PARIS FASHIONS.

Waikato Independent, Volume XXXIII, Issue 3060, 3 October 1933, Page 6

PARIS FASHIONS.

Paris is indulging at present In an outbreak of contrariness in clothes (says the Daily Mail). I am thinking of the tailored felt hats which are even more popular than straw ones, and of the long velvet coats in which one smart woman after another is appearing, and which seem to be out of place on a summer's day even on a pretty girl. One woman at a restaurant the other day demonstrated the now popular experiment of combining two shades of blue by wearing a velvet coat in sapphire blue and a porcelain blue frock beneath. Her sleeves, of course, were short, and long blue gloves covered her arms. Fashions in jewellery are changing rapidly; Parisiennes now are dipping deep in their jewel boxes, and, much to everyone's surprise, the latest whim is the Victorian brooch. Originally designed to ornament a stiffly boned bodice, it looks delightful on a delicate muslin blouse or a fine woollen frock.

The dark-blouse and light-suit vogue shows signs of waning already. One sees more blouses which practically blend with the costume or, if patterned, are in the same tone. And grey flannel suits are everywhere, with hiplength or bolero jackets.

What is there about the wide belt which appeals so much to the Parisienne ? After rather reluctantly abandoning it last season she has suddenly decided to wear it again. Some of those seen in the day-time look as though they were stiffly boned. Still, this waist trimness goes well with the wide-shoulder vogue. For the evening, wide sashes are being worn, and one or two smart women are experimenting with amusing belts of their own designing. Evening gowns this summer show two distinct silhouettes —the organdie and chiffon type, with frills and flounces trimming skirt and bodice, and the plain, straight, more sophisticated looking dress. It is amusing to hear people arguing about their respective merits. If anything, weight of opinion is on the side of the plainer gown, but many women show themselves in both, turn and turn about, for Parisiennes like to prove that they can make a naive and frilly dress look sophisticated. Two new colours are being seen about town now. One is a lovely shade of brown which might be described as tending towards tobacco but with much more warmth in it; this is being worn for complete ensembles, including shoes, which —the Parisienne being rather conservative about her day footwear—are nearly always of the pump variety. The other colour is red—a kind of cherry vermilion. It is a warmish colour for summer, but, like the brown, some women are favouring it for suits and hats.

Paris laundries must be looking round for hands who can use the oldfashioned goffering irons, since goffering is the "newest" idea for organdie collar and cuff sets. For whereas London took organdie to its heart months ago, Paris began by favouring pique. Some of the collars are so big they look like small capes, and the organdie is usually patterned in polka dots or cross bars of bright colour. One woman wore a yellow organdie collar —yellow being a "chic" colour at present—hand painted with field flowers and trimmed at the hem with narrow cotton braid.