WHAT EVERY FRENCHWOMAN KNOWS.

Waikato Times, Volume 100, Issue 16712, 30 January 1926, Page 13 (Supplement)

WHAT EVERY FRENCHWOMAN KNOWS.

One of the things that strike a French woman in England is how little Englishmen know about women's clothes. They hve a certain eye for effect but are terribly ignorant technically*

A Frenchwoman likes her garments to be "good"; and she is perfectly aware that her husband knows as much about the quality and price of the material she uses as she does herself. It is wonderful where a Frenchman gets his knowledge—until you watch him when he is strolling out by himself and you will see him studying mannequins and prices. At- the recent Decorative Arts Exhibition all the great dressmakers showed off their most brilliant creations. I do not exaggerate when I say that more than half the onlookers werg men. Fashion papers are first read by the, husband and fattmr, and then passed to the female members of the family-

All this is due of course, to the deep interest a Parisian takes in his wife's appearance in public. She may be dowdy all the morning and even go out hatless to do her marketing; but when she is dressed up he wants her to reflect credit upon him, and there are long mutual conferences before any important purchases are made. No Parisienue can ever'deceive her husband by saying she paid two hundred francs for a hat which cost sixty, or sixty francs for one that his trained eye tells him is worth two hundred. For in Paris you cannot do what you can apparently do in London —that is, buy good articles at less than, their value. Occasionally you get a surprisingly good cut,'but the material is poor —so poor that it would deceive only an Englishman. But very, very rarely do you see good material and a poor cut.' l And that, alas! you often see in London.

All this helps to explain a fact that Englishwomen often find offensive in Paris —the way they are stared at,

scrutinised by mem It is always their physicaL charms which are being appraised. Oh dear no 1 The Parisraa is saying to himself, "That hat is inferior felt and there Is too much garniture. It is also worn wrong. That fur is good, but owing to its bad colour it only cost a thousand francs. Ilhat ribbed velour is poor quality—l could match it for thirty francs. Her skirfc is tight where it should flare, and it is full where it should be «lose-fitting I ws and so on. " , I It may strike you as embarrassing. Perhapsit is. But so is the attention, a trained art critic displays in an indifferent art collection. He knows. And it is just because of this knowledge of, the men that Frenchwomen still man* age to lead the whole world. ".