FEMININE INTERESTS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18618, 14 July 1930, Page 4

FEMININE INTERESTS

PERSONAL AND FASHION NOTES Court Splendour: Three women among the hundreds of beautiful women at the fourth Court attracted the admiration of all present. The Queen: Regal and gracious, seated on her golden throne, in a shimmering gown of pearl-grey and silver tissue; an overdress embroidered in silver and pearls, with a train to match, a magnificent diadem of dia monds, with the Lesser Stars of Africa glittering as the centre stonjs, rows of diamonds forming a collar and wonderful diamond ornaments, with the Order of the Garter. The Begum Aga Khan: Svelte, chic, Parisienne. The beautifi.il girl whose marriage last year to His Highness the Aga Khan was an Arabian Night s romance. Her gown was of exquisite ivory and silver brocade, embroidered with diamante. The manteau de Cour was lined with rich silver lame, and the pattern of the brocade was outlined in diamante. Diamonds glittered in her dark hair. She carried a magnificent fan of white ostrich feathers. The Duchess of Westminster: Another romantic bride. Tall, stately— English. The duchess was presented by Lady Mary Stanley. She wore a scintillating of silver and jet paillette, with plain, perfectly-fitting corsage and flared skirt. n the Royal circle, grouped behind the Queen, were the Duke of Gloucester, Prince George, the Duke rtf Connaught, Lady Maud Carnegie, Captain Alexander Ramsay and Lady Patricia Ramsay. Other noticeable women were Lady Blanche Girouard, Lord Waterford’s sister, who wore one of those apparently simple gowns that are closely moulded to the figure by intricate cutting. Of heavy white georgette, its only decoration was the wide ruching that edged the right side of the deep decolletage at the back, the same trimming giving weight to the hem of the full skirt that just cleared the ground. Lady Page Wood’s white satin gown had godets below the knee to give it fullness; it was embroidered in diamante and the one note of colour was the train of gold moire velvet, lined with the satin and edged with diamante embroidery.

Miss Jeanne Stourton, one of the debutantes, chose a pink georgette ankle-length frock, the cascading frills from waist to hem shading from palest rose to deep pink. Her mother, the Hon. Mrs Herbert Stourton, who is Lord Southwell’s sister, had an anklelength gown of gold tissue, the train of rose du barry sequins having a gold tissue foundation.

Unusual embroideries in pale natural coral followed the design of the rosecoloured lace dress Mrs Washington Singer wore. Similarly embroidered lace appeared on the chiffon velvet train Her debutante daughter, Miss Jean Lonsdon, was in white, her crepe gown moulding the hips and flowing to the ankles. The silver and white crepe train was embroidered, to match the gown, in an Empire design of silver and strass.

The Duchess of Devonshire presented Sir Robert Aske’s elder daughter Miss Margaret Aske, whose long fair hair, worn in a low knot, was effectively set off by her classical Valere gown of ivory satin charmant, apparently simple but elaborately incrusted at the back.

Much net was used for frocks. Lady Cadman wore a filmy Isobel gown of grey net embroidered with grey crystal beads, her debutante daughter, Miss Nancy Cadman, also having chosen net in ivory, embroidered in silver thread and diamante. In complete contrast was Lady Cockerill’s gown at this Court—a classic Phelps model in gold ripple lame molding the figure and held by a sash tied in a bow at the back, the skirt being caught up into loops forming points. More than 700 guests filled the State rooms, which were decorated with masses of pink hydrangeas. Again the debutantes made only one curtsy to the Queen, and the ceremony lasted less than two hours, a shorter time than usual. Princess a Bolshevik Prisoner: Princess Sophie Lieven, after terrifying experiences in a Bolshevik prison, recently made a journey from Russia, says the “Daily Mail.” The Princess is a sister of Lady Studd, wife of Sir Kynaston Studd, the former Lord Mayor of London. The Soviet Government compelled the Princess to pay 330 roubles for a passport from which the word “return” had been crossed out with red ink. The Princess will never be able to enter Russia again as long as the present Communist regime endures. Whitehaired, and with her face showing signs of her persecution, the Princess refused to discuss her life in Russia, saying she feared to make a single statement. She had seen the tragic results of Cheka (secret police), persecution, and she was afraid unwittingly to harm persons remaining in Russia. New Paris Hats: The sun, which is specially favouring Paris this year, is bringing out quantities of the new brimmed hats the Paris modistes are devising for the beautification of womanhood this season. There is magic in a Paris hat. Even those two words, in conjunction, conjure up a vision of chic. And you must have a Paris hat to top off your ensemble. You may buy your costume ready made or patronize the little dressmaker, but the head, like the feet, must be treated to the best. Hats show more variety than for many years. They have naturally followed the progress of the mode toward individuality. They are many-sided and indescribable, being rolled up or down so as to give fullest value to the individual face, instead of being skull caps or two-sided masks, they were when they companied the uniform chemise frock. Crowns are shallower and sometimes with ever so slight a tendency toward squareness. This, by the way, is the most youthful type of crown. Hats look older as crowns grow higher. Straws in linen-like surfaces, such as baku, bengals, panama, panamalac, and sisal are the hat materials preferred for informal day-time wear. Transparent horse-hair weaves and horsehair lace make wide dressy hats to accompany formal afternoon and evening costumes. Berets are made in all sorts of fabrics the newest being crocheted of raffia or visca and mounted on bandeaux of grosgrain ribbon. Felt has at least been wrenched off the smart head. One sees felt cloches on cloudy days on the golf links or around Paris, but that is about all. There is a new panama weave made of paper that is much liked for the sports cloches. Lncquered panama in draped shapes is worn by the smartest women at the Ritz, at teatime . usually in black, relieved by touches of trimming in white, pink or green. Reboux, whose hats are worn by some of the smartest women in Paris, is brimming most of her new hats. She uses unusual straw weaves, specially made for her, and fine Miians, with exclusive mixed tricots for her sports bonnets. Greens and black predominate in the summer capelines.

Women who insist on perfect head comfort all go to Agnes. Her hats

become a habit. When you have once worn them you can stand no other. Contrary to her usual custom, Agnes is making many brimmed hats this season. They are of semi-transparent straw or horsehair in pastel colours, trimmed with flowers or velvet ribbon bows in contrasting or harmonising pastel tints. Her crowns are shallow and fit the head; brims are fairly even slightly wider at sides and back, tilted up to show the face, and usually they are trimmed both above and below the brim. Her latest creations are double hats—a close fitting bonnet of cotton crochet lace, done in the dear old antimacassar technique, with a wreath of flowers round the brow, and a huge capeline of transparent horsehair lace trimmed with a similar wreath round the crown to be worn over it for the afternoon and removed for evening. Fashion Notes: Lately returned travellers tell us that beige has utterly disappeared from the world of fashion, and pink has taken its place. But not the clear, soft shade, almost mauve-pink or greypink, a wonderfully smart tone. And Paris still keeps to the short frock for day wear, even shorter than London is wearing; for evening, however, the frock is not only long, but very often trailing. The Parisienne has taken to detachable collars and cuffs round Peter Pan collars, and three-inch close cuffs are most popular, and lingerie sets are once more the vogue. Hemstitched crepe de chine, georgette and organdy collars are finished with nar-

row ties under the chin. Newer, and extremely attractive, are bead-encrust-ed collars and cuffs. Enormously smart is a set made with iridescent white beads in alliance with black ones, worn with an otherwise unadorned, black georgette frock. A set made entirely of pillar-box red, gold and white beads is extremely chic for wear with a navy blue crepe de chine frock. Quaint are gauntlet cuffs worn on short sleeves, high-necked frocks, which have round collars to match.

Women and Archery: “There is no thrill comparable with the flight of an arrow straight from the twanging string of a bow!” states a London correspondent. “Cuch was the consensus of opinion among the women archers with whom I talked at Ranelagh recently. “More than fifty women, whose ages ranged from 25 to 60, from northern and southen countries of England competed in the open archery meeting, and their dresses and hats of Lincoln green made a picture in the brilliant sun which might have been taken from the tales of Robin Hood and his merry archers. “One woman Confessed to me that she has found no other sport which offered the thrills of archery.

“ ‘To hear the hum of the arrow as it passes through the air, and the sharp ‘plop’ with which it enters the target is the most satisfying thing I have ever experienced,’ she declared. ‘Success at archery gives one a greater feeling of pride and achievement that one ever got out of playing golf or tennis. Archery demands more physical and mental concentration than most sports.’

“I was told that archery is becoming increasingly popular with women. Many countries now have an archery club at which more than half the members are women. The sport does not overtax the energies, and is therefore ideal for old and young.”

A Musical Bunch of Roses: The Dowager Lady Swaythling gave a luncheon party to hear the Canadian Trio, three children, the Misses Anna, Ida and Sara Nelson.

Dressed alike in short pink silk frocks, these child prodigies looked like a bunch of frpsh roses, and played respectively the violin, piano and ’cello. They play amazingly well and are likely to have a big and interesting future. They are afraid of nothing, and gave last year a recital at the Wigmore Hall, yet Sara, aged 12, who plays the ’cello, admits to a great liking for dolls.

Lord Craigmylo, Lord Swaythling, Colonel Somervell, Lady Arnold and Mr and Mrs Raoul Foa were there to listen, and the latter promptly requested the sisters to play at a party for her.