FEMININE INTERESTS.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXIV, Issue 18822, 10 March 1931, Page 3

FEMININE INTERESTS.

PERSONAL AND FASHION NOTES. Women at the Persian Exhibition: Women who saw the great Exhibition of Persian Art at Burlington House, London, will surely see it again in their dreams. They will not, perhaps, have visions of the strangely fashioned pottery, the golden bowls of centuries ago, the ancient tiles of many colours, or the richly iluminated manuscripts. But they will dream of the marvellous carpets which hung on the walls. These carpets, woven hundreds of years ago by Persia’s greatest artists, are “old masters” in'silk and wool and cotton, each worth a fortune. One carpet puzzled them, for it was the gloriously shimmering blue, white, crimson, and yellow carpet of great size which for three hundred years has lain upon the tomb of Shah Abbas II in the mosque of Qum. That no profane foot might touch even its fringe, a low barrier was set around it, and it glistened and glowed with the lovelinesss of butterflies’ wings. But the carpet which every woman must have coveted hung on the wall of allery 111, a masterpiece made in 1521 by Ghiyath al-din, which had been lent by a museum at Milan .When it arrived in London its glory was almost completely hidden by the grime of centuries Permission to clean it was sought, but the Italian authorities were so fearful that they demanded a written guarantee. Three times the carpet was washed, a labour of days for many hands, and when at last the Italians saw it again they threw up their hands in wonder and delight. They saw its supreme beauties for the first time. The Latest Fashions in London: Lace hats. Very deep, U-shaped decolletages. Many long sleeves. Short gloves with wide gauntlets. Tremendous vogue of chiffon and lace.

Skirts that clear the ankles for dancing. These are some of the evening dress ideas to be exploited by a well-known dressmaker in the Rue la Boetie. “Two-colour effects will, I think, be a great success,” she said. “Many of the new evening gowns are of lace with light tops and dark skirts. You are right in advising women to discipline their figures. We designers are thinking anatomically, now and the new gowns are closely fitted by means of apparently simple but really elaborate cutting. “I am breaking the tight narrow line of some evening dresses by slashing them up almost to the knee in front. Short evening coats continue their obstinate success—you cannot persuade women to wear long ones. The new short coats are longer at the back than in front.” Other new developments are green or blue-dyed ermine coats, and, for day wear, many three-quarter coats in colours that contrast with the skirt. Rice straw, which is coarse and very light, is being used for the new Dolly Varden hats, many of which have bunches of fiowprs at the back below the brim and ribbons that pass under the chin. Forehead beauty will be more important than ever, many of the latest hats being tilted off the face The Athletic Girl: An American woman writing on the extensive subject, “The Modem Girl,” says that according to Florenz Ziezfield—the well-known stage beauty master—the athletic girl is a passing fad. He sounds the tocsin for the clear-eyed, muscular young woman who took so seriously her tennis, her golf, her swimming, and even more violent games of sport. Despite the edi of the man who has fixed stage beauty standards for America during the last decade, the writer is of the opinion that the girl who goes in for games of sport mav keep going right on without fear of being left on the shelf by discerning pickers of pulchritude. Before hearkening too seriously to the words of the maestro, it is well to remember that Mr Ziegfield is not only interested in discovering the most beautiful girls for his theatre, but he is also intent on introducing new types to replace the old ones. His skill lies in meeting the demand for new faces and new fancies, a demand which rises to a veritable clamour on the part of weary business men when the change is too long delayed. “The athletic girl cannot' live as a representative type of American beauty because her lines ftre too hard,” says Mr Ziegfield. “She over-indulged in sports with fatal results to her face and figure. Athletics bring a tenseness to a woman’s face that develops lines of age.” Is it possible that the musical ccmcdy producer has i'ever had a close-up of Helen Wills. America’s sturdy young woman athlete? There is not a line in Helen’s face. It is as placid as a mountain lake in summer sunshine. White Hair Fashionable: White hair is fashionable again in London, we are told. No longer do the middle-aged dread the first signs of grey that appear at Uie temples. The Dowager Countess of Airlie, the Queen’s lady-in-waiting, has lovely white hair, which makes her look very like the old-world pictures of the French Marquise. Mrs Frank Braham, who organises many of the Mayfair functions, has white hair, and is said to look like the pictures of George Washington. There are two women in English society who have streaks of white in their otherwise dark heads. Lady Mitchell-Thomson has a band of white across one temple amid her raven blacx hair, and Miss Margery Lawrence, the novelist, has a similar streak in hers. Lady Chalmers has bobbed white hair, and Mrs George Pinckard has a head of silver shingled hair in which, with evening dresses, she wears a posy of flowers.

Ancient Modern Fashions: Women in the first-night audience ol “The Dybbuk” at the Phoenix Theatre London —they included the Dowager Lady Swaythling and Mrs Philip Snowden, who remained in deep discussion in their box throughout the intervals—were much intrigued by the costumes worn by the feminine members of the Habima Players. Why the “hour-glass” outlines and leg-o’-mutton sleeves of those ankle length dresses? Why high-piled coiffures modelled on those of the ’nineties? The explanation is that in remote Jewish villages in Russia fashions have not changed for over thirty years This is why the daughter of a well-to-do merchant wears in the play a white satin wedding gown tightly buttoned down the front, white shoes, and a curious little tull eveil. The Order of Succession: The recent death of the Princess Royal affects the order of succession to the Throne. Before she passed away the succession was: The Prince of Wales, the Duke of York. Princess Elizabeth. Princess Margaret, the Duke of Gloucester, Prince George, Princess Mary and her two sons, the Princess Royal, Princess Arthur of Connaught, and her son, the Earl of Mac Duff, Lady Maud Carnegie and Lady Maud’s son, the Master of Carnegie, and the Princess Victoria. Now Princess Arthur of Connaught becomes the tenth in line of succession. The title Princess Royal was bestowed by King Edward on his eldest daughter in 1905. If custom be followed, the next Princess Royal will be Princess Mary Countess of Harewood, only daughter of the King. Russian Beauties: Many of the Russian beauties who were famed a few years ago before the,

Romanoff dynasty crashed and crumbled to ruin were Circassians, and with their masses of fair hair, blue eyes, and milky complexions they stood out among their dark-eyed Slavonic sisters. The Georgians, too, produced some notable women with something of the classic Greek beauty of line and feature, but a queer, intriguing slant to the eyes that was almost Chinese. *