IN FASHION'S REALM

Otago Witness, Issue 3380, 25 December 1918, Page 50

IN FASHION'S REALM

WEEKLY UP-TO DATE DRESS NOTES

By Margomitb.

Right through the war women have dressed, and those in the thick of it with the more insistence. Shall the historian forget that the daughters of France never went to. any task without some regard for the effect of the dress they designed for the occasion? Shall he overlook tliat those of England were just as. insistent, or again that those of America even went # so far as to say that they could do their best work rniy by changing the details of modes as often as possible. I aver that the way dress has been kept in the foreground those mind-wracking four years has been nothing short of a revelation. But' it was only what I expected. Could an army fight so well in ordinary clothes, every man different, no inspiration of the cloth and design? We know that it could not. and similarly we know that women could not endure so well if reduced to repellant attire designed with but one object—to evidence a chastened spirit. In which connection I wish I had been given the cnance 'o write the official ■ messages of thanks to the war-women of civilisation for their great : services.- I should certainly have added something like this: "And now, having seen how much dress is to you, how it engages your thoughts and really directs you to better things, it is our_ desire**to express our appreciation by inviting you to henceforth dress as beautifully as ever you can, when, no matter how you exceed Solomon, our words will only be of approval." Needless to say I was not given this opportunity. The modes are admirable; the many ways of expressing them bewitching. Details count far more than formerly, and the resourceful designer is never without a new idea. The sleeveless coat is accompanied by a sleeveless effect—something that suggests the other in that it has been suggested by it. This illustrates what I

mean —a frock with this for its cardinal feature, and the sleeve in light and somewhat frivolous contrast. Again those clasping side-pieeps are of very clever conception. They give form both by adding to it and also by taking it away. The design is one of the best of a rather extensive range. There is not mucH**to be said about millinery. The styles are what we know—as much made as possible out of as little as possible. A noteworthy thing is the variety of straws. They compass all the old kinds and include many novelties. _ The satin straws commend themselves in different elasses, both fine and coarse. I saw an. exquisite bat in a pale amber satin straw plaited to simulate a beehive. .It was, as the buyer thought, on the lines of a bonnet, till I explained to her that it simulated a military helmet—the kind they have been wearing "somewhere in France." The hat was trimmed with pale blue ribbon, rosettes suggesting flowers, on a ribbon, tying in a small bow at back with two streamers. It was a young girl's hat; in fact, would have been suitable to no other age. And perhaps one of the charms about it" in. the wearer's eyes was that she bought it for a song. But millinery, generally speaking, is more than cehap, seeing the price of so much else. This is the season when wo expect to pay something like! prices; but the shops are full of the most delightful hats marked down to a _ quite surprising level. One thing that assists / in this - " is the simplicity of the trimming. Ribbon goes a long way in millinery at this juncture. { When cutting strips of material on the cross, it is difficult to get them the same width. An easy way to manage is to take a piece of wood, or rather a long flat piece of wood, the width you want the material cut, and place it on the_ material in the direction you wish to cut it. Mark along both sides with a piece of chalk, and cut on the lines. The following is a good way to make buttonholes in lawn, voile, or any other thin materials. Hold a separate piece of the material underneath where you wish the buttonhole, then cut through and work in the ordinary way. Then slip the underpiece away, and you have a good, firm buttonhole. Here is a very simple

way to make rosettes, which are much used on boudoir cans. Wind the ribbon round two fingers,' the desired distance apart, then in the centre tic with thread. Pull the loops apart, and catch with one or two stitches. A clever idea is told about buttons for washing dresses. It is to sew part of a clip fastener on to the button and the other part on to the garment, and then when the frook has to go to the laundry the buttons are easily removed. The only objection to the idea, excellent as it is, is that the buttons would probably remove themselves before it was time to go to the laundry! Another button hint applies to lace blouses. Instead of sewing the buttons on, tie them on, using a needle with double thread. The ends are tied under the buttons, and on the wrong side, of course. They are then easilv taken off when the blouse has to go to the laundry, and are a lighter method than the one with clips. I observe a tendency towards long panel effects associated with the blouse—schemes of a minor sort that sgrve a commendable purpose, and yet come out of practically nothing. .For example, note this decidedly charming summer frock. What would it be without those extraordinary scarf-liko pendants that the contributed from the

blouse? There are many things suggested by this, and one is to loop the pendant over the belt section. It would require to be slight, but I believe the effect would be excellent. The design provides an excellent chance for embroidery. That broad floating end could be as elaborately wrought as desired. Untl the war came most of the fancy trimmings were made for us. They came from .abroad. The shutting or the gates has been the real reason for the great amount of domestic work. But the trouble in embroidery is the pattern —the same one "sames" beyond endurance, and not everyone is apt enpugh to invent something original. One of the best of the old designs that never became stale is the Greek border. Everyone knows it, and if it it not enough of itself it is always ' easy to work in some tracery. Another excellent pattern is the trefoil —any kind from the ordinary shamrock to the fleur-de-lis. _ A little touch of embroidery is sometimes necessary, wh.ether in silk or wool a vivid colour on a sombre drees redeems this-at once.

At the same time as the return of peaeo will send the majority of us hack to '"chiffons" of a normal character, it will not cause us to relegate to the -past anything which the war brought about where this was of pronounced, service. For one thing, we shall not be over desirous of returning to many separate garments where the same result was obtained by combining two or more. There is in the first place underclothing, though that, of course, is anything but new —one garment in place of two. Then there is the ono-piece dress, or the all-in-a-piece, as London has called it. This is far too good to discard: in fact (it is so good that it may prove like the blouse —• original once, but an evergreen now. The one-piece dress, however, means, or rathei?

entaila, some adherence to present linest iJor try as we may we cannot imagine it with a wasp-waist, and, indeed, such would be impossible. In all probability there In no idea of ever again departing from the natural figure. There is another reason in favour of the one-piece dres3, and, indeed!, of one-piece underclothing—time. Having had our time saved by quicker garment* we are not likely to sacrifice it again. A cardinal feature just now is the folded extension. In coats it is with the pocket—they are carried down below the hem, &» it were, in in one piece, and the pocket

mad© by turning the material back, but never to the hem level. This looping over, doubling back, or whatever we like to call it admits of just as many expressions as ever the wit of the designer can devise. Thus, turn back to the full costume and then noto this variation. Hero what appears to have started as a collar on the shoulder widens out till it is a full side front, and then, passing under the belt, doubles back, and again flows to whatever length is appropriate. The turn suggests so many things, even a coat, in that anything that provides line at this level is unconsciously identified with the blouse. The little tricks in design are fairly legion, but they are never inartistic. When you come to think of it, what other subject than the female form divine ever received the same attention for different drapings. I expect that if all the distinctive designs were revived for a show and placed in line they would be enough to stretch from one end of our country to the other. And this is taking no account of what I may call sub-designs. Every season brings out either immediately or by evolution several standard designs that become bracketed with it, and /whatever else appears is, of course, in the way of a variation —the same thing, but differently rendered. The great feature to-day is in the panel, but understand what I mean by the term. Glance back at the first design, and there is the panel over the "belt" —anyhow in effect; and again at the full figure—it is there in those sashlike side pieces, and, of course, by suggestion in the skirt as it shows between them. Then there is the dedsign just given—panel front to blouse and panel again on skirt. Here, however, is the real thing, or rather the extreme a panel hanging like an apron from waist to foot: The design may.or may not bo liked—the. original was

really beautiful. Such a paneY might be free for part of the length and fringed Fringes are coming in, and will be more seen later. Fringes will appear with sleeveless coats —the coat for quite a depth from the waist down absolutely "in ribbons." This sleeveless coat will sometimes be no coat at all, but conform to the figure by means of gathers at the side and from *,he mid-hip it will be fringed to a hand depth. Adapted with a flaring sleeve with a generous mandarin cuff the effect will be excellent. Once fringes are given their fling, they will take and have it in dead earnest. We shall have fringed necks, sleeves, sashss, of course, and even, perhaps, a fringed over-flounce. Again there is the fringed brim of the hat —that is, a' fringe over ..t, though, needless to say, . this is nothing mew.