Dresses of the Week

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17038, 11 May 1923, Page 4

Dresses of the Week

"STELA "

WHMen bv

The frock is a very' important part oi every woman's wardrobe nowadays: indeed, it forms the principal item., Some veals ago the ordinarv woman usually managed with a coat, and skirt, onc- dressv frock, her little house gowns, and an evening frock or two. The general wear was the Tailored suit, but now there is n very different attitude. The dressy coat-frock or soft frock has been earning more and more into favour le: hot or cold weather. The curious part is that these frocks, even for winter, are of the thinnest materials, yot women do not seem to fed the cold. The frocks are intended to. wear under cosy wraps out of door**, end for indoor entertainments. There is a sound scientific reason why women should not suffer from cold, though they are wearing much fewer dot-lies, cud. those of much thinner fabrics than their mothers Qiought necessary. The reason i». of course, the sensible h.oseness that distinguishes our cjothing. The underclothing is loose and ?•« oniy. which allows a layer of warm aii between each garment, and between tin body and first garment, so retaining all rbc heat, generated by the body. The frocks are loose. too, which means another layer of warm air. ami also that the blood can circulate freely, enrestrictcfl. bv nnv light bands anywhere. But this comfortable. healthful fj.sliion 5s threatened, and the coming fashions show a decided inclination towards titling bodices, fitting sleeves, and. consequently, fitting armholes, etc. Now, such a frock even when mode of velvet will not be so warm and comfortable as one of crepe de chine in the loose, straight shape. If the tight-fitting frocks really do become established wo may expect, flic return of old conditions coat and skirt suits for street wear and much heavier materials, and the re-establishment of warm woollen underclothing. The thin edge of the wedge is, in fact, already inserted in the favour shown towards Shetland wool underclothing. It. is certainly very dainty and attractive in appearance, very light in weight, yet surprisingly warmth-giving. So it is not surprising that it absolutely charms Many are having under bodies made of Shetland wool to wear beneath their I rocks in the cold weather, while all sorts of charming jumpers, sports coats end froocks arc being made of this fine wool. They are beautiful in effect. It is more than probable that there will l,e a great vogue for these Shetland wool frocks, in the colder weather, to bo worn under w raps. In the meanwhile the frocks for day and. evening are growing more anil more elaborate, and. what is rather disturbing in these days of the high cost of labour, more and more difficult for tire amateur dressmaker to attempt. The tight, straight, earlv A ictorian bodices need to be well cut and well made to look just right and smart. The draperies, which look so easy to do. a iso depend largely for their effect upon cut, and need an artist hand to art

range really well. or. rather, to put tm necessary stitches in just the right, place to keep the fold* iiN place, and yet looking as tbough they bad fallen into those lines absoiutelv without amI .idling. The new skirts, too. not only call for i !ii<‘b more material, but they need very careful arranging. The most difficult of all for the amateur is Urn i i: i iilar. in- umbrella skirt. Not only do these bare to be cut exactly the right way of the materials if they are to bang well, but they have to be handled carefully in the making, as part of the material i? partly on the Mo>s. and. therefore is very apt to *tr«’ioh and pull cm of shape. Even 1 lie lieniming-iip needs mote than usual irre. it must not be stretched in the s’ igiltest. These skirts quickly droop and get out of order, and that is probably one of the reasons why they never remain in fashion for any length of time. It is always the serviceable style which retains favour for several The popular Way of hemming these circular-skirts is by a. roll hem, or the loose turn-up. which gives what used io be described as the harem effect. 1 ut without any semblance of the gathering-in that was a feature of the harem. Also in the new circular Airts there is a decided droop at the shies. I his makes them easier to manipulate for the great difficulty always i to make them even along the hem and t!o provent <a droop where the material is on the cross. While many of the new skirts are made so much fuller, there is a decided tendency in the tailored suits to revert to he tubular narrow skirt, and al<o for many evening frocks. AT any ~i the most' expensive models of .'veiling frocks show; skirts so narrow that one wonders bow the wearer is to walk, much more dance. Thftfe are the newswathed *‘innnuny” or Tutankhamen. I rocks. They are either swathed round the figure, or are cut narrow in the tube shape, and have a straight panel down the front, just as they ajhd shown in the ancient paintings of the Egyptians. I hose rial*row frocks are usually made of very handsome materials, many ci which have been specially manufactured. Some show designs copied from old pointings, which are Oriental or Egyptian in character. Some of the metal brocades, witli a multi-colour design. are most beautiful, almost bar--1 tsric in character. Others are in the form of brocade in which the design shows ns the lostus flower in some form, the scarlet flower of the Egyptians : or it may be a series of those queer symE< 1?. like curious Zodiacal signs. There are all kinds of elaborations end trimmings being introduced upon bodices and sleeves. Curious little basques and half-basques, little epaulette trills at tlie shoulders, and quillings of aii kinds. These are being introduced. 1 ut it remains-to be seen whether they will become popular. The feeling for simplicity and the simple lino has become so ingrained that fussiness seems to have very little appeal for any ex-

cept the very young Cuvi on sly enough, J i- is the debutantes and the young girls who arc favouring the early A ic torian nodes, with berthes. filmy di-aperies and little quillings and flounce’s, but the older women, who know what they lead to, and Understand tbat-dmler the guise of lbe *■ quaint- straight little I ni’icP." the tight-fitting. boned city of a decade or so ago. is threatened* are shunning them, and remaining faithful to the straight line and loose styles. Ol course, the dressing during the past week has. for the most part, been confined to big coats and heavy wraps. < u,lv at teas and sm-li function? eoUld one catch » glimpse of the frock or. costume Underneath. A pretty frock cftrKed out in the evor-popuiar navy bine serge wa*» made with side panels tl at were lengthened to hang below the front and back of the skirt. At the top they were adorned with steel buttons. repeated on the lengthened lilnol the shoulder. The widened and dashed under-arm was laced with Egyptian , silk and the girdle was of tin same material. Another I’rOck. this time in chocolate blown cloth, was cut with a semi princess, effect-, the tVorit and back panels being in a straight line from tb« neck to the hem. The bodice was trimmed with novelty embroideries in. Vandyke outline. repeated down the side* of the skirt. The narrow girdle sleeve? from the sholder to w ide Wrist am; down one side ot the skirt. The narrow girdle was of the material and tlie bat. worn was a sailor shape ol brown batter's plush with a heron mount. An extremely novel frock was made of black crepe satin. The oval panels of the back and front were in one with tin- smooth-fitting hips. The sides were shaped on circular lines, the hem falling below that of the front and back, and tb< back-fastened bodice showed a bloused waist-litre find long sleeves out iti one with tlie shoulder. Oval trimming ot the black soutache braid was used with bolero effect- on the bodice, round tlie back and front panels, the neck, and down tlie sleeves. Dull blue crepe was used for a smart afternoon gown. An over-lapping seam down tlie centre of th' front- and back bad a pointed end. giving an uneven ouHir--'. Tlie trimming was of silk soutache braid and a narrow bias of the material, used up the front and bade, on the bodice, and about the neck the bell-shaped wrists The shoulders v ore in epaulette style and from a narrow belt of the fabric a depending i'< okot was attached to the left of the Made in princess style, a dress of ros.e-enl«>ured wool crepe had the side fastening trimmed with Russian embioideries in satin bauds, from hem to waistline, duplicated on tlie opposite sid< and down the bloused back panel to the hem. A bins band of plain material was used from the waistline to the buttoned top and then about the oval neck, the sleeves being short and kimono in shape.