Feminine Interests

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 988, 3 June 1930, Page 5

Feminine Interests

Avoiding Clothes that “Tire” Easily

Fo resig h t Repays the Careful Shopper It is wise, when choosing new frocks, to consider how they will look sit the end of the season as well as at the beginning. However becoming they may be, it is well to avoid the tiny pleats in

chiffon or thin crepe mat double the cleaning costs, and never look the same afterward; or certain lovely pastel shades of beige that spot with a single drop of rain. Occasionally one may add these beautiful but fragile costumes to one’s wardrobe, wearing them when they are least liable to come to grief, but frequent indulgence spells wardrobe bankruptcy. To balance these depressing limitations, however, it is a cheering fact that chiffons, crepe de chines, satins and laces, apparently so delicate, are in reality very practical for their wearing qualities, and for both amateur and professional cleaning. When necessary, they dye like the proverbial handkerchief.

Material of uneven surface, such as moires, crepe satin, and failles, seem specially amenable to spot resistance and removal, and the same principle applies to woollens. The busy woman who has innumerable household or business errands to perform in person, who slides in and out of the driver’s seat of her car perhaps a score of times a day, finds great difficulty in preserving her coats and shoes. CLOTHES FOR THE CAR She should provide herself with a coat of rough cloth that will withstand the constant pull and strain that is imposed upon it. Shoes quickly lose their trimness in the endless release and pressure of the pedals, and are unavoidably scraped and soiled at the back of the heel where the foot rests heavily against the floor of the car as it presses the accelerator. If one is wearing light-coloured shoes or suede or satin slippers, it is not too frugal to wear driving shoes as well as driving gloves, and don the party footgear before alighting at the hostesses’ door. Hats, too, demand consideration. A well-fitted hat should not be ruthlessly dragged on to the head, but gently forced on, the palms of the hands spread on either side of the crown, just as the milliner flrst places it ceremoniously over the hair. Dresses and coats keep their shape and freshness best when hung on solid covered hangers, which most nearly approach the lines of human shoulders. Evening gowns with delicate ueck-iines and heavy skirts should not be hung from the neck and shoulders, but from the waist. Hand-knitted or loosely woven sports dresses should not be hung up at all, but laid flat and smooth in a drawer. Of great secret concern to every woman with a limited wardrobe are those dreadful chance spots that constantly occur. These must be attended to as soon as a dress can be taken off. Unless a spot, is sugary, french chalk should be tried as the first remedy. Even if it does not entirely remove the spot, it will absorb from it any grease it may contain. Pat the powder liberally into and round the spot and leave it for a while, preferably overnight, then brush it off, using a soft-bristled brush to remove the chalk adhering to the offending spot itself. More often than not the spot will brush away with the chalk. FOR SUGARY SPOTS If there is still a residue, lay under it a large clean cloth and apply a

liquid cleanser. Sugary spots should be treated with liquid cleanser first, and french chalk may be used afterward when the spot is dry. This will remove any trace of ring or blemish. Then press the garment on the : wrong side under a slightly damp cloth, and this touch of steam-press should steam away any lingering discolorotion. Another emergency treatment for crumpled or slightly soiled dresses, and especially valuable for velvets or when travelling, is an “hotel press." This consists of hanging the dress by a hanger in the bathroom over the shower connection, or some other safe high place near the bath, turning on the hot-water tap to its hottest, steamiest extent. The dress must nor hang in the steam long enough to become saturated with moisture, but just long enough for a good steaming, after which it should be removed to drier air. Wool jerseys should be washed in pure soap flakes, squeezed gently, and while still damp laid to dry on white paper, upon which has been traced the exact size and shape of the garment before washing If all these hints are faithfully adhered to, it will do much to preserve the freshness and charm of the wardrobe.

Study Your Type

Good Taste a Vital Asset \ Good taste is an asset of vital ini- ; : portance to women, and one which is i : inherent in only a few lucky ones, j ! The rest should cultivate it. The first thing a woman intent : j upon developing a flair for clothes j j should do is to study her own type, j j If she is svelte and blonde and in- j j sipid, she sets out to make the most j j of herself. If she is a victim to i exuberant curves, and eyebrows au ; inch broad, she does her best to make | the least of herself. The blonde, if she is wise, wears j simple clinging garments, delicate in tint, and she adds a touch of rouge to her cheeks, only a touch, of course, and she darkens her fair eyebrows and lashes just a suspicion to throw up the sparkle of her blue eyes. The plump brunette must be more careful. She starts with a diet, and while she is waiting for the diet to achieve the slender silhouette, she chooses filmy indefinite frocks that add a mature grace to her abundant charms. She tidies her eyebrows This task she is very careful about, as she knows that nothing looks more ridiculous than a thin line drawn j across a. swollen and denuded brow j Eyebrow's give great character to a j face, and although they should not be j allowed to wander vaguely all over a ! woman’s forehead, it is criminal to ! pluck the brow into- the semblance of ] a chicken prepared for the pot. BEWARE OF THE WAIST When fashion demands that waist- j lines be high, women must beware j Nothing is simpler than to take any j belt and tie it round the narrowest I portion of the human trunk. True, j by so doing the present style of | waistline is achieved. But, despite the backless tendency, there is more to a smart frock than the w'aistline. and it is the rest that counts. An attractive belt tied tightly round the narrow waist of the attenuated modern damsel has great charm But as a dividing line between the overflowing contours of her matronly mother it is a mistake. The plump woman must make a few concessions to her own avoirdupois, and she must not adhere too closely to the restrictions of an uncompromising style. If ankles are unshapely it is a pity to wear shoes that attract attention to anything so fundamental. if a woman’s figure cannot stand the severe test of a sun-tan bathing costume, she would do w'ell to wear a simple black one, or one that does not despise the assistance of a little camouflage in the way of a modernist design, to help conceal the multitude of sins of which she cannot help being conscious. But always she should remember that subdued and sombre colour schemes are kindest Good sense and good taste decree that a woman is best dressed w-her she is not too conspicuously attired She should study her type and dress to suit it, not to cause a sensation.