Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-10-26

~ stride through the winter, the
n observer of fashions finds tina
there Is still SUFFICIENT variety
to suit the minds Of all the women.
Some things have become common
lied; others are on the outer rim.
Women are debating as to what they
should accept. Wholesale houses have
copied certain outstanding features in
such large measure that they are
spread like fungus growth over the
continent.
Clothes are singularly like those we
have worn when one sees women in
mass, and yet. those of US who have
been studying the situation for months
in Paris know there Is little reason for
the woman Of this winter to look like
the woman Of last winter. If she ac-
cepts the French fashions. she will not
appear as she has in recent years. In
Francois all of you know by this
time-through the constant repetition
Of it In the newspapers, as well as by
word of mouth, the gulf Of difference
fixed between the women of France and
the women Of America, as shown in
the streets Of Paris, was amusing; 1t
was SO vivid that 1t even provoked
arguments that approached quarrels.
X
The two sets of women might have
come together from the poles. There
was nothing in common between them.
Their features, clothes, gestures and
viewpoint were totally dissimilar. This
is an old story, and the only reason for
it's repetition is that women persistent
ly ask at every turn if it is true that
the French clothes as worn by the
Paris women are utterly different from
ours Do they wear short skirts, do
they wear three-inch sleeves, is it true
they are stockingless, and do they paint
their skin brownish yellow? The an
swer is that they do all of these things
and the Americans do none of them.
over in Paris, the first of autumn.
every one told US that American skirts
were getting much shorter. The sur
prise was great. therefore, to walk up
the streets of New York later and see
women in skirts that swept the instep,
even in tailored gowns.
The reaction is bound to come.
American women do not look well when
going about their various Anglo-Saxon
activities in long skirts that impede
their walking and sweep up the dust.
There is nothing clever about 1t, or at
tractive. or sensible. Surely, the taiiors
will adopt q compromise between the
French and the American skirt. 1t is
the necessity Of the hour.
The feeling Of tho prophets is that
the seven-inch skirt for the street may
Snto %,,ll % hAf sIov h.
giving and that women may continue
to wear long ones for the evening.
The topsy -turvy condition Of the
world is reflected in the industry of
dress, when the American tailors talk
Of shortening their skirts to meet the
French idea, and the French Dress
makers talk Of frightening their skirts
to meet the American idea. Just here
is where the hope Of q good COM
promise lies.
It is too early to predict what will
actually be worn after Thanksgiving,
for in America, as in France, the
masses DO not dominate the fashions
and the smart women do not buy their
clothes early in the season. The chaff
is sifted from the wheat in November,
but until that time q good deal of
guessing goes on and a vast amount
Of careless and indscreet buying.
If a woman buys clothes in Septem-
Der, she must be a sufficient philosopher
to endure possible regret in November.
AS a rule, the early season definitely
establishes the width Of skirts and the
length Of coats, but rs far as the season
has gone, neither Of these questions
has been settled.
1t may be that the American exhibi-
tions Of clothes have borrowed a certain
something from the chaotic conditions
shown in the French houses. for IT. was
quite evident to the observer that many
styles were tried in order to please
many people.
1t is always well for the trade and
good for the public when there is no
one ruling fashion or contour. for a
woman who then asks II she should buy
wide skirt because it is in fashion
can safely be advised to buy narrow
one IL 1t suits her figure.
The one outstanding fact Is that
there must be width between waist and
knees. The underskirt may be mar
row, although many advance frocks
show 1t wide, but the. tunic must be
full. Even Cheruit, who clings to the
long. slim redingote, has put slight
nipples into the hem of this garment,