Vanitas Vanitatum

Ladies' Mirror, Volume 4, Issue 5, 2 November 1925, Page 13

Vanitas Vanitatum

' I A HE drabness of winter has A dragged well into Spring and the broken weather almost excuses us for being a disgruntled community. We haven’t yet had a chance of decking ourselves out in the radiant frocks that have been such a bright feature in the shop windows for weeks now. However we must keep our pecker up, and cheerfully sing “There’s a Good Time Coming—” Our friends who read the signs of the heavens and study the science of metcrology tell us we are in for a piping hot Summer, so that if Spring is lateand perhaps a bit ashamed of itself for its tardy arrival —we must prepare for much sunshine and heat. Some venturesome ones have tempted providence and set at naught 'wisdom by rushing into summer clothes too early, and, of course, there is the usual crop of nasty, stuffy colds abroad. The Motherland has had a very hot Summer, so that we may expect the same, and take our cue from our English sisters on the way to keep cool in the “dog days.” Our shops certainly reflect some very charming styles that promise to be the vogue during the coming season, and the most cheerful features of them are their brightness and simplicity.

The demand will be for ease and comfort in fashionable clothes. Costumiers and dress-makers will have to concentrate on an alliance of beauty and commonsense. We have already come to appreciate that the straight line that conceals slim, supple folds, includes cleverly-cut godets, and enables us to move gracefully, is essentially the fashion to-day; in other words the modified silhouette. To add to the charm of style we are to add the delight of bright, cheerful colours; flowered chiffons with crinoline hats, little kasha three-piece and brightcoloured sunshades. Demure little frocks get an added touch of freshness from the lingerie collars and cuffs which are worn with them. All sorts of new ideas in collars are being evolved.

iart Cjfhtn Goats IN our variable climate where sunshine and rain, heat and cold, wind and clamminess intermingle so unexpectedly, the latest notion in petite-covcrtc or thin coats should appeal to milady in these Fortunate Isles. The most recent Paris fashion journals are full of these dainty creations made of such gossamerlike materials as georgette, chiffon and lace, worn with frocks of equal fragility. These thin coats for warm days need to be illustrated to be appreciated, but here is the description of one:— ' “Both the frock and the coat are pleated. The back of the dress is arranged panel-fashion; a clever arrangement by which the broad back is given an illusionary appearance of

slimness. There are the tiniest of sleeves, but this is purposely done so that the sleeves of the coat only cover the arms, giving that look of transparency which is so much sought after this season, and, of course, a dress of this description could be worn in the evening. “This ensemble relies solely on its perfect line —and it is marvellously slimming to those who are inclined to stray beyond the lines of the sylph-like silhouette of the moment; its utter simplicity and the excellence of the workmanship and pleating, for further elaboration there is none, and in that, perhaps, lies its greatest charm.” Even coats of more substantial pretensions are seemingly quite thin. They may be lined with some light material like printed chiffonto go with the chiffon frocks which seem certain to be the craze this summer, but which are already giving place in England to beautiful hand-painted fabrics. The thin kasha coats are lined with their own material in a lighter or a contrasting colour and worn over dresses made to match the linings. These frocks are usually cut on the lines of the popular jumper suit; in fact, the jumper suit

seems likely to remain as popular as it was when it first appeared on the horizon of fashion. 'Durable JtockJnette OTOCKINETTE, which is cheaper and more durable than kasha, is being woven in the most delicious colourings, either plain or speckled, and suits are made with the new chain fastenings, which were first used to secure our golf bags and gradually found their way on to tobacco pouches, and from there to our frocks. These have been amazingly popular in the Old Country and on the Continent this season. More often than not these jumper frocks are provided with a coat to match. A most becoming model we have seen is well tailored and has a row of buttons and buttonholes down the front. The collar is neat, and turned back with some- contrasting colour, with cuffs and lining to match. Thin and light these coats most certainly are, and yet they arc very warm to slip on in the cool or even chilly days which we not always expect but get in this climate ! Jon don in shine z.Array the lovely sunshine! After a brilliant springtime England has had a heat-wave that has sent us all hurrying out to buy printed chiffon, georgette, voiles and muslins. The optimists who foresaw a hot summer were the lucky ones, of course; they hadn’t to hurry through their summer shopping, and they are looking cool and fresh in their summery attire they are reaping the benefit of their foresight. This is a tip to New Zealanders. Your seasons follow ours : so expect heat during the coming months. Shady hats are once more in fashion, for they arc a real boon on sunny days. Many, however, still cling to their beloved cloche and mushroom shapes, provided they have shady brims. The favourite shades are putty, delphinium blue, pale green, cerise, and rose. Choice printed chiffon is first favourite for frock material. Designs that consist of bright flowers on a dark background that are just a confused blur of blossom in soft shadesothers again that show natural flowers in all the pastel hues —just black and white— and effective — no end to the possibilities of chiffons, that carries out the styles of frocks in the accompanying illustration. CJ he DdCotoring Outfit SO many people go motoring nowadays that motor coats have become as decorative as they are necessary. Made of shiny mackintosh material in various colours to match the lining of the touring car. they look charming, and protection from -the cold winds is guaranteed by the lining of white bunny. The hat question is a vexed one. “Travel light” says the advertisement and the giver of good advice. The best solution of the hat difficulty is to have one hat made to fit you absolutely. This should be of the lightest weight felt, and if the right colour is chosen it can be worn with half-a-dozen different coloured frocks of almost any material. Many people have their hats made of the tweed to match their dresses, but this means a hat to every suit. The light-weight felt solves that difficulty.

'HE vogue in bathing gowns is most charming. Some of them are in stockinette, others in schappe silk, and the caps for shingled hair that go with them are very pretty and smart. Gay colours, of course, are the vogue. Tennis rigs include pleated skirts to be worn with jumpers. Nearly all, by the way, are attached to a bodice lined with silk. It is the best way because in these days of corsetbands instead of corsets, a skirt which fastens round the waist is apt to be uncomfortable. It is much better for all one’s clothing to hang from the shoulders.

Oh, Ivhat will the Weather be ? ' | 'HE weather has been so unset- * tied of late, and Spring so long in settling itself that one can almost think of the Clerk of the Weather as a horrid, perverse old creature who grins defiance at us when we look ahead and try and select our summer clothes. The shops are full of nice things, but we ’hear some say: "I will not be caught with a wardrobe of exquisite summer creations I won’t get a chance to wear. I’m for frocks of the strictly utilitarian order. Mackintoshes, .not muslins, for me.” However we are going to make a bold prophecy and declare that we may look forward to a brighter summer than we have had for many years past. Therefore out with your georgetttes and chiffons; but those who would have the pick of those lovely

printed materials which are such a gay feature in the shops, must not leave their shopping too late. The wise woman will hurry off at once and buy what she needs. There is a vast difference in the materials of this description. Unlike many imitation things, machineprinted georgettes cannot hold their own against the genuine hand-print-ed ones. There is a difference both in the texture and even more in the colourings. No machine-made article could even have approached some of the very newest ideas in flowered georgetttes. There is one thing about a printed

chiffon frock: If, peradventure, the wise prophecy does not come true you will, if you buy one of these airified frocks and cannot wear it in the daytime, have a most enchanting evening dress, and if you are young enough, it will be equally suitable for big and little occasions. So if you take our advice and hurry off to get this type of garment, you will have no real cause to blame us for havuig led you into extravagant paths. Imported JACodels r 'HE great number and variety of A really beautiful models that our big drapery firms have imported this season may have a far-reaching effect. It would seem that the day of the little home designer is finished. The amateurish efforts of the inexperienced are often deplorable and their clients suffered in appearance in consequence. It is not even necessarv to trust to sketches now when

models can be bought and copied and friends are often very kind in lending frocks which have been designed by a master hand. No possible excluse now for lack of balance, for unbecoming lines, or bad cut, which are the three black sheep in the fold to be guarded against by every dressmaker, whether she be professional with a small or a large list of customers, or one of the many amateurs who still find pleasure and profit in making their own frocks. For the benefit of the latter we would like to add a plea for good workmanship. Frocks may be comparatively simple, but the needlework must be good if the correct effect is to be gained. More dresses are discarded on account of bad needlecraft than for any other cause. Remember that the well-finished and well-sewn dress of an amateur will he forgiven much as long as the stitches are small and bindings and tucks evenly arranged. Jumpers and Waistcoats 'F'XO you remember the time when we always wore the waists of our blouses under our skirts? Perhaps that is why the Americans still call them “waists.” And do you remember how the blouse would pouch over the waistband at odd places in a most unbecoming manner? Some women still wear their blouses under their skirts, but they never think of appearing without a coat in this kind of rig, because it marks them, more or less, as being out of date. How very different it is with the smart jumper! The evolution of the jumper is a very interesting one indeed. About twelve years ago what was then Tailed the “middy” blouse made its appearance, and was chiefly worn by girls of from fourteen to seventeen. It was practically a jumper with a sailor collar, and, as I have said before, only very young girls wore it. But it was the forerunner of the smart jumper which everyone wears to-day. Knitted Jumpers QOON after the “middy” jumper made its appearance came the craze for knitted jumpers. For the time being, any other kind of jumper was forgotten. Women knitted themselves jumpers, morning, noon and night. They knitted them in wool, in silk, and in mixtures of silk and wool. Knitted jumpers in those days could be worn on almost any occasion, woollen ones for sports and morning, silk ones for smarter occasions, being a pretty general rule. But gradually we came to realise that though the knitted woollies were all right for sports wear, for smart town wear the knitted silk jumpers had disadvantages. They lacked that dainty collar and cuff and lingerie touch on which the well-dressed woman prides herself these days. Hence the evolution of the more elaborate jumper of silk, crepe de chine or satin, which forms so indispensable a part of a “three-piece” or coat and skirt. If you are wearing a present-day smart jumper you can take off your coat and be certain that you are quite well turned out. You don’t have that half-dressed sort of feeling given you by a blouse and skirt worn without a coat in the old days. This smartness and trimness is all to

the good.

‘What Travis ays — 'HE Paris couturiers are searching for a new style of silhouette to please the ever changing vanity of milady in her appeal for something new. It is always difficult to get accustomed at once to a new silhouette; yet it is the habit of a few Parisienne elegantes, who are absolutely sure of their figures, to be among the first ones to adopt a daring innovation which will attract general attention. But although as yet the average woman hesitates to wear a dress with a normal waistline, in time one tires of the straight loose dress and longs for a change. The early summer collections show how the couturiers are trying to solve the problem; those who have presented a very low waistline are now indicating a higher line ; while the more daring, seeing that the majority of people are not ready for the change, are proceeding by more moderate measures. CO Jean Patou, for instance, who has , surprised, and alarmed us perhaps, by some of his models with very tight waists, now shows models that are perfectly suitable for

present wear. The waistline is not far removed from its normal place and only just follows the curves of the body. His afternoon coats and dresses are particularly smart and pleasing, and nearly always show a variation of the Princess shape, which is the most fashionable line at the moment and one that is seen in nearly every collection. The bottom of these dresses are widened either all round or in front only, or at the sides and again at the back, while the upper part is rather straight but rarely close-fitting. Martial et Armand also adopts the Princess shape, both in coats and frocks. The tendency certainly seems to be to widen the skirt and to tighten and shorten the bodice. THE heat wave has upset all calculations in trying to gauge the vogue, but the tendency is quite clearly pointing to the return of the Princess shape. At present, however, lingerie gowns have come into their own, they are dyed pale green, rose pink, pansy blue and orchid mauve, and are decorated with lace of the same shades and tiny pin tucks. Sometimes a shaped flounce of georgette of a darker shade appears in

the skirt, while it is interesting to note that corsages of the cross-over persuasion are coming into their own. ante (§kirts i 'HERE is something particularly •*- satisfactory about the tunic skirts which have the fonrreaux slit up on one or, it may be, both sides, the tunics being arranged with inverted or box pleats. This preserves the straight silhouette, and at the same time the movements of the wearer are never handicapped. Silk fringe will continue to appear on the more elaborate frocks ; another conceit is to slash the material so that it suggests a fringe which is about half-an-inch in width. It is pleasant news that the third piece of the ensemble suit frequently takes the form of a cape. It is far cooler than a coat, and lovely artificial flowers make the collars, or it may be that the collars are of gauged georgette strewn with petals. Sydney S t y ies ■pRINTED' .georgettes flourish. -*■ The more exclusive models are combined with plain black or one of the predominating colours. Painted materials are even newer. They are not necessarily figured, and one example is of white georgette with squares of varying shades of beige all over the surface. Though lots of frocks are absolutely sleeveless still and resemble evening dresses ‘ so much that it is

almost impossible to tell where the difference lies there are just as many models with a long, straight sleeve to the wrist. It is a fallacy to think that bare arms make for coolness ! The big hat enthusiasts are having a field day during the heat wave. Everyone wants some sort of shade for the eyes. Crinoline is the most fashionable of straps for the hot weather. It is so light to wear. Many tulle hats are making an appearance also, but they are for more formal occasions. Even more fashionable are the hats composed of two materials— faille and lace, crinoline and taffetas, and so on. Feathers are to be found encircling brims or huge flat flowers are set round the crowns, and the tall woman looks her best in this sort of hat, but beware of the exaggerated brim if you are short of stature. The tiny cloche hat, whether. of feather-weight felt Bangkok or any of the cheaper straws, has become more trimmed—a couple of flowers at the side, a jewelled pin thrust through the front, but even these pins are more elaborate in design than the neat diamond arrows which have pierced so many hats for so long—the Prince of Wales feather, the true-lovers knot, circles of jade surrounded by, diamonds with starlike ends, small gittering birds and beasts representing some of the old fables like the tortoise and the hare, the dog and the duck are to be seen in place of the arrow.

The flower bouquet or posy finds fleeting resting places first in one place and then in another, but it is reluctant to absent itself altogether from our frocks. It has.ascended from the waist-line to the middle of our frocks in front exactly in a line with the chin. It is not every type of dress that can stand this somewhat unusual placenor every type of face, which is, perhaps, even more important! It has the advantage of complete novelty and is very popular in Sydney just now. ’What Size are your Hips F Suggestions for the Woman of generous Proportions IT ow is it, I wonder, that Ameri- -*• can fashion papers all have a kindly thought for the woman who inclines more to weight than slimness, while the English and French fashion designers seem to ignore her ? Fashions are much the same, whatever the figure. It is the little touches that show genius and change a woman from being a frump into a gracious and pleasing figure. The largely proportioned woman must be careful in her choice of fabric. A woman-of this type came to see me last week wearing hugely patterned, stiffish material that made her look exactly like an animated piece of upholstery. If she had been an artist in dress she would have chosen unpatterned browns and greys for outdoor wear, soft mauves and blues for the house. And she would have realised the “invisibilising” quality of black, with gold or silver adornments. Material that falls as Greek drap-

eries fallyou can see them in the Greek Gallery in the British Museumare the choice for the large woman. Greek women, the most beautiful the world has ever seen, were much more amply proportioned than the modern woman. The soft materials, glorious colours and simple line of their clothing gave grace and dignity. Trimmings should be avoided above all. Yet how many women fail to realise this, and think to take away from their width by fussy little bits of drapery and ornamentation? H ‘'HE older woman, whether inA dining to stoutness or not, will be wise to avoid the sleeveless fashion. Floating wing sleeves will give grace and dignity to an evening frock for a day dress, wrist or long elbow sleeves are dc rigucur. There is another thing to remember. Many a plump woman has such pretty feet and ankles that she wears short skirts to accentuate them. This is a mistake. Add inches to your skirt and you add to your grace. For the neck, the V-shaped opening or the very high neck are both becoming, the latter only for a woman with a small face and long, slender neck. Ghiidren s Rummer Glothes H 'HE days are gone when clothes for children were a secondary consideration. Now they are of equal importance with the frocks of their mothers and grown-up sisters. Whole departments in the big shops are given up to catering for the younger generation, and never has there been a larger selection in the matter

of dresses for the child, whether it be boy or girl. Linen is an ideal summer fabric; it is porous and light, and yet substantial enough to withstand the rough usage it is sure to receive, and now that there are so many uncrushable varieties on the market the one prejudice against it—that it crushed too easilyis no longer there. 'T'HE same applies to those deli- * cious organdi muslins which seem to be the very embodiment of youth. These very elaborate-looking frocks with all their tucks, insertions, their scalloped edges can be produced at home— to the ingenuity of the material makers. You buy all this by the yard, and the most incompetent of mothers ought, for the expenditure of a few shillings, to be able to make her child a frock that looks as if it had just come from a Paris atelier. But really in hot weather dressed-up frocks are not what we ought to bethinking about. Delicious overalls, enchanting bathing suits and fascinating crawlers constitute an important part of the child’s outfit nowadays. Gay linen with beasts, birds and flowers appliqued on to the frock are an endless source of amusement to the children, and even distracts their at-

tention from the unwonted heat. No socks is the order of the day, and sandals replace heavy shoes, even sand shoes are terribly hot for the feet—and should rope-soled canvas ones be substituted the children will rejoice. We all suffer in this sort of weather with indiarubber soles. r fi 'HE sun is too hot on occasions for the no-hat brigade, to compel the children to go hatless. There are some very nice light broad-brim-med hats, but the sun bonnet is a great protection, as it covers that most sensitive and important part—the nape of the neck. Bathing dresses are of the simplest and meagrest kind, and the gay towel-wrap will be more an inducement for them to come out of the water when asked to than if a mere huckaback is waved to them from the shore. Much of the children’s discomfort in the heat is due to the mismanagement of the menu. If only people would realise that fruit and vegetables are so much better for them during heat waves than meat there would be fewer fusses at table and fewer minor ailments to deal with. The green blinds to the nursery and green shades to perambulators will all help to keep the younger children cool.