Evening star., 1918-04-14
can adopt these clothes without work
ing injury to herself.


Those who do not caro- to give single
extra moment to their dressing heaved
a sigh of relief when they realised tnas
the straight cloth skirt and simple
Jacket would be considered exceedingly
smart for the ton working. hours OF
the day. But I think the sigh OF relieI
was premature. Tho woman who wants
to tumble into a comfortable skirt ano
SLIP on q loose Jacket with 2 Wntse WHY
shirtwaist will'not have her wish graz III
fed this season II she e1pects "
main in the fashion.
skirts are not especially comfortable
to the careless women, because tnsy
must be slimly cut and marrow as ne eae
hem. and they are really intended Tor
slim women. Jackets are not loose, ana
they cannot be carelessly adjusted.
They have narrow. shoulders. tight arm-
holes. long sleeves. slim ,untad nnael-ars, aYa,s
a figure that is properly dressed fro
'Is It 1 is said that all the corsets and
lingerie had to be changed to CORE
spond with the new costumes, ana one
can well believe 1t. II ones outer gar
ment is to be cut after the silhouette
of pencil there can be no comfort Io
the wearer. unless the corset ana the
lingerie are correspondingly cut There
rough lines at the waist, no fullness
across the bust, no bunE1ing at the
armholes caused by undershirts or
chemises. The woman who Is ABOUT 70
step into one of these new and accepted
tailored suits or gowns must be as snip
shape as race horse going TO tne
track There must not be one unneces-
sary ounce OF clothing on her, nor 9
single curve or bulge or bit of massed
material from neck to heels. Unless she
learns that lesson and learns 1t thor
oughly she may as well pass py the
new American and French clothes ana
wear the loose, full ones OF year ago.
The severity that America lays down
for us in the morning is easily changed
into a floating gracefulness as laio
down by France for the late AFTERNOON
and evening.
It is vet to be seen whether America
will go in extensively for afternoon
gowns, according to the French CUSTOM
but there is one thing OF which we are
quite certain; II the american ny, woman naan
likes an afternoon gown she VIII wear
it through the evening. unless some
formalfty. of entertainment demands
more ornamental frock.
France has cut her silhouette as slim
as the American designer has cut 1t for
tailored costumes, but France gives
note Of the first empire in the seductive
way in which she drapes this narrow
foundation with floating. transparent
material.
The trick is not confined to house cos
tunes: 1t plays a good role in street
gowns also in a modified and demure
manner. tunic Of georgette crepe. Tor
example, will be dropped over slim
underslip of silk OF satin, and the
sleeves will float away from the arms
and come back suddenly to the wrists,
where they are tightly caught in. But
this gown will not be accepted by the
American woman for the street. She
will cling to her newly revived tailored
frock or suit, and she will keep that
French thing for the afternoon or even
ing.
There is a strong note of economy
struck in these new French clothes.
which is heard by the woman who is
hiring a seamstress to build up her
spring wardrobe at home. It shows the
way to alter old gowns into new ones.
The majority Of women own evening
frocks that have good foundations, the
skirts a trifle too full. 1t is true. but
otherwise ready to serve as the begin
ming of new frock4 The alteration in
the skirt is a simple one. 1t consists Of
Strengthening out all the seams SO that
there Is no flare from the hips down.
This trick is going on in all the sew
ing rooms Of the continent, for the
straight skirt Is so we'll established that
even the casual woman has observed
that she is entirely out of the picture
in any garment that has f1aring seams.
After the satin or silk evening foun-