Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-02-09

Il
Saving up" process may sound wise
to philosophers. and it may appeal to
hnanciers when translated In terms of
coins; but when 1t applies to apparel
the philosophy and the practice are all
wrong.
Can any woman answer the question
as to why she should look her worst
on day when she needs to look her
best? Why does she feel that every
occasion In life requires a certain kind
of costume, except a day of bad
weather? Thinking along the right
track would make one confident that
a special costume for rainy day is as
necessary as one for a dinner party.
The average woman in fact, the vast
majority of women. will tell you that
they wear out their old clothes when
the skies are gray, the snow flies and
the rain soaks the atmosphere and
floods the streets.
Il X
There are individuals who achieve in
life the distinction Of wearing old
clothes as well as they do new ones;
of investing any costume with GER
tain chic. But these are individuals.
We'd by all the others and who are
enabled, through this personal achieve
ment to be economical If they so de-
sire. They are class apart they are
not models for other women No one
can initiate them. An extraordinary
distinction in dress Is a gift as Harry
Lauder says, and not habit.
Now. cutting out these women who
may do anything they please in the
women to be guided, counseled and
chided In the kind of clothes they save
up for bad weather. If clothes cannot
be worn in the sunshine, it is obvious
that they are unbecoming. ungraceful,
out Of style. They must have serious
defects or they would continue in har-
ness. Hung in the dark corners of the
closet, and taken out only for the dark
hours of the day, they cannot be ex-
pected to glorify or enhance wom--
ans appearance. Yet one finds almost
invariably that these are the clothes
which dot the streets on rainy days;
that appear In the shops and that do
duty at luncheon.
And what is the result? A woman
dresses herself In all the things that
she dislikes and has discarded, goes
abroad under gray sky and finds
herself accepting an invitation to
lunch or dropping in for an afternoon
tea when the sun is shining. the
streets are dry and she looks like the
symbol of an old clothes shop.
Another curious phase In woman's
mind conceyning wet weather cos
tumery is that she must wrap hersel1
up in weighty garments that exhaust
her after two hours wear She does
not bring into her bad weather APP
parel the same cleverness that she
exercises in her other cold weather
clothes. She has learned, however,
through many preachments, that
weight Is not necessarily warmth;
that excessive warmth is injurious
when one is exercising, and that 1t IS
unhealthy TO constantly swing from
hot shop to cold street IN CLONES
intended for the temperature of the
latter and not the former. Taking II
by and large she merely onits bad
weather from her calculations when
arranging her wardrobe. She trusts TO
chance and to old clothes to carry her
through.
Bad Judgment, this. The American
woman lives in a climate that disports
itself capriciously throughout the win
ter and early spring, with no intention
of remaining serene and quiet for
more than few days at stretch. 1t
was Ihackeray, WASH ~, VIM S''u
that the American climate divided IT.
self into blzzards of cold succeeded by
billiards. of heat?
The truth Is there is an interim, q
weekly interim between the two, ana
for this the average American woman
does not prepare. II she had one sensl-
BILE, good looking costume that she
could put on with entire confluence
whenever the snow was thickest or
the rain at its height she would reailze
the serenity that comes from pelhg
prepared for the worst.
Although the military touches IN
women's costumery have not been
startling or aggressive. outside OF the
regulation uniforms worn by war
workers, there has been an iptroduc-
tion of other fabrics than those worn
in peace times. Leather, Tor instance
Women had nothing whatever TO DO
with this fabric, except for shoes ana
handbags, until the constant usage or
1t by soldiers on the streets of cities
gave rise to it's Introduction for wom-
ems clothes.
The British warm" the well known
coat invented by the nation that mas
given to the world the best uniform
produced by the war, Is garment
that was taken up. by women. Its
usage suggested coats that were modi-
fled editions of It,
Then leather skirts were taken up
for sports last year. and they have
been retained for rough weather in
cities this winter. 1t has been worn
In tan and in black, and there are
coats of IL made of that shiny kind
which one once saw on policemen.
Ruhherized cloth was brought In by