The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1921-02-21
OUR SPRING FASHION SHEET
History of Gowns From the Fig Leaf
To the Transparency of Today
j.. Sketched BY Our Famous -,
{ Authority on Style,
Mile. Marie
proper Gander)


Before discussing this subject, we
must first know of its beginning.
Eve, who was the first woman God
put into the world, was the first wom-
an to be clothed. The occasion for
this was her eating the forbidden1
fruit, and bringing sir into the world.
After this SIN sne and her husband,
Adam clothed themselves: Ewes first
garment being made of fig leaves.
The first garments after those of
Adam and Eve were very loose ones
which seemed merely to be thrown
around the body rather than styled.
But, as the world began to advance
ir civilization, its styles Of dress also
advanced in material and adornment.
The majority of people were neatly
dressed yet not extravagantly for a
while. Let US look back at our pilgrim
mothers who came to America, and
see the sipleness of their dress. These
ladies wore black dresses with large
white collars and cuffs modestly de-
signed. They also wore very plain
white caps.
Let us now look back into the age
Of our grandmothers when we con-
slider the styles Of dress at that time,
we would think them very queer as
compared with our modern styles.
The women in this age wore very
long dresses with full skirts. Many
dresses of which there were long
trains. Our grandmothers also wore
their dresses very high at the neck
Their evenings gowns were neatly de-
singed with many ruffles and frills,
ribbons and laces.
Since this time the dress Of woman
has greatly changed and in this pres
ent, year nineteen twenty-one, there
are such styles before US which were
never dreamed of half century ago.
Women have begun to think that, !,
dress is the very purpose Of their ex-
istence; and that they must be ex-
travagantly clothed. do not criticise
the desire of woman to look well I
and be becomingly dressed, for such
things she owes to herself, her fami-
ly, and her friends. But to be becom-
ingly dressed does not mean that one
must be continually buying and spend
ing beyond her means.
Since we have said that style of
dress has greatly changed, let US
c6mpare a few fashions of nineteen
twenty-one with those Of fifteen six
ty. Instead Of skirts sweeping the
ground and gathering up countless
germs, we must now regard the pres
ent day skirts, exposing the knee
even; for the stockings are being
rolled below the knee, and with the
dress. above, it is quite picture to
behold. There is change from those
dresses with high collars choking, ,the
wearer most uncomfortably to those
of the present day, soalow that they
Ercarcely merit the name of waist.
From the neat and modest evening
gowns, we must note the change to
those with no backs at all and moth
ing to support the fronts, so that the
mystery is how they remain in posi-
ton. Oftimes we see ladies' hobbling
around as though they might be ply
sically affected. There are those who
, would not be able to run in case of
life for death. When investigating
what do we find to be the cause Of
all this? Simply the change of fashion
For those very wide skirts of our
grandmothers have changed to those
so narrow that one has to Wake as
Chinese. Last but not least OF these
changes that shall mention is the
change from those manifold petticoats
Of. Our grandmothers to the present
Lay fashion of none at all and gar
ments so sheer that everybody's eyes
are X-Rays.
What IS the meaning of all these
;, immo est garbs with which the ladies
Of neteen twenty-one are adorning
, themselves? 1t is simply that after
long age of improvement and better
A ing of the fashions, they are begin
ming to decrease and become inferior
to those which have been., If the wo-
men continue to indulge in such