ELEGANCE OF SIMPLICITY

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 2, Issue 178, 26 June 1940, Page 6

ELEGANCE OF SIMPLICITY

LONDON IN WARTIME In London these days prophecies abound, hut wc can say with confidence that never in our history lias the human race been so tain of the shape of things to come. Good resolutions made at the beginning of a New Year halve a way of evaporating as the months slip by, even in normal times. Under present conditions, Avhen it is difficult to sec more than a week ahead, the only resolution possible is to live one day at a time to the best of one's ability. As a well-known naval man misquoted recently: "Your country expects every woman this day to do her d..utj r " —to look attractive in spite of black outs and very slender budgets! Not nearly so difficult as some women imagine, for the elegance of simplicity is the keynote to good dressing in these wartime days. Gone are the fripperies of bustle and crinoline, the wild, crude colours, and sumptuous picture styles of a few short months ago. Good figure-revealing lines on both day and evening dresses, and although skirts can be full or narrow, there are no exaggerations of either width. Plaids arc much liked, both for coats and dresses, and the ne.w soft woollens so light weight and yet so warm that they suit all seasons, come in new soft colourings such as Maginot blue, plain grey, trench brown, etc. Last spring black became almost a umifoirm for smart" women. Th : s year we shall swing to the other extreme, such as a purple skirt, primrose blouse, blue short jacket, and a top coat, to be completed by a forage cap in flowers of all four colours.