IN FASHION'S REALM.

Otago Witness, Issue 3275, 20 December 1916, Page 57

IN FASHION'S REALM.

WEEKLY UP-TO-DATE DRESS NOTES. By Marguerite. Attention is given to the now voiles. They are charming—pretty pink-and-white, blue-apd-white, and yellow-and-white checks, with a silk thread to emphasise the pattern. As for flowered voiles, they arc young-look-ing and most dainty, and can be so easily washed. They are made up without, a lining, and are worn with a single white taffetas petticoat, as fluffy as you like. Jersey has been launched in direct opposition to all stiff fabrics: and for the same reason foulard. The- latter, being so soft, and, indeed, limp, it requires to be well supported by tho petticoat and underskirt. A foulard is always pleasing. As for taffetas, they are a bit stiff, and their ceremonious air does not always suit the occasion. Then tussore is sometimes taboo, because the natural colour is so light. Foulard, on the other hand, is serviceable, and, being in many shades, there is a great variety. It is quite as easy to wear aa linen, but,

being of silken texture, is more dressy. Striped effects are particularly popular, and give length to the figure. As for facings, pink is a great favourite. Paris and London, which had to tell us what to avoid in the over-quiet, arc now tolling us what to avoid in the ornate. I may therefore quote from a well-known writer: "For holiday wear coloured muslin frocks are very much in demand. They are always light and fresh-looking. Blouses in blue, pink, and mauve organdi are a decided novelty. Coloured lawn is also used extensively. It is less fragile than muslin, and looks as dressy. We are likely soon to see a fashion which has long been neglected —that for embroidered robes —Russian, Serbian, and Swiss embroideries, all of which wash so admirably. Little capo garments, which only a short while ago would have seemed to us old-fashioned, have become quite the rage. We have very soon known how to appreciate them, realising at once how useful they can be. They have many advantages, for they arc light, not the least bulky, and they do not crush or crumble the most fragile of blouse sleeves. Also, they give a finished appearance to the toilet.

. . . Colars have become' quite an indispensable part of our dross. We may therefore congratulate ourselves, as the dainty white lawn or muslin collar gives just that delightful feminine touch about the neck which we so much appreciate. . . . Never were collars more important. The vogue of the loose, high collar with attached capo is great. It rises from nothing at the point of the ' V,' and forms a hedge at the sides and at back, and is often in scallops or deep points like petals. . . . Silver trimmings are in considerable favour, and are used to adorn smart bodices and shady hats. . . . Really smart one-piece gowns are rare. But a pretty one is of Georgette patterned with_ spots. Ruchings, so reminiscent of Victorian days, arc the only trimmings; of ribbon, they border the bolero, and make three banks round the skirt. Then the sleeves with such are transparent." This is the time to consider lingerie frocks; also, lingerie hats. The fashion in the latter is practically contumous. Thus each summer revives the strlc of last. This

is one of the prettiest of models—an ideal selection for the holidays. Wanting something to fill up, I have included a mount, Flowers want to be of the best. The art in such is at the acme —roses in. chief, which rival Nature's own blooms. In the world of millinery all_ hats seem to be pink or trimmed with pink. Those to whom this colour is becoming line the brim with it, and show a touch pt pink in the trimming of their frock or suit. Some very small hats, generally of this favourite hue, closely fit the head, and ure tied on, so to speak, with a band of pink ribbon. Thev are delightful with a white skirt and blouse. Pink sailor hats are also very successful, and large picture hats of black silk lined to suit are the nicest of all. Imagine how artistic and becoming is such with a finely-embroidered white robe, fastened with a pink muslin collar, while a rose is tucked into the front of the bodice. A novelty of the time is the large taffetas hat, with draped pink crown. On a bright, sunny clay the effect may be a trifle heavy; but those who can afford several should have one for every occasion. Postilion hats —diminutive sailors with a tiny brim and high crown—are in evidence. They are good for morninn- and travelling wear. Being of the useful kind, light colours are excluded, and neutral or dark shades preferred. _ Hats of thick matting straw are unpretentious, and in a reseda shade, trimmed with a suspicion of navy blue velvet ribbon, look well. An innovation is n hat made of straw and wool. This is trimmed with a wool-em-broidered salon. There is something so soft in the texture of the shapes as to makethom very becoming. Another novel note is the tinsel galon which runs round the top of the crown of an ordinary sailor. It is decidedly pleasing. Those who draw the fashion plates have something to answer for. Alwavs selecting a slim model, and then, as a rule, far more slim than Nature allows, even with the "starvation cure." they drape it for the pictorial effect without the least consideration for the practical. And jnst now this calls for n special notice because of the skirt length. Thus skirts are shown in the p;eturo short enough for n girl in her early 'teens —nay. in cases, for a child. And while this looks well enough over the "sticks" thev outline for limbs, hnd perhaps, too. for the stage, those who draw their inspiration from such should be careful. For a skirt which is not too short in the design may be much too short in the actual dress; and it is beyond question that many one sees when out and about are too short for anything. The moment a girl passes a certain juvenile age the limb changes: and although the artists who draw fashion plates always affect to ignore this, it is imperative that it should be considered. For, let it be whispered, it is not the wearer who sees what I mean, but the onlooker: and it happens to be from the back. Do not let anyone prevail on you to get a short skirt unless von take the precaution to guard against disappointment. But why not have it risrbt at the start? In a word, the short skirt must be still lon.g enough if the owner is to preserve lie/ character for modestv. This is the right, length for a short skirt and not an inch shorter. It is a pretty summer frock of very charming lines. As yon will see. it is in two materials—silk and a suitable summer selection for the contrast. The silk makes that half bodice with the "Y" straps and the skirt from the Vandvked voke. There is a good deal of work in this dress, which must bo perfectly made. To havo a charming summer frock does not necessarily mean the expenditure of much money. Some of the most attractive are carried out in nothinrr more expensive than cotton voile, and delightfully pretty they are. Now cotton voilo is cheap; so, if the wearer he content to make her frock l.eiself. she can havo the daintiest of toilets for a fraction of what it would cost to buy a rcady-mado. And the cotton voiles shown

this season aro so delightful, both in design and colouring, that one's only difficulty is to make a selection among so many pretty things. One of the most tempting little frocks was carried out in a black-and-white voile The voile used was very fine and transparent, and had a white ground,

upon which was printed in black a simple design of hair-line stripes. The bodice was carried out in pinafore style. It was perfectly plain, was arranged in cross-over style in front, and was cut away to a mere strap on each shoulder. The neck, the edges of dach front, and the large armholes wero edged by a tiny pleated frill of the voile. Beneath came a very dainty blouse made of the finest white voile imaginable. This blouse fastened down the front with tiny black buttons, and had a group of tucks run on each side of the fastening. A wide collar turned back from the neck, and was ornamented by a row of dots worked in black embroidery cotton. A tiny bow of an unusually deep cerise taffetas cause the ends of this collar in front. The sleeves of the blouse were wide and transparent. At the wrist they were gathered into fairly deep bands, and were finished by weg turnback cuffs embroidered to match the collar. The skirt was reasonably short, very wide, and was gathered all round the waist. Its only trimming consisted of a broad band of the rrateritd laid at the top of an unusually deep hem, and edged top and bottom by a small, pleated frill of the voile. The dress was finished by a wide folded belt of tho cerise taffetas, which, by the way, like the taffetas used for the bow at the neck, was usually deep and dark in colour, and was patterned with a hair-line check of black and dull gold. The toilet was completed by a big hat of black basket straw and white aeroplane trimmed with two clusters of roses, and by a parasol of the same sVk as the waistband. An extract: "Lingeries to-day are very dainty. Dressing jackets arc so pretty and becoming that they are now called matinee jackets, and can be worn to breakfast or afternoon tea in one's own home. Whitespotted muslin forms a very choice selection. It has a powder-blue ribbon running through large slits cut in the material at the waist and sleeves, a little lace finishing the latter. If made of cream-tinted net or soft silk it would be suitable for wear at afternoon tea. It is cut in kimona fashion, very much shorter in front than at the back, and the wide ribbon sash is _ run through long slits cut in the coatee itself, and carefully bound over with a bias piece of the material. The soft sash is held in place with a little tack here and there to keep the folds in perfect order. For smart occasions such a coatee would look levely in double-width printed silk in a subtle shade of heliotrope or rose-pink, with a lining of pongee and ribbons in some rich shade of blue or violet." This is from a French model, one of a group featuring the same thing. It is for an evening frock; and another was a bridal dress. I "have ventured to picture the former because of the idea. It is one of those things that merit the name—creations. Possibly you will see in it a more general application, though, of course, its recommenda-

tion Is for evening. Whoever designed it was an artist. The skirt, having been draped, is carried into the bodice, and the design made to suggest that everything is hung from the shoulder. This is where the French shine in ideas that are simple enough when you see them, but very difficult to originate. Again, the Voice of another: "It is certainly not a difficult task just now to choose a pretty wristbag. It is a pretty idea to havo the wristbag coloured or trimmed to match the scheme of one's frock or hat. For instance, a bag of antique blue crepe de chine, tied with shot-blue and silver ribbons, was carried by a girl wearing a frock of the same material. Sunshades are all very novel, and some very fascinating. Tho handles sometimes represent flowers, or birds poised for flight. Some of the floral variety aro very pretty, and some chiffon

ones aro edged with curly ostrich feathers. This is a summer of extremes in hats. There are the large picture hats furnished with streamers, chin strap, and so on ; then there are the close-iitting toques. It is the thing to have such toques practically untrimmed, so that ono caji throw one of the fashionable veils over the top, with no trimmings to mar the lines of the veil. Many layers of aerophane- in the new shade of pigeon-blue formed a _ quite untrimmed toque, with a fluted brim, that was \yorn with a yoile gown, composed of both striped and plain material in blue and white. The summer fashions are extremely dainty, and have a tendency to make ono look young." Here aro two " etceteras " —one a pocket and the other a sleeve, the former from a French model and the latter from a NewYork design of a smock. The pocket attracted me. As you sec, the band is taken round, carried over the belt, and fastened on the bodice. It was very charming in!

the original. Smocking is a feature jus* now modes. The smocked coat is made a thing of beauty simply by thra attention. What would this cuff be withoutout?—nothing 1 f ßut treated as shown it 13 at once a pleasing feature.