Ladies' Column.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 14 August 1914, Page 2

Ladies' Column.

COLOURS WHICH MAKE A W0-

MAN LOOK YOUNG

It is not every woman who under- I stands the art and necessity of har- ■ monising culmirs. She is apt to • ho swayed too much by the decrees . of fashion when selecting shades for , a new hat or dress, and the result, t more ofien than not, is great con- j trasts, which accentuate instead of hide defects of the face and figure. The woman who desires to look her best must select only those colours which will l>e helpful to her. Women differ so much in form and colouring that each must be a law unto herself. Taking the fair and florid, a type generally inclined toward obesity, she may lie said to be fairly safe'if she will adopt dark colours or shades below the bust line, and select those near her face with a view to becomingness. Pale blue, perhaps, has been her colour in youth. Now the baby blue must be replaced by soft pastel shades, pale green by reseda, and faded heliotrope must be chosen in preference to mauve. White and cream near the face will bo. becoming, and so, too, will pale yellow. _ Hull black will be better than shiny materials, and this, with navy blue, will be the very best choice for street wear, but it must not be forgotten that the former re- j quires relief about the face. I Thin, sallow women should avoid black. Navy blue is by no means kind, but deep rich dark red, strong goldea brown, and reddish tan are good, and so are warm, deep greys. The colourless type must especially beware of bright vivid tones of any colour, and select those in delicate colouring in order to bring into relief any remaining freshness of tint in hair or eyes one may still retain, but which in all too fresh-looking1 shade would to- | tally eclipse. Hove, grey, ivory, and soft old blue are charming for this type of woman, if not too stout. Dull mar terials and velvet, relieved by old lvo.-y lace about the bust, will be the wiser choice for those inclined to embonpoint. More oft'jn than not the middleaged woman adopts black, not so much because she thinks this sombre colour suits her as on account of the fact that it is generally considered correct for women .of her age. If the average »oman only knew how black proclaims every fading, ruthlessly shows up each line and wrinkle, increasing fourfold even il.e faintest tint of sallowness in the skin, she would not perhaps be so fond of it. Taking the colours as a whole, a middle-aged woman may safely choose grey heliotrope, the" faded shades of rose dv Barry, old rose, reseda, pastel shades of dark blue and green,* gobelin blue, yellow, and the darker colours before mentioned. Ln regard to materials, simple rich ones, well cut and made., should always be chosen in preference to flimsy, fussy-looking toilettes. The wise woman knows that she looks younger in every way in new simple evening toilet of some rich dark. kind, cut on becoming lines, than though she donned the gegandies and ribbons belonging by right to the girl of eighteen. She it is, too, who chooses a well-out tailormade gown and smart turban or toque for her street toilet, eschewing all flipperies, over-trimming, and picture hats as being likely to bring forth ridicule rather than commendation. " Harmonious effects," a wellknown modiste and costumier informed the writer recently, " are often gained by combining red and green, provided the right shades of these colours are used. But take a red which is dulled with brown, and it may be trimmed with dull green with harmonious results ■ or a soft, dull green gown may be combined with trimmings of dull red without violating ' the rules of colour harmony. "Brown and blue are not complimentary colours, and yet many persons are given to combining brown and blue. All browns are either yellow or orange dulled witU black. There are red browns and yellow browns, and the most harmonious combinations" for frhese are warm yellows, orange, or red with a yellow tone in it. "Brown is a warm colour ; grey, or most greys, are cold ; therefore the latter—the blue greys in particular —combine well with pale blue. "Pink in the hands of an artist may have a good many liberties taken with it, and with happy ' results, in the hands of the average woman it combines best with white or black or a slightly deeper shade of pink. There is a soft pale green which is the complementary colour of pink, and I have seen a French woman combine violet, blue, green, and pink in one costume with exquisite colour effect and harmony. "No, I do not advise always having a hat the same colour as the costume. That is not necessary to I preserve harmony. It is necessary, however, to have the hat accord with trimmings of the costume or some tone of colour in it. "For instance, if the latter is brown, trimmed with ecru of orange trimmed with brown. A black hat worn with a blue gown will look very well, whereas a brown hat and a blue gown j. u.vLa.^osition are awful."