the influence of the recent war in Abyssinia. The economic situation after the Great War had a ' decided influence upon women's dress. Through . the scarcity of materials, clothes , were fashioned from as ;little material as possible. Not for us, in those .war days, the wide crinolines of our forebears! Indeed, so masculine did our attire become, thaf'we took to wearing a great amount of negroid jewellery as a mark of femininity." Except, perhaps, ,in ' the Spanish touches introduced in" the fashions today, there is evidence 'that the spirit of restlessness among women has been assuaged. Charm and repose are indicated in the genera] fashion trend. Above all, a very satisfying'femininity is evident, suggesting" that women believe in the psychological effect . of convincing themselves that all is right with the world. ' . , The onion and'the garlic vegetables popular in the patter of music hall comedians, if unpopular in the kitchen on account of _ their (tear-compelling properties, have at last found a true friend —one who stoutly -maintains that the very chemicals responsible for the vegetables' odious reputation are of great value as germicides. At the University of Southern California, a research worker has extracted from ' onions, allyl aldehyde, and from gar- . lie, crotonic aldehyde. Both sub- ' stances have already been proved to ! possess'definite germ-killing properties, j and tests now being undertaken will, _ it is hoped, reveal the most practical " way of applying them.