WOMEN'S INTERESTS

Hokitika Guardian, 25 May 1933, Page 3

WOMEN'S INTERESTS

LEARNING FROM' MANNEQUINS

VARIETY OF MATERIALS

The sight of really good clothes, correctly worn, is an invaluable help, to those, who cannot afford to have “dress .mistakes” hanging in their wardrobes, writes a Paris correspondent Our eyes are such dccile, r organs that one can easily become accus? tamed to indifferent clothes,,, so that unless one meets good examples occasionally., even a fastidious woman is in danger of, using bar sense of what is good in line, cut and colour By Watching the same typo of ,clothes on different mannequins you *an usually find the reasons why a model is successful on one person and disappointing on another., ; You notice that, one of those high up-to-the-throat dresses or coats looks adorable on the girl with a fairly long neck and slim young -outlines, while the .girl with the shoit neck looks' less attractive in them than anything else she has worn.

You will, find that sleeves which are very full above the elbow make the broad or ,high-shouldered girl look almost too broad, and that the tweed skirt which'is wrapped so noticeably tight about the hi pa emphasises this width. ..

The lines of evening dresses should he carefully watched also. .Hip and waist lines are points which most women study carefully, hut it is the details which often escape attention, buvh ias the effect of the decolletage upon neck, shoulders land arms. The width and placing of shoulder straps can make, a woman look larger or slimmer, and the difference in effect between a V, an oval or a square neck-line is very considerable. All these and many other points repay study at a dress show.

EVENING FROCKS

Frills and furbelows. are so much a part of the newest fashions that; inevitably oue finds.them much exaggerated by some dressmakers. Most; evening dresses have some shoulder 'covering even if the?©, are no actual sleeves —cocks’ feathers and ostrich feathers lire used to make frills over the arms a'pd soft chiffon frills, draperies or fichu effect-, arc all. used becomingly. White piqua; is; shown for every kind of furbelow as well as for jackets fl'nd waistcoats. A whiL pique bolero with full sleeves sounds incongruous with a, black satin dross, but it looks sm ; art. A cape collar, consisting of folds, of white organdie, with a deep band of pique at the edge, was very dainty when worn with w black tulle (Imss that had a broad jetted waistband. All things appertaining to evening wear are particularly feminine, with the rustle taffeta slips adding allure to formal afternoon gowns as well as' those designed toy the ballroom. .1

An almost Victorian touch is,given to some flowing skirts by placing, several crisp flounces of tarJLetan or stiffened silk muslin inside the hems to 'add. to the swing of the skirt’, or, if trained, to lift it off the ground. Another evening gown *ll deep . purple was made with two distinct halves —one half of bright Riatiiv-and ! the other dull crepe— and slit to the knee back and front. j CONTRASTING SURFACE'S.]

Materials for evening show ijmieh variety, the contrasting- of brighti .and dull surfaces often giving the. cloju to the whole design. One. tunic evening gown showed the- long tunic •of ivory crepe reaching, the knees, over \ an ank'le-longth skirt of ivory satin The neck-line was square, much deeper at the liack than the front, and; the waist wias outlined by an inserted belt of satin with bow in front. The insertion was made with faggot stitch, giving a decorative touch without disturbing the line from shoulder to hem of tunic.

One curious mixture which seems to appeal to many designers is the alliance of cire satins with lineiis or cottons- I have .already seen an evening gown in. white canvas worn with a short coatee of black satin.. Also, an ordinary black satin, modelled into <a slim-fitting evening frock with a enped coat of un.stiffenod white pique. The result is most effective and the cost merely nominal, Matchsse materials in satin, crepe a,,pi taffetas give* a chic look to simply-cut gowns, and the new stiffened chiffons make the most aclorably youthful frocks for evening wear or bridesmaids.

Waxed moire is another cnchantill o- fabric for evening frocks and coats. In pearl grey, it made a short coat with long elaborate sleeves that added great chic to a long gown of purple satin. This now treatment seems to have 'added youth and lightness to an old-world fabric, so that one exclusive designer showed the bonne-bouche of his collection—a wedding gown—made entirely of ivory waxed moire..

ORI ENT A L FJMA N CITATION

TRADITION VERSUS NOVELTY. Although Eastern women have taken to Western ideas and Western modes of life with, astonishing rapidity and eagerness,, especially since the. Great 7

Hints from Home and Jib road.

War, it is extremely unlikely that they will ever become completely Westernised, according to an Italian writer who knows., the. East well.

Outwardly, the changes have been many arid thorough. In India there are now '.special .schools, colleges, universities, magazines and societies for women everywhere. Women meet every year in (he All-India Women's . Conference to suggest measures for further progress along Western lines. They have entered the professions of medicine, law teaching, art and journalism, and they have the yoto , on many councils ancl -assemblies. In China, 'likewise, women’s education has made rapid f strides. In 1906 there-were scarcely -500 girls - attending Government schools, hut to-day • the number approaches 5,000,000. Women are entering the learned professions, playing the same games as men, and even taking up .aviation. In Turkey the women’s movement, has /boon even more rapid. Veiled faces and harems are no longer prevalent. Women dress in European fashion, hob their hair, jazz in public , .b-allrqoms, attend the. same schools and . colleges aa men, select their own husbands! Even in Persia, where women are even more steeped in Oriental languor than anywhere else, revolutionary chancres have taken place. Girls schools have -been established in all the towns and some c.f the villages, and numbers of girls go to Europe and America for their education. . Yet, in spite of all this, many responsible and , intellectual E a ster, n women agree in. thinking that in the long run their vex will permanently adopt only such: ideas -and ideals as suit them and will throw the vest overboard. Given the same opportunities to distinguish ihem s elves in public life as Western women, they wm not take advantage of those privileges to nearly the same extent. Physically less strong tha, n Western .women, they will not adopt strenuous games or work, with the s am e eagernessIntellectually th. e equals. of Western women, they -attach far less importance to the intellect than we do. Spiritually they are in advance of the West, and therein lies perhaps . both their, essential racial difference and the secret of their power and. charm. Their - conception of life .is;fond always will be spiritual, social and moral rather than intellectual, and to them the race is far more important than their own separate individualities..

-USING-- OLD 'RECORDS'.* 1

A splendid use to-make of ohl gramophone records is to mould them into bowls for flowers or for planting bulbs in. The reoerd should be put on top of a pudding basin and placed in a cool oven. It will become s°ft -and dioop in the middle, and should then bo quickly moulded into the' required, shape, as it hardens very soon. - Tho finished bowl may be painted if liked.

The same result egn be obtained by putting the record in .boiling valgr for a -few minutes until iff -is soft, h”t it is then more difficult to lilt out ioi moulding into shape. 'A shallow glass or china pot, or gingeff'jar can equally well be used. Vivid-coloured flowers jdok particularly well in these dullblack bowls.

IMPROVISING ROLLER BLINDS

To make improvised .roller blinds, to keep out summer sunshine that a too .strong cut, stout brown paper to width and length required, double over 4-inch- to, take tacks for tacking on to roller. Hem the bottom of blind on.- machine, using 10ng... stitch and s tout thread, to take stick at bottom. When blind is attached to roller, lay out flat, and apply shellac varnish on both sides with wide fine brush, and allow to dry. be.fpre winding .iback on roller. ■ i • • Insert, a small screw eyelet in centre of stick ia,nd attach cord,, anc economical blind is complete. J’ve >ihad one made as above m constant use and it is still as good as new; quite, fadeless-and wery hard to tell from an ordinary linen,,blind.

home-made soap

How To Use Up Spare Fat.

1. Take four pounds of clarified fat (warmed), 14 cupfuls of water,. one small tin of caustic soda, four ounces of'.resin, and four ounces- of 1 borax. At boiling point be careful to se<j that it does not boil over, as it rises veiy quickly. When thick enough, add one cupful of kerosene and 6d worth ot good eucalyptus oil. Remove from the . stove and stir occasionally while cooling. Leave the soap in the tin until the next day, then turn out and cut into squares. Store away for a month, when soap will be ready for use. 2. Take 61 pounds of mutton fat (free from salt), one pound caustic soda, one pound resin, half-pound oi borax, and two, gallons of water, Boil these .ingredients together, for two hours. Remove from the fire and add half .a cup of kerosene. Stir well with stick or poker. Pour into a, hox and put away to set. Next day cut into bars and leave to .dry.. The longer this soap is kept before use the better it is.