..A Page for Women..

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19771, 19 February 1927, Page 19 (Supplement)

..A Page for Women..

Social News .♦ Fashion.. General Topics

OUR PARIS LETTER FROM A PARISIENNE’S NOTEBOOK. (By YVONNE RODIEB.) (Specially Written for the “Chronicle. ”) Paris just now is coquetting with predictions! According to one worldfamous designer, blue is to reign supreme, from the darkest ntivy shades to a brilliant cobalt hue. Royal blue allied to red was a toilette I noted among the 1 advance’ models. It sounds terrific, but as a matter of fact it was a most distinguished creation. The red girdle trimming was not only subtle of shade but of treatment, and the whole design was eloquent of the artist ’s touch. Coloured tisues shot with gold, bronze. or silver, are still first favourites for evening wear. The Rarisienne is much in love with the tissu ensemble of gown and cloak to match, gold and blue and green and silver being two of her favourite colour harmonies. The craze for diamante continues, and its latest manifestation is in rising-sun motifs placed just below the pouched bodice and along the hem of the skirt of the last-word evening gown. i Flowers bo~h lor evening and day ▼ ear arc one of the outstanding features of La Mode. They are so beautifully made, and the colourings bear so important a relation to the main dress theme, that they tire naturally in the forefront of “essential” etceteras. One of the newest notions is to utilise the floral theme as a J flounce on a ball-dress; a theme emphasised by sprinkling the petals with “dewdrop’’ beads or jewels. The Parisienne’s favourite green-and-white alliance conics charmingly into such a category. A frock of green chiffon has chiffo.n flounces of snow-drops, the centres all a-sparkle with silver drops, while a tunic of silver bordered with velvet in an exquisite lily-of-the-valley gieen shade completes a truly lyrical theme. Apropos of flounces and frills, these arc all the rage, and one of the prettiest dance frocks I have seen is of pew-ter-coloured lace, with a very long bodice and a very abbreviated skirt, the latter composed of four tiers of emphatically frilly frills. These tiered skirts, in fact, are so very much in evidence that the vogue is sure to be of fleeting duration! Lame and tissu are so much liked for the grade toilette thttt it is inevitable they should be used to fashion smart handbags. Some of the brightest and gayest models are of gold, silver &nd

bronze lame, embroidered in high relief in metal thread or in coloured silks. Even in the daytime, these elegant accessories are seen in all the smart thoroughfares, and provide la striking contrast to the Parisienne’s notoriously sombre hued street costume. I Parisian evening turbans, I fancy, are too emphatically on the exotic side to appeal to Britishers. The Englishwoman prefers the wide-swathed bant deau for an evening head-dress. But the Parisienne has always liked the , opera “chapeau,” and is deeply in love . with the elaborate turban of gold or , silver tissue, jewel-trimmed, that is I now thn ultimate vogue. . Jewellery is always interesting, ( especially the “pinchbeck” variety that is within the reach of none-too- ■ capacious purses. In this category , comes the new Bhyadere chain of crys- , tai, reaching almost to the knees. Another characteristic jewellery note is the single-stone ring; characteristic because it expresses the prevailing mode for chic simplicity. Square blocks of semi-precious stones, notably amethyst, peridot, aquamarine, and jade are set in the same manner bs ‘ ‘ pukka ’ ’ jewels.

THEY WILL REMEMBER Do you sometimes feel discouraged when you’re trying to be kind? D ’you sometimes think the folk you love are deaf and dumb and blind? D ’you sometimes feel your syniplathy is lavished all in vain?—until you’re tempted to give up, and never try again ? Don’t let the feeling triumph! Just keep on keeping on! It’s always worth the effort, is the task that’s bravely done . . . No matter if it seems to wake no Answering look or sign—in every act of service there is something sweet and fine. You may be sure that some day,— when you look back to the past, —you ’ll be so glad you didn’t shirk, but stuck it to the last! And oh! be sure as heaven is sure, though hearts may sometimes strtay—that they too will remember, Love’s gold amid Life’s grev. . . H.S.

UNORTHODOX WORK TABLES (By Faith Foster.) ( The modern woman is given to dress--1 making rather than to minute pieces of fancy needlework, so that her work- [ table has to be *a more substantial thing than the one which did duty in Vicr torian days. . One of the cleverest types of work- • table does not look at first sight as if ’ it were a worktable at all, but merely tin ordinary oblong occasional table. A little knob will resolve the top into two halves, which slide away to reveal a > commodious well, quite big enough to take an entire dress. A “pouffe” proves to be a work receptacle, its lid being fitted inside with scissors, crochet ’ hooks, stiletto and knitting needles, while the box beneath will accommodate the family mending. The great idea is that the mistress of the house should not be obliged to litter her room with various worktim e oddments, but should have some means of stowing away, her mending on the arrival of a visitor. Some, beautiful work stands, of amateur manufacture, arc made from whitewood frames embellished with trails of leaves land blossoms in brightly coloured barbola work. A •oorny workbag of printed cotton or woven brocade is slung from the four corners of the stand and the whole ' forms a very ornamental adjunct to a sitting-room. Worktiables of wire-woven wicker, gilt and adorned with bunches of padded silk fruit, are not so highly priced as the elegance of their appearance might seem to warrant. CHICKEN MOULD The ingredients required are a chicken or fowl, a ham knuckle, two hard-boiled eggs, a cupful of stuffing, and a tablespoonful of gelatine. It is advisable to place the ham knuckle in cold water overnight in order to extract the salt, and to cover the gelatine with water to allow it to swell. Put the ham and fowl, with one or two slices of lemon covered with water, to simmer for about six hours. Fill the bowl intended for the mould with cold water, emptying it when ready for use. (This gives a gloss to the mould when finished). Strip the fowl of white meat and place this in the bottom of tho bowl and round the edges, filling up the centre with layers! of ham, eggs, and stuffing, and the j rest of the chicken. Finally, add, about a cupful of the hot stock to the'i swollen gelatine, season to taste, pour! over the mould, and press for twelve hours.

HOW DO YOUR EYEBROWS GROW? (By Dorothy Dee.) Eyebrows lend chartacter to the face, and, since the roots are there in almost every case, it is merely a matter of encouraging growth. Care of the brows is a part of every beauty specialist’s treatment, because she knows the value of well-marked eyebrows and lashes. Take a small darnel hair brush, soak it in olive oil or vaseline, and with it carefully paint your brows, or the faint hairs which indicate wnere they should be. «’Be careful to plaint only the slender line in which well-trained brows need to grow, and keep up this treatment, unfailingly, every night. The Fame treatment will encourage very light brows to darken. If more drastic methods appeal to you, buy a stick of black grease paint, heat one end and twirl a fine brush in the melted grease. Now carefully paint the hairs of the eye-brows only, without touching the skin, using the paint very sparingly if your colouring is naturally fair. This is an inexpensive beauty hint, and one that will also encourage the eye-brows to grow. Your lashes will be greatly improved if treated with olive oil in" the same way as the brows. Brush the upper lashes from underneath, upwards from the roots, and the lower lashes from the 1 roots outwards. Use always a sterilised brush.

USING UP THE CRUSTS A mistress once expostulated with her <. ik on seeing several thick ends of loaves in the kitchen dust-bin. The maid’s reply was that it couldn’t be helped; they were the crusts from the bread-crumbs used for stuffing the fowl and for bread-sauce. But these crusts could have been used in a very acceptable Queen pudding, made in this way:— Place the crusts in a bowl, pour boiling water over them and cover the bowl with a plate, leaving them to soak for Kt least five minutes. Then pass them into a colander; and, after you have pressed out all the water you can, put them in a well-buttered pudding dish. Stir in two tablespoonsful of sugar, and pour in one and a half cupsful of nbiling milk, in which you have mixed slowly the beaten yolks of two eggs. XSet the pudding in the oven to bake. Next whisk the whites of the two eggs very stiff, adding to them two teaspoonsful of castor sugar. When the pudding is set, spread over some jelly or thin jam. On top of that drop the whipped whites of egg, a dessertspoonful at a time, in little conical shaped heaps, simulating a crown of foam. Return the pudding to the oven, and in half a minute the tops of the little cones will comcnce to turn goldenbrown. Remove at once, for tho”“top-' ping” will be tough if over-cooked. COME-BACKS An india-rubber ball attached to a long piece of elastic is graphically de-1 scribed as a. ( * come-back ’’ in America. The come-back” appears to be a descendant of the old English cup and ball, for ‘‘come-backs’’ with a wooden cup are also sold. The American children usually buy their “comebacks” packed in neat little cardboard cartons, and the elastic or rubber tape is generally about thirty inches long with a brass finger ring at the end. “Come-backs” do not appear to find much favour in this country, although the ball is perhaps the most popular plaything in the world. Our boys do not care for a ball attached to a string, and one can hardly see what, advantage there ean be in this American idea. No doubt the children there, have some particular games of their own which they play with “come-ljacks.” as these balls are sold very extensively all over the United States. They have some novel balls in that count.-'r,

however, including one that whistles, an ide'a which might very profitablv be adapted to a golf ball—that is, at least, from the player’s viewpoint. Makers, no doubt, are quite content to allow the golf ball to remain dumb.

FANCY SALADS OF THE CHEF Here are some attractive fancy salads met with, in the' big hotels and restaurants of different countries. Some of them are very simple. They are not, of course, original, but are the creations of great artists. “Merry Widow.”—This is half a heart of cos lettuce with alternate slices of Avocado pears, and ordinary pears garnished with julienne red and green peppers, and served with French dressing. Another of similar Type has alternate slices of grape fruit and sweet orange on the lettuce, and is sprinkled with chopped walnuts and green peppers. This is sometimes called “Aida.” Slices of •grape fruit, Avocado pears, and sweet orange is another variation. This is garnished with red pepper or pimento cut on julienne. All arc served with French dressing. Cupid.—This is another variation. Grape fruit and Avocado pear slices, arranged alternately on the lettuce; garnish with red and green peppers, cut en julienne, and sprinkle chopped watercress on top. Mix a little chili sauce with the French dressing. Frivole.—A rather different salad can be served in a glass or scoojved out tomato, in which small French let-tuce-leaves are arranged to form a cup or calyx to hold the salad. This pretty green cup is filled with diced skinned tomato, grated horseradish, and celery cut on julienne, mixed with French dressing, before being put in the green cup. It is garnished with chopped red pepper. Eva.—This is tho same type as the r< Fnvole/’ but the cup is a rosycheeked apple scooped out so that only the pretty shell remains; a green enp of lettuce is put into each apple shell, the flesh of the apple is cut in dice', also some celery, and mixed With, mayonnaise sauce; it is then put in the cup, and garnished with julienne’ of truffle (or pickled walnuts), and shredded sweet pepper. A Lettuce-bowl.—A very special salad can be made by taking off the outside leaves of a French lettuce and cutting out the heart until a prettv bowl of green leaves is formed; this can be' placed inside a glass salad-bowl and filled with any kind of salad one wishes. 'Whatever is selected should be prepared and mixed with its proper dressing in another bowl before it is lifted into its pretty green one just before being sent to tables it is then decorated.

' THE USES OF EUCALYPTUS COLDS, BRUISES, STAINS. There are few houses that cannot produce a bottle of eucalyptus oil frot.t the' medicine cupboard, but as a nil., nobody thinks of uncorking it unless there art! colds about. It seems not fo be generally known that this adm’rablo essence is more effective' than anything else as a cure for bruises, knocks, and even sprains. When dabbed on at once, or applied on a square of lint and bandaged lightly over the bruise, its action is quite remarkable. Not only does it soothe immediately but it will prevent the bruise from blackening quite as well as any application of the best raw rump steak, besides which it aJwavs seems a pity to sacrifice the' dinner 'to some nursery accident! For toothache too. a little eucalyptus on tho gnm, or a plug of cottonwool soaked in tho oil, will often prove efficacious. Yet a further use is for tho removal of status from delicate fabrics, such as chiffon, crepo de chine, etc. It rapidly absorbs most kinds of stains, and being itself highly volatile leaves no mark behind it. When used for colds it is usually inhaled, but it can safely be given internally, when it has a wonderfully warming and anti-catnrrhal action. The easiest way to take it. thus is to allow a lump of sugar to absorb as much or the oil as possible and then to cat the sugar. Children as a rule will quite enjoy it given in this manner BATH BRUSES One of the pleasantest things to n«l in a bath is a rubber brush. It ia quick to bring a lather and is almost as good as massage for the skin. These rubber bath brushes ean- be obtained with or without handles, and although they arrt more expensive than an ordinary brush they last much longer. Rubber nail brushes arc also an improvement upon those with bristles, for they are more gentle in their action. These brushes, however, ar-t nearly as good as pumice stone for removing stains from the fingers, ant some of them have a little device for cleaning right under the nails. There is a nursery brush, too, made specially with a view to children’s knees. It is a handy brush, which works better than any sponge, and does not fe,-I harsh to a tender skin. Rubber barn brushes arc always clean, because soap ends and water cannot lodge in the strands which take the place of bristles. These strands arc very firmly embedded and never work loose, howqver long the brush may remain in use, and as a rule rubber brushes last for years. There are also clothes an ! hat brushes made of rubber, and ev-'n brushes for carpets and other doacstic purposes.