Fashion Hints for Islands Women
pp. 63-64 · Read in the full issue
By Therese
T'iAY clothes! Two simple little words, but of what tremendous importance to a tropical world tempted to cry so often “O would that they were not.”
White is of the greatest value in the keeping-cool process—crisp little cotton and linen dresses, little starched flowers of pique or organdie, bags, hats, shoes, gloves, all do their bit towards success in this direction. Morning, sports, and spectator frocks are of such simplicity too —slim, straight, and sleeveless, and backless, too, if you care —to be topped by cape or loose flying coat as you will for more formal occasions.
Other pale shades come into their own when allied with white for tropical wear.
Blue and white is a duet in coolness. A Chinese cape and a coolie hat of shiny blue straw, top cool white pique frock, sleeveless and buttoned from low back to hem.
A pale green handkerchief linen pops a large sailor collar of white, buttoning at the waist, over its bare back. One huge button does the job of keeping it in its place. Linen tailored suits with shorts and shirt as one, button on skirts to match the well fitting coats. White and pale linens are ideal for this type of thing.
A severely tailored suit of speckled linen sports a masculinely tailored shirt wuth tremendous success.
Seersucker, crisp and lovely cotton, in the gayest of checks and stripes (and so
easy to launder) makes the most delight ful informal day time frocks. Pocketed and buttoned with enormous buttons, their brief skirts are in keeping with the gay abandon of the material itself.
Afternoon gowns have simplicity and charm. De-lustred materials are popular.
A flat crepe gown of ice blue, features tunic effect and voluminous sleeves and adds a further compliment to youth by its white organdie jabot fastened at neck with exquisite clusters of the palest blue flowers.
Three-quarter coats with a definite swagger air flare out from pencil slim skirts. Taffeta petticoats swish as al luringly by day as by night and form a delightfully rich foundation for georgettes or chiffon frocks.
Dress clips are still among the most favoured of dress ornaments; but dress clips with a difference —stolen from the animal and flower kingdoms—range them selves attractively for our august choice.
Quaint little perky dogs bark from the lapel of your coat; the king of the beasts roams where he will, roaring his way to success, while the domestic feline purrs contentedly on pocket flap or scarf knot.
Exquisite leaf and flower posies soften afternoon and evening gowns and in dividual flowers of tinted glass clip in the hair.
Ensembles for evening are well to the fore. Colour combinations are vivid and startling, but blended with superb artfs
try. Evening wraps are lovely things.
Arresting capes are chosen from all the pageantry of the ages and cleverly adapted to modern needs. A purple cape goes over a red gown; a scarlet over a blue, bluer than any sea; a jade over a blush rose. A black cape, true Venetian style, throws itself dramatically over a classical gown of ruby red. Shot taffetas and moires in lovely colour combinations are perfection for the parachute cape shooting out widely from the sheath-like gown. Saris with all the exotic charm that only the East can bring are still bright stars in the firmament.
Pale shades take a definite place in the scheme of things for evening wear.
A gown of lilac blue —that misty shade of distant hills, ’twixt blue and lavender —pleats itself from neck to hemline, clings lovingly to the figure and falls in softest folds to silver slippered feet. A tulle cape, fitting accompaniment to so much loveliness froths its way to the knees.
Lemon leaf green, a new shade clamouring for recognition, makes a period gown of great charm and flaunt ingly adds a bow of scarlet at its waist line and ruffled neck.
A complete antithesis of the romantic
picture frock is the frock of satin, draped at hip line and bodice, and falling in classical folds, moulding the figure sculp turally.
Lace and more lace is Fashion's decree —ethereal dreamlike stuff of cobweb fine ness, dancing its way to gaiety and laughter. A charming frock of net, has black lace circles on its billowing hem.
White cotton lace makes a dinner suit of dual personality—at once masculine yet shrieking femininity. Masculine fashions are subtly poached on for every occasion; dinner suits of satin, linen mess jackets, pleated chiffon shirt fronts, one exquisite flower in the button hole, and low heeled shoes, of course. What more delightful wear for the tropics?
Simple dance or informal party frocks are an ever present necessity. Crisp designs in cotton, brilliant usage of colour, or sweet simple flower designs, fragrant as an old world garden, make clothes for festive hours delightfully worth while.
Very new and intriguing is the glimpse of lovely taffeta petticoat swishing out from beneath the hem of an ankle length gown. This style has so many possi bilities with material and colour contrast that it is worthy of emulation.
Tulle frocks, delicately embroidered with gold and silver thread as if by fairy hands, froth deliciously round the debu tante over mermaid slips of satin. Never were clothes so full of charm.
Hats are headlines with never a dull moment and all possess an individuality entirely their own. Crowns totter and fall, becoming no crowns at all as in the Chinese beret, flat as a coolie’s, with disc encircled centre. Crowns rise to un dreamed of heights—the stove pipe. They squash and drape themselves in ways possible and almost impossible, and al ways they are amusing. Like evening gowns they run the gamut of history’s every page. Sailors of the “King’s Navee,” poke bonnets, peasants, homburgs, coolies, pirates, haloes. What a world of contrast, leaving us bewildered by their variety and breathless with excitement.
They are made in felts, straws dull and shining, panamas, taffetas, layer on layer of stitched tulle, and so on ad infinitum and each and everyone calls for perfection of coiffure. Brims are im portant. They poke forward, roll over, turn up, push out, lie flat as a flounder, with all the ease and abandon of the contortionist.