SHAPELY SHOES FOLLOW IN FASHION'S FOOTSTEPS

NZ Truth, Issue 1196, 1 November 1928, Page 21

SHAPELY SHOES FOLLOW IN FASHION'S FOOTSTEPS

Jottings of a Lady About Town

Life Sentence

JUDGE NOBLE ADAMS' tall daughJ ter, Margaret, had half Fendalton m to peep at her wedding to Crosby Morris, of the same garden suburb.

The Christchurch trees did their best to live up to their reputation. Tinted .maple leaves, m conjunction with flame tulips, were used for the decorations. , - '

The bride's gown was ivory romaine —and it's about time somebody spoke seriously to brides concerning the full, ankle-lengtli skirts which so many of them are ,adoptl«g, for, sweet and pretty though they may look, we don't want to lose our little short skirts altogether. If we don't look out, we'll be back m the bad old days when ankles were a luxury and legs a positive vice. '.'";■■.■.

Anyhow, from the picturesque point of view, nobody could cavil at Margaret's attire, nor at that of the four leaf- green bridesmaids, with their maize hats, golden taffeta sashes and flame-colored bouquets. There were two small attendants, Audrey, and Frances Adams, in -frilly, little frocks of maize georgette and Juliet caps of gold tissue..'

• • .•'.'■ '. •. . '■ '. * Wet— But Some Wedding

Jl/IOST of the "blue boys" of Trentham. * V1 will remember Jean ShirtcHffe, ■who used to take them for spins m her big Daimler at. such breath-taking speeds that .they forgot all about their war disabilities m wondering just how much would be left of tttem when the car met a . friendly lamp-post. But they never did, /or. Jean is a great little driver. , 'r ■

Happy the ,bride the sun shines on — or the rain rains on, either, 'judging by the smiling face which Jean showed beneath her escort of "umbrellas at St. Paul's Pro- Cathedral,- Wellington, where, last week, she .became ■ Mrs. Frank Henry Grear.

'Spite of tKe weather, there were more pretty -gowns at the GrearShirtdifCe . nuptials than at the races, and daintiest of all was. the bride, m her flounced -and filmy frock of pure white. She carried a bouquet of rose--pink tulips and asparagus fern, and the veil was fastened by a rope of pearls. "'"" . . • . ;; The two bridesmaids were as pink of gown as summer's first roses. •" They wore picture hats of pale pink crinoline straw, trimmed wtyh flat bows of .rose panne velvet, lovely tight-bodiced rosepink .gowns shirreds fit the waists and falling irito 'flares which met uneven hems flounced with tulle of a paler sliade. Their bouquets were of tulips, a deeper shade than those carried by the bride. . ' " There was a tiny flower-girl, Miss Betty Longuet, m a . rose-pink satin frock, Charlesl. style, and a wee Juliet cap. She carried a posy of pink flowers and seemed thoroughly to enjoy her part m the ceremony. ■ '■■.-. The bridegroom is tall, dark and good-looking, and wore, his frock coat with much^ignity.:- ''.•..■■'. After 'the ceremony." everybody splashed- out , to waiting taxis—and the water wias' so exceeding wet that npbody had the heart to throw confetti. We just let Jean take the. "good luck" ■wishes for granted^' ■■ : #'.-#' # Empire Express •?; - niREGTOB HONEY, of 'the carnival *^ organizations, says that he is trying to rfevivethe Great White Impress scheme which once before was thought of m Wellington. But this time, it's to have, jmprovemr"^" "~ rl "'«<■«*♦'"«■' At the close of the carnival, performers would be stowed- : away on board, gala costumes and all, and the express would puff off to all the main towns of >the North Island, stopping at each for about three days and giving a miniature carnival for the benefit of thp simple villagers. The entire tour would take from three to four weeks and quite a collection of odd shekels would be gather-' ,wi m frnm nirl sior.kines concealed m

0..* - * , Who'd Have Thought It? ' THE landing of the trans-Tasman flyers at Sockbum seems to have gone, somewhat, to Christchurch city's dear old<head.

Who'd' have thought that the staid elders of St. Giles' Presbyterian Church would have opened their portals to so frolicsome a business as a mock "trans-Tasman" marriage? The bride was Miss Sydney Sockburn and the groom Mr. Long-hop Trans-Tasman. • . Mr. and Mrs. Whirlwind were right there as the bride's parents and the Rev. Southern Cross looked after the business of the day. On the menu — offered at a thoroughly thrillsome reception — were .biplane jellies, fuselage salad, propelled cream, joy-stick sandwiches, cock-pit . cakes, Fokker fizz, monoploriade and take-off coda. :

Sporting— What?

\pONGRATS to Dorothy Chrystall on her golfing win. " She seems to have started the season off with a bounce, for just now every fair wearer of plus-fours. is< hard at it on the Wellington courses, where a tournament is being held.

And while we're about it,' dinna foreet the dear old-timers who still hold that a croquet mallet was invented for some higher purpose- than, to ( hit a re-fractory-husband'over the head. Croquet, too, has bobbed up oh the Wellington lawns— the more matronly half of feminine New Zealand is busy chasing blue balls and red through the natty little hoops. ■'.; . But what 'we're all sighing for, like the furnaces m the fairy tale, is the weather which will enable us to don bathing togs once more and fare forth into the creamy surf.- For some strange reason, bathing wear is much cheaper this season |han last — hope it doesn't mean 1 that, welll have more sharks m the water to make up for the decline of those- on land ! Anyhow, there are quite Lido-ish jret-ups m the shop windows— :not so many of the belted surf -suits which were so popular last season— but bright colors and jazzy touches m the way of stripes. , Talking of the Lido, a New Zealand paper recently published a photograph which does away for ever with the fiction that women are more brief m their costume ideas than men. The lady in*" ttte case was so frilled and f urbelowed as to bathing gown, that had she attempted to do more than paddle, she would without further hesitation have sunk.

But her companion — an English earl — didn't even wear the belt -with' which tradition credits his station. We need no further proof that the Lido brand of •unshine is just lovely. .

A Leading Lady "CINCE I've been m Italy, I am a great admirer of Mussolini and his method of governing," says Lady Lindo Ferguson. "Italy is a very different j place now to what it was ten or twelve years ago, and a Mussolini m New Zealand or Australia would do good sometimes." Perhaps Lady Lindo Ferguson's travels help her to help others by the broad-mindedness and novelty of her ideas. She has always played an interesting part m the life of Otago womenfolk, from the pioneer days when she was among the first women to stand for the hospital and charitable aid board. And Dunedin treated her kindly, for she was on the Otago board for six years, and had some happy days with her fellow-workers, with whom she still keeps m touch. , The year 1928 is, supposed to be ultra- progressive, _but m those days women came m at the head of the municipal polls, and there was perhaps more genuine enthusiasm among them for political and municipal work than now exists. Lady Lindo Ferguson's, favorite aniong-her many activities is the Otago Women's Club, and, as president she takes a great ' deal of pride m - its achievements. It is run. on thoroughly broad and kindly lines, with the idea of really helping women, not merely giving them a place where they* can write letters and play bridge. • The club is divided .into circles and women are drawn together by similar hobbies. Occasionally the art and craft sections' give an exhibition at which, their work can be sold;, other circles are used for the public good, such as the' motor circle, which takes patients home from the /hospitals after operation, gives them outings and provides very comforting Vspins" for the hard-: worked night nurse. The club is affiliated with three clubs m London — the Pioneer, the Foi-um>nd the Lady's Imperial— which means that travelling women have a home to go to on their arrival m "foreign. parts.", .■■■ It is not too much. to say that. the lady president is the; ■guiding spirit of the club m which she takes soVdeep an interest. She brings to it all the .warmth and vigor' of a naturally broadminded and active temperament, is always ready to explore new branches or receive- new workers, and has played a great part m building up a woman's club second to none m the Dominion. ••- --# * # ; Ohristchurch Crafts ■pO up one, if not two, Christchurch. .'The Canterbury Society of . Arts has so far unbent as to hold a special exhibition o£ "arts and crafts,'' ih which everything from twisty pewter spoons to embroidered scarves enjoyed the careful inspectibn of judges heretofore wrapped in ' contemplation of landscape and portraiture. Results were pleasing, if we're to judge from the nice things everybody said about everybody else. . And it certainly seems an advantage that womenfolk (even if men are too busy — or think they are) should be able to turn the.ir fingers to some such interesting and charming occupation as pottery, . fine needlework or metal work. . The crafts, have had far from their fair share of honor m this country. True, the technical schools make some sort of effort to bring them before the notice of pupils, but as a rule they are approached m a dillettante. spirit — not as interesting and attractive avenues of employment for clever women. « <* • Fair Exchange « A VERY new and quite clever idea is embodied m the Woman's Exchange, a little shop-office combined, which roosts above the staircase of Wellington's new Arcade. The exchange, which, is run by Mrs. Crumpton, takes and sells, on a purely commission basis, the hand-made goods of women from all over New Zealand. If the^goods aren't sold, they are returned and no chacge- is made. Lacquer-painted woodwork, dainty baby garments^ and. all the quaint things to which a country woman with time to spare can turn clever fingers, were represented . m the shop window. But the exchange has pother functions. It will buy as well as sell, on a commission basis also, for the woman who is — through living m the country or for reasons of. business— prevented from doing her own shopping. If a woman buyer wants, say, a teaset, she gives the exchange her top price arid some idea of what she wants. And the next thing she knows, said tea-set is embellishing her table. . The exchange seems a very bright idea and one which should bring much comfort to the lonely .backblocks lady. Incidentally, it is the only thing of its kind in' this country and those who are running it are energetic New Zealand women. #■■•'• * ■ '. Lift, Madam? LJOW. many Auckland, Christchurch n or Dunedin shops have followed — or intend to follow — the virtuous example of brie big Wellington drapery store, which has installed smart little lift-girls m all its elevators? The giiis wear, a > smocked .uniform and a smile, and are perfectly efficient at their job, which, m these days of electricity, is surely not sufficiently strenuous to develop the physical or mental muscles (if any) of the sterner sex. ' , ' •

Of- course, there are economic, conditions to consider. Even for the sake of tlie pretty lift-girl, it would be very inconvenient for employers to be beseiged by the starving-wives-and-seventeen-children-apiece of unemployed liftmen. But there is no gainsaying, the fact that women do the "odd jobs" o£ office or business life far. more satisfactorily than men. Take the ancient and honorable profession of caretaking. The male .caretaker's idea of taking care is usually to empty a wastepaper basket or so, light his pipe, sit down and ruminate on the sins of the capitalistic class. . Mo«t of our big city buildings would be decidedly. improved if a wild Avidow woman with a scrubbing brush were allowed to run amok* m them for the space of a week.

If People Walked On Their Heads

'THEY would still like their footwear to be as neat and dainty as this assemblage of shoes. Little sandals of plaited silk — the very latest and the nicest to "go" with your suit of fawn or putty chenille — vie with evening shoes on which sequins glisten m intricate patterns. There are the ever-likeable brogue shoes for tramps up hill and down dale — light, comfortable shoes for picnics on the beach — and, just so that our menfolk shall have no possible excuse for saying that women are extravagant m the matter of dress, they are given something very special for themselves m the shape of pumps of raisincolored leather.

All these shoes might be classed. — except by acidulous maiden aunts — as "sensible." But nowadays, one can wander quite gaily m the realms of fancy as regards footwear. Pink lizards do sound rather as if one shouldn't have eaten, that last bit of crayfish, don't they? But lizard skin, dyed m the most unusual shades, is being used, to adorn milady's feet,. and colored shoes are now being made m far better and more expensive styles than ever before. ■

[A Diva's Divorce tTRANCIE ALDA, who is seeking to *• bid a long farewell to matrimony — till the next time — is a New Zealander born, hailing, to be precise, from the stately city of Christchurch. But there's- 7 not too' much of : the cathedral touch about the diva's temperament, which may possibly be accounted for by Jthe fact. that, she left. New Zealand at' an early age and was educated at a Melbourne boardingschool. : . ■■'■ ' ': • Francie'.s . gifts, . both her beautiful voice and her handsome face,: improved, considerably with • maturity, but it was not until after her marriage with Giulio Gatti Casazza that she really took Broadway. by the ear. Her voice, sans husband or any otherform of support, ;has, yery genuine charms, and her tour, here surprised and delighted those- who had known her . m former days. ■ : But that the lady has a temperament and doesn't care who knows it, nobodycan deny, from the reporters whom she! threw downstairs to those associated^ with her stage work here. •■ And few, if any, married women can afford to have a . temperament before breakfast. It is to be hoped that her-: break with the famous impressarip and director of the Metropolitan Opera Company will have no ill-effects on her career as a singer, for Francie's voice is a gift of the gods: . '* • ■ * .'«••' ■'■ 'V. ; Golden Sands ; ... THE glitter of raw gold — foundation of kings' crowns and chorus v girls' photo -frames — has an appeal for most of us, even m these days of banknotes, when even a sovereign seems something rare and strange. All his life, R. T. Stewart, veteran prospector, has followed the glint,, through old mine, workings, m .quartz country — m fact, wheresoever there has been the very dimmest hope that a prospect would "show color." Now he is working on a five-mile West Coast beach, of golden sands, with the. aid of a company already fully subscribed. . And m rows of little glass bottles are arranged samples of the raw gold — a fine, glistening powder, drawn from the. shining sands which have been prospected at random before, but which now form the golden dream of a scientifically-arranged company and plant. / . ■ " Something of the glamor of old West Coast days — the Coast has always been a country of .romance^-hoyers around the ventur^.;^::. ■,-\]^-^' .^Jw'V. :: , • ' ■■■»--- ; ';-' : V- '■.■•'■■•*'■; '■■ ';'' : ''■"*" .' ■ Mavis and Marriage ..,; ;-.■;;; A BOUT ten years ago, when both were ■ very young and mainly occupied with basketball and bird's-nesting, Mavis Baty and Bert Davy, both of Christchurch, made a solemn agreement to marry.

Then their paths drifted apart. Mavis was a tall young maiden," "dainty as porcelain, who took a great interest m elocutionary efforts for the Canterbury Competitions Society (of which her dad is a prominent official) and Bert, m between patches of Rugby and.' cricket, was learning the ungentle art; of yanking forth molars. ;;: ; . But the Queerest things happen, m real life. Last week, Mavis ,; wore a bridal . frock of ivory georgette, -trim.-, mcd with tiny waterfall.; panels, and further glorified by a veil of Brussels lace— all for Bert's benefit: ■." ■ :'. It wouldn't have been inappropriate if the bride had passed, under ah arch of raised hockey-sticks and had basketballs thrown at her instead /of. confetti, for she is handy with both" of these implements and hei\ husband- /was a first fifteen and first eleven laddie at the Otago Varsity. Anyhow, sport was well to the fore, for George Scrimshaw, looking bronzed, and fit after his wing-forwarding m South Africa, was there to pass up the ring:. .-••■■■ -•-•••• - Betty A Bride BETTY FITZGERALD'S wedding, 'way down m dour and darksome Dunedin, just showed the New Zealand climate what one' could do m spite of wild weather. The bride's girl pals;had transformed the church into a bower . of lilac and laburnum, whilst behind floated a cloudy background of tulle m exactly the same' shade 'as vr ".the'- pale gold laburnum flowers. • ■ : .■ ,' Each pew had its ojvn tiny posies, of grape hyacinths, creamy polyanthus and forget-me-nots. The little bride's soft white gown of. crepe ninon was rather ; a relief , after the elaborate bridal get- ups which have smitten our eyes; this month; and her bouquet of . Marechal • Niel roses, and lilies-of -the- valley i held against a misty veil of Brussels lace, was something to make ; a 'florist feel parental pride. . Joan Halstead was bridesmaid—picture frock and wee poke bonpet; all m maize tints, with* .a 'big blue. taffeta bow at the hip-line of her frock;' Para and Sally Fitzgerald, the small people of the party, were all dressed up m pale primrose frock's,"', Empire, 'style.-. They had turn-back tulle bonnets. Betty, the bride, is now Mrs. Penny Sumpter, of Milton.