New-York tribune., 1909-12-19
LINES AND COLOR
'Kno1cledge of Them Essential
to artistic Gorcning.

'If you can't paint a picture. then az
least you can be one" said MISS Srace
Hitchines. of the Teachers College School
of Household Arts. TO her class IN costume
design, the other day. ITO think that the
artistic and the beautiful are things sep
arate from everyday life is not the IDEAL 10
be held to-day Art can he applied to COM
merce too and should be put to practical
use AS some people reserve their religion
for Sundays, so others apply their Ideas on
art and beauty only 10 paintings ana
sculpture"
The object of Miss Hitchings's course l.
TO study art in dress. to study the history
OF dress, and to examine paintings 10 see
what the great artists considered beautiful
In woman's clothes. Not only teachers and
Illustrators are taking this course, but
dressmakers who would learn to adapt the
styles TO women of all sorts and sizes
"First we study the principles Of design.
said Miss Hitchings This means lines.
principally The lines OF the dress should
roiiow the silhouette of the igure-they
should suggest. not reveal the lines and
curves of the human form. Take the line
81 the ribs-nothing has ever been invented
that is more beautiful than the bolero and
that is only because IL accentuates the
lines of the skeleton. And for this reason
the bolero keeps coming back in one form
or another.
The crinoines and long pointed waists
had only short season. because they
made the human form look grotesque
Woman is the most beautiful thing that is
created. and we should Strive 10 reveal her
beauty BY the drapery we put on her. not
TO make a show of her.
Think Of the contrast between the pict-
ures Of Queen Eliza beth and Queen Louise
Of Prussia. The one is so completely hid
den ny ruffs and puffs and headdress that
there is nothing left of her. while the other
I presents charming harmonious picture
OF true won auliness in the simple. flowing
gown that conforms to the lines of her fig
ure. The first Queen merged her person
ality in her clothes. the second made her
clothes express her personality.
There are no set rules about colors and
the people who should wear them" con-
tinued Miss Hitchngs but We can at least
study the theory OF color and apply II 10
the best OF our ability. A combination Of
the three elementary colors Is always
good thing TO get-that is why blue is so
apt to be becoming 10 the blonde. for there
you have yellow in her hair, pink in her
cheeks and blue in her dress. Then there
are Complementary colors-cofors which off
set each other. woman with red hair
who wants to make 1t conspicuous will wear
green; IL she wants to conceal it. she will
wear brown. a blond woman who wears
yellow runs the risk OF killing all the gold
in her hair, but IL she wears violet she Is
pretty sure TO bring out every bit Of lustre
1t possesses.
Care must be taken in getting a good
proportion Of light and shade in a gown.
Some dresses seem to have spots Of color
that Jump out at you. A young person can
wear black much better than an old one.
Black accents the lines in the face, and
the elderly woman with wrinkles ought
rather TO wear pale. soft shades. White
makes things larger; that Is why IL is the
color for the small woman. Coiors close
10 the skin are trying to any complexion
they should be relieved with a little white
at the throat under all circumstances.
Every woman should Try. above all 70
be herself If she is stately and dignifed
she should not dress like a kittenish. lit
tie person, but in queenly and majestic
clothes. II she is petite and dainty she
should wear soft, clinging clothes, not stin,
mannish things. We are greater than our
clothes, and should therefore make them as
inconspicuous as possible. But they can
only be inconspicuous by being in perfect
harmony with ourselves. Even if our time
and our pocketbooks are limited, we can
avoid wearing atrocious things. To say
that we are above the material and will
not bother with such sordid things as
clothes is as foolish as TO follow the fash
tons blindy.
Simplicity is the keynote Of good taste.
I DO not mean that a woman should not
. spend hundreds of dollars on her clothes II
she desires. but that clothes should have
less trimming and more careful workman
ship; less elaboration and more grace. l
think we are slowly getting back 10 an'ap
probation of Greek simplicity, and when
We have the public taste educated. We
won't have some of these awful things like
peach-basket hats. vivid piaids and over
loaded trimmings put into the fashions