MAINLY FOR WOMEN

Greymouth Evening Star, 18 December 1934, Page 9

MAINLY FOR WOMEN

ITEMS OF INTEREST

SIMPLES OF TO-DAY.

BY MOLLIE CARPENTER HALBS.

So much is written about blackberries and their uses, mushrooms and their uses, elderberries and their uses, that it may be pertinent to write instead about the medicinal as a change from the culinary proof some easily obtainable country products. If you were to take the word ot a country-woman of a generation ago, you would probably wonder how a doctor ever made a living. She seems to have -a cure for every possible ill, some of them gruesome, like the old idea that to swallow a live frog whole is the only cure for consumption; some of them rather much diluted with the same superstitious feeling that forbids the gathering of blackberries after a certain date, because on that sinister day “the devil lays his finger on every blackberry he finds.”

I cannot, of course, vouch for the efficacy of any of these country cures; I only know that they have been passed on from generation to generation till they have become traditional in many country households, and are in many cases, still used in preference to "doctors’ physic” and patent medicines.

THE RASPBERRY CURE. First there is raspberry vinegar for sore throats, a remedy that is widely known, I fancy. It is made from vinegar and raspberries, as the name suggests; it “bites” as it is swallowed, and it is used extensively. In the same category comes the black-currant cure, made a spoonful of home-made blackcurrant jam, mixed with vinegar. I can remember watching my grandmother flurrying round to prepare this particular cure, and the patient’s grimace as she swallowed the awesome mixture. Honey and vinegar is another mixture for the same ill, as also is sage tea and vinegar. Poultices of hot cabbage leaves are supposed to be very, very good for toothache, and dried hops are used in the same manner. For rheumatism, I have heard nettle-tea advised, though I have never heard exactly how it is made. I imagine that the leaves of nettles are boiled in water to extract their essence, which should be rich in iron. For coaxing a jaded appetite back to normal I have heard that dandelion leaves are the. best . possible thing.. They are put into salads for that purpose. * Rue is another herb with the same property, but it is so bitter to the taste that it is only eaten by the most spartan sufferers.

COLOURED FLOWERS. (Bj f a Fashiou Critic). The latest “conceit” is the corsage bouquet of coloured flowers, or a spray tucked in fur or lace.' Worn with black, the coloured bouquet gives change, and a woman can also have different shades in shoes and gloves to match. Coloured belts in kid, silk, or metal are used on black day and dinner frocks. They provide gay notes. All details of this kind give an Impression of luxury which greatly assists the limited wardrobe, and at little extra cost. In crepe, satin, and velvet, there is a great desire for a crinkled and, in some cases, almost a quilted effect. A crinkled crepe dashed with silver and a taffeta sprayed with gold are newcomers. Materials get more and more marvellous, but they must be worn with care. Simple moulded lines are most suited when it comes to splendour in fabric. It is absurd to try to add further magnificence to woven satin and silver. There are the plain taffetas, tulles, and' georgettes, suitable for the girlish gowns, which can be bouffant, shirred and ruched.

Brown for the evening is being worn, but it is more difficult to live up to than black. It is a becoming substitute for black when black is not a happy choice. Dark brown fabrics look attractive with gleams of gold and dull sequined bronze and brown embroidery.

There will be a number of brown tulle ball frocks in these new graded ranges. Gold shoes and bronze effects will be the relief note. Brown lace, too, will have a vogue, with metal threads or glints of contrasting colours. Green is much used with silver.

THE LINE OF GRACE.

(By Hon. Mrs C. W. Forester).

The silhouette of winter, 1934-1935 is a very beautiful affair. It gives classic charm to the figure. There are many variations. for women like to change their clothes and their styles. Dresses that stand away and flare in an almost aggressive way are by no means ruled out. Wo "cling” with classic grace in pliable velvets, lames, satins, goldsprigged 'failles, moires, Silhouettes seem to have borrowed much from the early years of this century. Fashion to-day, being so much freer, can afford to try out all sorts of amusing ideas from many ages.

Our leading dress experts are to bo congratulated on the marvellous manner in which they provide the wardrobe of winter with a practical foundation. Possibly the return to black by night and by day is a sure sign that even if the mode is lavish and inclined to formality, every woman can be certain of possessing some wearable garments ready for all occasions.

Black velvet is always in fashion. The economically minded woman will have a lovely ensemble in this fabric, and possibly have a separate corsage for the evening. This is a most practical plan for town uses.

The formal sort of velvet costume will have a slim, tight skirt cut right to the ankles, with the slit at the hem. A simple blouse-like bodice is good for the afternoon, with possibly a touch of silver lame or a colour in the neck-line and cuffs that can be repeated in the hat. Ovei* this is worn a long, or three-quarter coat, with a cape trimmed with fur which will be suitable for the afternoon or evening. The dinner corsage can be cut low and draped with long-fitting or elbow sleeves, if it is to be worn under the wrap. HAPPY MARRIAGE. SIR ARBUTHNOT LANE’S ADVICE. LONDON, October 25. Sir William Arbuthnot Lane, the physician, and president of the New Health Society, who to-day celebrates his golden wedding by giving a cocktail party, revealed last night the secret of his long and happy married life. "My wife and I have been real comrades because we have acted on three tenets which I commend to all young married people,” he told a representative of the “Daily Telegraph.” "They are: “Keep yourself in perfect health; “Learn complete self-control; and "Learn to obey. “A healthy body means a healthy mind, and a healthy mind means harmony and unity. A healthy mind brushes aside those little troubles which are bound to crop up after the marriage vows have been made. "A healthy body is vital to material success, and although security is not a guarantee of happiness, it reduces the chances of an unhappy married life. How can a man fight and work for his mate if he has maltreated his health ? “Harsh words, spoken in the heat of temper, have ruined many homes. Keep your temper and there will be fewer harsh words. "When I say learn to obey I do not be blindly obedient or subservient. If you learn to obey you will learn to command.”

Sir William paid a warm tribute to his wife. “She has been a rare stimu'us and support in all my work,” he said. “If I have achieved any success in life, I owe it largely to her encouragement t and forbearance.” He added that the modern idea of giving a cocktail party appealed to him because he could gather more of his friends round him than al a. dinner party, “There will be 600 of us,” he said. “1 shall certainty have a cocktail. A . spot of alcohol makes you feel your real self.”

AMATEUR DRESSMAKER. altering” pattern. Though teachers of dressmaking instruct their pupils to draft patterns, the amateur usually prefers to buy one, and will find it easy to make small alterations in the sie. Large ones are inadvisable. To lengthen a skirt, take a strip of thin paper about three-quarters of an inch wider than !.ho length required, place it on a table, and gum the edges. Then cut the pattern in two across the middle, lay the pieces on the strip, press them in line with those of the pattern. When the waist is too small—a frequent failing—paste a strip of paper on each slanting seam and shape it up from the hips. In some designs two or three vertical slits may be made at the top, and stretched apart. The hips are widened by adding a strip to each seam, both slanting and straight, from the top to.the hem; if. the skirt is in one. piece, and the top is shaped, allow a little on the side opposite to the seam. Put a tiick in the middle, of the pattern to shorten a skirt: remove a snip at each seam to make it narrower.

Lengthen and shorten sleeves as though they were-skirts. Often two strips of adhesive tape, added a few inches apart, do for lengthening. Widen sleeves with lengthways strips, near the middle. Widen blouse fronts with strips half-way between the middle of the front and the. underarm seam; to narrow them make a tuck in the pattern. It will have been observed that the number of inches necessary to enlarge a part must be divided by the number of places at which an addition is to be made, so that all additions are the same -size. . For. example, if the hips are to be two inches wider, and there are.two seams, four strips, each measuring half an inch, arc added.