Women's Realm

Gisborne Times, Volume LXXIII, Issue 11827, 7 January 1933, Page 11

Women's Realm

By “Marie ?

FA SHI ON—A Oil A MELON. Four years ago, an elegant woman was a woman whose waist was below her hips, and whose skirts were, almost above her knees. To-day w° turn round in tho street to stare w‘th astonishment at anyone who still persists in so extraordinary a, fashion. In 19.12 women wore hats as big as cartwheels; to-day their hats are s° small that wc hardly know whethe' they are wearing hats or not. -Tn 18C0 a. thousand yards of muslin could be absorbed in the flounces of one evening dross; in 1928 half a yard of material was apparently sufficient. I rf 1800—hat why multiply instances P The vagaries of fashion are so well known that they are taken for granted, and we are apt to forget that his continual change in tho accepted standard of feminine attire is one of ilie oddest fnr-ls of human life. PART! TON’S PENALTIES. A famous London store has bee 11 giving an exhibition showing the evolution of the corset from tho iron contraptions of (lie fifteenth century to the soft, shenth'-like models of the present day. in the time of Catherine do Medici, one indeed suffered to he beautiful. The model, of that period is an iron belt. Id inches long, secured by stool hasps and measuring only 50 inches round the waist. The Elizabethans laced themselves into a framework of iron and wood, overlaid, with linen and brocade, but the Stuart ladies wore heUs of soft white leather, elaborately ornamented with wool and bendwork. and studded with gems. Eighteenth-cent ary maidens wore short jedkins of padded linen bristling with whalebone, and Victor, inn ladies sacrificed comfort for l hr. sake of a waspy waist and squeezed themselves into lengthy contraptions of stiff linen, small steel hasps, gas. sets, and yards and yards of lacing

THE WHITE OF A .WEOf

THE LOVELINESS IT GIVES

Pat the white ol an egg into a cup and heal ir info a lioth; add the juice of half a lemon. Place the cup ,n a pan n| : boiling .water and siir constantly till tlm mixture begin, to thicken ; add a drop of perfume.

Pro]wire this the night before travelling. and in the morning, after bathing, apply small quantities to face. neck, hands and arm's. "When if--has drier! rub the skin with a soft to.wei. This will produce a velvety effect, and at the end of even a long journey the skin will look cool, -eft and .white as if newly powdered. IT IS SAID: Thai the newest evening gowns are to ho a little shorter this season, and that they are still to be very slim, in contrast, with the more -'bunchy” frocks of the- daytime. That tweeds even lighter in weight that any \\-e have vet had are to be made into frocks, suits, and ensemble's. Very simple lints of plain lelt, simply trimmed with quills, will he worn with them. That the so-called bowler or Amaze no hat- is to be partly superseded by tin- tricorn, which will become smaller as the season goc's on, and will he .worn at a, most acute angle. Some seem not much larger than threc-cov-mered jam tarts! lmt these, of course, are extreme. The real, wearable ones are. mast becoming and smart.

That a great flea I of brilliant jewellery, specially bracelets, will be worn in the evenings. USEFUL TO KNOW Tape measure glued along the frontedge of tho sowing machine will save time and trouble. Black satin slippers can. be cleaned with vinegar applied with a softspouse. If very bad, repeat the treatment but let them dry thoroughly before the second appplica'tion is given. Blackberry and. apple stew is much nicer when the two fruits are cooked separately. Put the cooked blackberries through a sieve and mix the juice with, the cooked apples.

Enamel ware sliohld have an occasional polishing with a good furniture cream. This preserves the enamel. Olives can he kept fresh after the bottle has been opened if you pour in. a dessertspoonful of salad oil. This makes a seal on the liquid and p'ovon.ts the formation, of mould,

Piping cord for washable goods .should be shrunk first, and this will prevent it from puckering the article when washed.

Dye stains on washable matciials can usually be removed if the mark jj-s saturated with lemon juice and and then, left for two or three hours before washing in the usual, iw-aj .• Washing up will be simplified by putting a piece of lemon peel into tho howl, ft will soften the water, remove alt trace’s, of the smell of /fish, onions, and so on, and put a fine glosS on China. Antique oak furniture' should not ])o cleaned by washing. The treatment recommended by. an expert is to rub jj ai ; a small quantity of linseed oil three, or four times a year, augmenting this by an occasional polish in the usual way. Apply the oil very sparingly or it. twill proltieo a. streaky effect instead of bringing out the beauty and graining of the wood. Cucumbers for salads can, he. given that effective “frilled” appearance by, drawing a fork sharply and deeply , down, the green skin all round before slicing in the usual way. Apple's that are heavy and, when pressed between finger and thumb, give a slight crack are the best for all culinary purposes.

NOTES, NEWS and HINTS

Silver spqcurs -and forks, which have been used for egg dishes will hot be come stained il : they ore rubbed with salt before being washed. 'l'll E SI 13P.10!,■ V ELEVEN! , Selected from a field of 30(1 aspirants II girls recently were adjudged the shapeliest extras in Hollywood. Ability to 'wear ultra-fashionable clothes, beauty, personality, voice and poise were considered in. picking the winners. The “shapely eleven’ > average 117 pounds m weight and five l'eot, five inches in height. Six are blondes, three are brunettes, and two have red hair. 'They are seen in Paramount’s picture! ‘‘"Sinners in the Sun” which features Carole Lombard, Chester Morris, and Alison Skipworth. KITCHEN COOLNESS WAYS OF PROTECTING FOOD When summer eornes the ideal thing is to have a refrigerator in the kitchen. If this impossible, then there are a lew makeshifts which will help. Place the milk bottle in a deep bowl of water into which has been put a lump of salt, and cover with a clean piece of muslin. This will assistin keeping the milk sweet and cool. 'Have all meat covered with guards, A good sprinkling with pepper will help to keep them fresh. If there is just a fear that it is likely to he tainted by a stray fly, wipe ii all over with clean muslin wrung out of vinegar avid wafer, and popper it wel I.

As the water evaporates the contents of ibe safe will he kept at a lower temperature without the wet muslin. If the day is very hot and sunshiny close all windows on the sunny side, of the house during the hottest hours of ibe dav especially in the bedrooms. Open them when the sun goes off them. ■\ raw woman. Tim hardest-worked woman in England is Airs O. Al. Harper, Sherrill' of Nottingham. J l'ound her in the maguincienl Shire Hall busily signing papers, ringing hells, and giving orders, for besides her duties a's sherrili, Mrs Harper's other civic activities nr© legion, state s the corte-pondeni "i a London daily paper. Her most .arduous job is that of vice-chairman of the Education Committee it position that, makes her a sort of mother to over .10.000 children. Thousand* <>>’ mothers of these children know her personally, and they come to her with all their complaints and suggestion's. All dav long - he receives deputations and individuals who want something put right, or have an idea for improving some detail in the city. She sits on the bench during the. sessions, presides over innumerable meetings, and personally investigates manj matters relating to education. “Sometime* 1 feel .1 would give anything to have a day to do nil small tilings that, women like to potter over—darning stockings, writing personal letters, small bits oi shopping, she told me. ANCIENT KTFSEF. The very origin of the kiss is still shrouded in mystery. And this despite the pretensions of foreign, more especially the French, savants all of whoso discoveries should he treated, pending verification, with the greatiofit reserve (states a correspondent.) Even if practised, the practice cannot havo been general in classical times. Since, otherwise, the Greek historian Thucydides, daring though lie was in many ways, would, scarcely have dared to give ns a passage, too well known to quote, about the politician Pericles and bis girl friend Aspasia. That ANpasia kissed Peri cl os can be taken as indubitable. And that she was not the actual in~ ventrix of the rite, at any rate one of the very first to bring it into public favour, is also proved by Thucydides, who tel?* ur quite clearly, “Which” (obviously the kiss), “one of the the female slaves observing her was subsequently carried to the servants’ quarters, whence it soon spread to the market-place and so over Athens till it Touched even distant Sicily. Long before Julius Caesar, himself mo mean osculntionist, divided Gaul into throe parts, there were expert kissers on the Palatine. And when, centuries later, the hairy horseman of Ait ill a the Hun came galloping through the Arch of Constantine, the

xito of kissing was still in full . blast, and continued to flourish even through those Dark Ages when other, forms of Greek and Romaic culture ■ perished from the face of Europe.

ORIGIN OF FASHION TERMS M.cteb of us us 0 fashion terms without knowing anything about their ancestry. —in fact without realising that they even have such a, thing. The following historical survey of some of the better-known, may be of interest. “Oat”' comes from the word that formerly meant a frock as, well, the same being found in the Italian ‘cotta’ a short surplice worn by the clergy, ’ “Frock” Is from a Latin word mean ang a shaggy cloak. ,‘Trousers” is from the French “ trouser” to tuck or fasten up. “Jacket’ is from “aquje,” a coat of mail. “Robe” is from a Latin word, “rauba” meaning spoil or plunder—fine clothes being once a treasured item of military loot. “Beret’> is derived from “biretta” the black cap worn by the clergymen and French lawyers. “Surge” is from the Latin “serica,” silks so called l because they were made by the Seres, or inhabitants of China. “Muslin” is said to get its name from Mosul, Turkey, where it'was first made. “Alarocain” traces its origin to Alaroc—French for Alorocco. ‘‘Tweed” was originally “tweel” but its association with the River Tweed led to its being given (really mistakenly.) its present name. DRESS WORN BY QUEEN ELIZABETH FOUND. A remarkable discovery has been made in one of the three chests belonging to the Earl of Kimberly, of a dross which is historically known to have been, worn by Queen Elizabeth during one of her many progresses through England. The dress, which was wrapped in copies of the ‘Morning Post”, bearing dates of over 90 years ago, hap probably lain, forgotten in the chest, and only come to light when the chest wa.s opened by the authorities acting lor Lord Kimberly. The lock of the chest had to be forced.

Coverings of silk and cloth of gold, threads and hanging pearls even in their time, were, brought to light together with the dress. The story of their discovery was told by one of those authorised to open the chest. -AVe were asked to investigate the. contents of three chests, the property uf the Earl of Kimberly, on the chance Hint they might be of value,” he. said. “.None of the chests had been opened in Ins lifetime.

“One chest or lacquor-work was found to contain a priceless cloth0{ gold dress which we have since proved to have been worn by Queen Elizabeth, Elsewhere we Sound & throne, with crimson and bullion■vork hanging, which were evidently made for her visit, to Wood House, the ancestral home of the AVocdhouse family, first cousins to Queen Elizabeth, and from whom the Earl of Kimberly is descended. Both Nicholl’s "History of the Progresses’’ and Bloomfield)* “History of Essex” in which it is extensively quoted, refer to the garments and hangings in the most minute detail. ••Tim dress it is actually a bodice It w -as in the most perfect condition, wrapped in, a copy of the “Morning Post” of July 5, 1839, Another lines the bottom of the cabinet, and they aro both in as good condition a* the goods which they preserved.

“Other finds,” he said “also handed down by the AVocdhouse ancestors, included upholstery of the time- of Charles the First. They were '.smothered in sulphur, wbisli evidently had serveecl to preserve their wonderful condition.

Queen Victoria- had been two years on the throne at the date stamped on tho Issue* of the ‘Morning Post,” in which the treasures were found;. They told of all tho happenings which were tho talk or the day—of Chariot riots in; Birmingham in which the military wove called out; of the trial in Paris of the “insurgents of May 2nd,” in two columns and a quarter. The social columns refer to those massive dinnerparties which were the custom of the dav.

AFTER A BCSY DAY

DON’T FLOP,

When you come home tired and weary after a busy day at- work, or a long tour of tho shops in town, don't flop down immediately on t-he first chair, and groan. You will only got, up again just- ns tired, as your hot shoes and hot clothes are still clinging to you.

Carry on for a few seconds longer and change into soft slippers and a cool dross or slip, and then -sit- down and rest- for half an hour. The most restful way, of course, is to lie down when one is over-tired, oven if only for ten minutes.

Hundreds of housewives f ire themselves unnecessarily. They will stand

about and talk when they could ■sit down, or stand arid do numerous) jobs in.the kitchen when half of them could be undertaken just as well' when they are sitting. . Small wonder that they complain.) of painful swollen ankles and feet and aching backs.

SOME MUTTON R ECIPES. Stuffed Mutton. — This As delicious, hob for dinner or cold for luncheon or supper. Purchase a.4lb or olb loin of mutton, and have the butcher remove ihobone, which can afterwards supply the foundation for rich soup. Alake a stuffing of a teacup of crumbled stale bread, the crust- being cut away, a heaping table spoon of minced boiled ham or bacon, 1 teaspoon of powdered parsley and 1 onion, salt and pepper to state. Beat a raw egg and stir into stuffing, then moisten with melted butter and a very little hot milk; fill the cavity left by the removal of the bone with the stuffing, then rub the loin with flour, put into a baking pan with teacup of boiling (water, and roast with frequent basting for about two hours. -Serve on a hot dish, making a gravy by. thickening the liquid in thegpan with a little flour. Serve the gravy in a separate dish or boat.

Mutton Charlotte.—Out up a slice or two of bread, some cold mutton, and a few tomatics, which have been peeled. Grate the bread, and put a layer on the bottom of a baking dish then a layer of the mutton, then the tomatoes; season each layer with salt, pepper, and bits of butter; let the top layer be tomatoes, with a sprinkle of breadcrumbs. Bake three-quarters of an hour, and serve hot.

Alutton Rice.—Line a buttered baking dish with a wall of cookea rice, about an inch thick; fill the centre with cold roast or boiled mutton, chopped rather fine and freed from bone and gristle; season with salt, pepper, a little ODion juice and gravy to make slightly moist; cover with a layer of rice, and bake half an hour in a moderate oven. Remove the cover, spread lightly with melted butter, and allow the top to'become a delicate brown. Serve very hot, with tomato sauce.

Alutton In Jelly.—Cut some slices of mutton from a cold leg, trim them round, like fillers, ihen lay them on a. deep dish and cover with some good si iff meat jelly or aspic. When firm cut out and lay round a pile of lettuce decorated with tomato and cucumber. If liked, a mayonnaise sauce can be served with this. Afuitwiettes. —Take, shoes of mutton 1 (cold), 1 slice of cooked fat, ham or bacon. 4 mushrooms, 3 tablespoons of breadcrumbs, lev. of butter, 4oz macaroni, half a pint of oxo. I cup of tomato puree, 1 egg. pepp er ; sai - T > lemon juice: take thin slices oi cold leg of mutton, and spread with the following mixture. ALix together the breadcrumbs, the ham or bacon finely chopped, and the. mushrooms thatbeen simmered tender m a little stock and chopped fine; season, with salt, peppdr, and lemon juice: bind with an egg- Roll up in slices of mutton, and fasten, with small skewer. Rut into fireproof dish, pour m a little stock, sprinkle with browned breadcrumbs and tiny bits of butter ; cover with another dish, and babe m a hot oven for half an hour. Have ready 4oz of xuareoni, which has been boiled, drained, seasoned to taste, and mixed with some tomato puree; arrange the rolls round the side, making a pile, oi the macaroni in the centre.

DELICIOUS CAKES. American Apple Sauce Cake. —This is a very good fruit cake- without eggs, and will keep for months. Take 2* cups hot unsweetened apple sauce; into this put- A cup each of lard and butter (butter may be used with success) and 2 cups of sugar. Allow to melt. Info 3 cups flour put- 4 level teaspoons of soda. 1 ‘teaspoon each'of salt, cinnamon, and allspice, lib. sultanas, 1 cup chopped nuts (if liked), 1 teaspoon vanilla. Bake either as one cake in moat dish or in several smaller ones. Bake from 11- hours to 2 jrour=.

Blackfellows’ Cake (Big Eggless Cake)—Boil together -A cup raisins, l cup currants, A cup sultanas, A packet mixed spices, 1A cups water, H tablespoons butter, 1 large teaspoon carbonate soda, and 1 cup sugar. After coming to the -boil, take off fire and cool. Then add 2 cups s.r. flour (mixture should drop easily from spoon). Bake in moderate oven for about | hour. This cake is excellent if cooked in largo log tin and better if left a couple of days beforo cutting though it can be cut straight away if desired. If liked, only the one kind of fruit can be used instead of three—only use 1§ cups.

Cocoa- Rocks or Biscuits (Eggless). —Take Boz. s.r. flour, 4oz. butter, 4oz sugar, loz cocoa, 3 tablespoons milk. Mix flour, cocoa well together, mb in butter, add sugar, mix well; tjien add milk gradually, and mix thoroughly. Place on baking sheet- in rough heaps with, a fork for rocks, and roll them out for biscuits. Bake in a. moderate oven for 20 minutes.

PR A CTIC r AL STITCIHER-Ty /'if'. V A ROLLED BERET-'V —x~—- W Directions, are given the popular beret • with the plhite wool around the edge. ” Materials required are 11. skins? oi four-ply wool and one skein of a contrasting shade forthe ‘plait.; No.'s needles. Begin at the' lowest edge and on 120 stitches. Knit in,plain knittapS or else in stocking stitoh for es. Then shape the top' byl knitting every 10th and 11th stitches togetherall along the rows. Knit three plain rows. - Knit every- 9th and 10th~stitch together all along the row. Knit- three plain-rows. '-"- r -~ Knit every 3th and 9th-stitch together all along the row. Knit three plain rows. Knit every 7th and Bth stitch to gether all along the row. Knit three plain rows. Keep on decreasing in. this fashion all along every fourth row until there are only about 15 stitches left. Break the wool, leaving a fairly Tong thread, using a darning needle and the 'wool attached to the cap, take off the stitches from the knitting needle on to the wool, pull up tightly arid. finish firmly. SeV/ up the seam at the hack. Alake a thick plait long enough to go round the cap, and stitch on, CHIN CHARACTER.

In reading character by the chin, physiognomists divide the" chin, into five separate classes:— The pointed or narrow chin. The indented chin. V" The narrow, square chin. The broad, square chin. And the broad, round' chin. The pointed or narrow chin signifies a nature not easily satisfied, and longing for an ideal. Alany spinsters havs this chin. The indented'-chin must not be confounded with the dimpled chin. Women with the indented chiphave tremendous desire for affect-ion. They are miserable unless a man is in. love with them. The narrow, square chin also -signifies a strong nature. The woman with tffis chin will marry a poor man if she loves him, although she may have suitors -of boundless wealth and ox far higher social position. The broad, square chin showstremendous strength of feeling. The woman .with this chin Is capable oi • the most devoted love; she is some--1 times jealous. The broad, round cast also accompanies a capacity, for ardent- love and for great- steadfastness. ' The broad-chinned woman is faithful, t - HINDU WEDDING. • Ax the principal table, or table- ‘ cloth, which ever you like to call it-, ' the bride and feridgroom -sit and eat 2 .with their nearest relatives. Ope catches a glimpse of the bride, ner ricli sari hair hiding and half, reveal- - ing tbe dark beauty cf her ©yes, tho ’ long plaits of her luxuriant hair, and 1 the childish roundness of neck ’ and. » arms adorned with, glittering gems ‘ and delicate trines of gold ang jade, for there must always be at up Indian wedding. She is very nervous as she endeavours to serve her “m- ---: laws” with the good things the feast r provides, bowing and kneeling before ! she hands the various dishes, then, discarding her little gold slippers, 3 kneeling with bared feet to- ask for ' rhejr blessing.

To this, t-he guests smile arid sod, touch the head of the kneeling brfe, and then offer her their presents whilst they dispose of more delicacies, such as rotis, purees, poppodams and pilau, accompanied by succulent curries and delicate fried vegetables; all of which sounds rather strange to Western ears, but would be found delicious to sample, especially by one squatting amid the shadows of a

wonderful Indian night- and listening to the jingling anklets of the dancing girls and inhaling the -exotic-'wonder of strange and beautiful scents. Rose leaves, spiced and scented are flung amid the guests; scents and rare oils are sprayed into the air; whilst the xic-e pudding—lndia’s wedding cake—is served out and eaten to the accompaniment of sliced rich fruits and candles, blanched almonds, and shredded coconut.

The hour rapidly approaches which heralds the most wonderful sight of all—tjie bridegroom’s procession. It is just on the streak of dawn that the chariots and the horsemen—often elephants are nsed—(with the bridegroom enthroned in the midst, wait to take the bride away to her future home. Once more comes the tinkling of anklets, the sound of conch-shells being musically blown by the women and girls,'the soft'eerie sweetness of the fife, the patter of many bare feet, which seek to drown the sobs of a poor frightened child-bride clinging to her mother for the last' time. There are the tears and smiles of the mother, the blessings of' the father, the last word whispers of the family, and the Arabian Night’s Dream is over as the Erst- glowing streaks of dawn light up the black pall of an Indian wedding.—Era Willis, Chambers’ Journal. A SAVOURY WAY WITH POTATOES. Allow one large potato for each person. Wash thoroughly, but do not peel. Cut off a small piece from'both ends of each, and hollow out- from one end only, stopping before you get right through. Stuff tho hollows with a savoury mixture of breadcrumbs, chopped onion, mixed herbs, a little grated cheese if liked, salt and pepper. Close'the hollows with butter. Stand the stuffed potatoes on a tin, buttered ends up, and bake until quite cooked. Serve hot.'