Fashion and Things Feminine.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 5, Issue 238, 29 December 1916, Page 7 (Supplement)

Fashion and Things Feminine.

A JERSEY BLOUSE WITH SAILOR COLLAR.

Some of the simplest fashions for summer wear are jersey blouses or sailor blouses, made of washing materia! such as tussore or erepon. Some of these are drawn at hip-level into dee;.) bands of their own material, others are loose at the end, and are merely hemmed.

Tho blouses are made in various ways, and are fastened sometimes at the back, sometimes in front, and, again, they are made placketless, the neck l«?ing opened sufficiently deep for the head and arms to be slipped through easily. If the opening is very dt'ep, it is laced across, and this method adds a decoratitve touch to tho blouse, especially when the lace is in n contrasting colour.

The charming persey-blouse illustrated is quite simple to make up, and is suitable for white duck, natural-col-oured or dark blue tussore, linen, and so on. The skirt worn with it might be of material to match, or of navy-blue serge. The patern of the jersey is in five

parts, which include half the seamless hack, one front, half the collar, one sleeve, and one cuff. The.se pieces are indicated in the diagram, and they should be disposed in the manner illustrated on 2i or 3 yards of 36-inoh material, folded in half lengthwise, the straight edges of back and collar being laid to fold to avoid seams. The other pattern pieces are cut out in duplicate. The notches shown indicatehow to unite, correctly, the various pattern pieces, duplicate .single notches and double notches agreeing, of course.

Very pretty is the shape of the sailor collar, and an effective finish is given by a hem-stitched border. The cuffs, also hemstitched, should be lined, and there is ample from the waste of material to line these, and also to face the fronts of the jersey to the depth of an inch or two. The front fastening should be arranged with grips or wita loops and flat buttons, sewn beneath the front-lap. The shoulders are seamed, and the sleeves are joined just below the shoulders, and at the wrists they are drawn into the cuffs, the edges sandwiched between cuff and lining. A fair-sized hem is made at the bottom of the jersey, and a sailor-knot tie adds a dainty touch to the neck.

This is one of the most becoming styles for girls, and is well worth copy.: ing.

WASHING FROCKS. Concerning washing materials for the summer, these offer a very pretty and varied choice, and since simple styles prevail, it is no difficult matter to hit upon a mode that is at once fashionable and suited to a dress or costume that must needs pay frequent visits to tho laundry. Among tailored styles that suggest themselves as well suited to washing

I fabrics, are the plain, full skirts and short, Icose coats that have leaped into favour, and aro developed in cloth

By IDA MELLER - - Copyright.

and serge as wcii as Linen materials. i..iK'ii ot double quality is beat for the tailored suit, since iu crumples less easily than the liner quality and better stands the test of constant washing. Nice, simple linen costumes are those with skirts that fasten m front and are trimmed with buttons from waist to foot, and coats that are either of the sac- typ,* and quite short, or are of the more ordinary tailor-made character; that is, semi-fitting and altogether neat, the fronts ia,stened with buttons matching those on the skirt.

As usual at this season, the tussore suit is met with in good variety, and it •j sometimes arranged with a black silk collar at the neck. This is of the detachable kind, so that it can be easily removed without the bother of unpicking when the costume is sent to be washed or cleaned. A well-made, nat-ural-coloured tussore coat and skirt costume can always hold its own against other suits. The colour is so cool-lcoking and Incoming, and strikes a welcome change from a surfeit of tailored fashions developed in dark colours, however useful these in their turn may be.

A smart flock, that would copy well in tussore, cotton shantung, or linen, is illustrated. It would look well in brown linen, with a trimming on the bodice composed of round pearl buttons, and cream braid loops. The fronts of the bodice are gathered to a and the neck is turned bad with a handsome collar.

The sleeves, like the bodice, arc trimmed with buttons and loops. The skirt is a very nice one. It is rucked at the waist and finished with a small, natural frill, and the fastening could be arranged at the side or the back. The material hangs very full and above th? hem is arranged to form a deep tuck, running round the figure. Illustrated with the frock is a picture hat, such as one sees made of sill:. It is simply trimmed with a band of narrow velvet-ribbon and a single flower.

A GARDENING BASKET. Women with gardens may be glad <•' the following little hint on how to arrange a basket in which to put flower* as they gather them.

Obtain an oblong market basket, and an old broom-handle, or rakehandle, and attach the basket to tho pole by inserting the top part of tho latter through two slits made in one side of the basket. Attach a small strip of canvas to form a pocket to hold scissors, but previously give the whole contrivance a coat of green paint.

Sharpen the bottom end of the poll? to a point, and thrust this in tho ground when gathering flowers or shrubs. Thus the flower-basket can always be at the right height to avoid stooping on the part of the flowerpicker. When gardening necessitates kneeling—such as when weeding, for instance it is well to use a kneeling-bas-ket, made similar, in shape, to a dustpan. The bottom should be padded, and the upstanding edge bound with braid or canvas.

THE FIGURE. The mots important tiling to be observed in encouraging a good figure is to hold the back up. How well one remembers the injunctions of childhood: "Hold up your chin, put back your shoulders, throw out your ciiest, keep your elbows to your sides,'' and so on! Now, forgetting all about shoulders and elbows, give the spine an upward concavo curve, or. in plain wcids, well tuck n ti.? smal lof the back, and all the rest f;.':'ows as a matter of course, and all the rest of the figure Incomes easy and graceful. A weak back means a bad figure an<J a sunken chest. Watch a good walkev, cyclist, dancer or horsewoman. The undulating motion by which the ridesr seems to lie giving impulse to her horse and to be taking the animal along with her rather than being carried, all comes from a free use of the lower vertebrae, proving that this point is the pivot and mainspring of the figure. Th-» good walker, too, will owe her excellent carriage to the poise of her back.