Evening star., 1923-09-16


fine autumn weather, Is that Of
clothes Women and girls always
have this problem tucked away in
handy corner of their minds so that
they can put it out at a moments
notice any season of the year. ana
indulge in worrying over it. Few
girls are Indifferent to the charms OF
shopping and bargain hunting and 1t
is the most popular game of all with
the majority of women and girls.
Alreaiv the janitors are sweeping
!. out re summer dust and getting tne
they enjoy only this once during the
= entire year. This means that Ihe
school girl must buy or make her
dresses that she will want 10 re-
place the faded sweaters and sun
burned white skirts of her summer
wardrobe
Even today many girls do not re-
alLe that the selling OF clothing ana
reached the stage. of being fine
art 1t isn't every girl who can step
behtrd counter and make success
as a shop girl. There are many de-
tails of service and knowledge OF
the merchandise that must be pains
1akingly learned and remembered.
Similarly. ass the art s,of selling
goods has developed, the art of buy
perfected. II is q wise young lady
who knows just what she wants be-
fore she enters a store; otherwise
she may find herself emerging after
the safe with something very at
tractiNe that the skHlful' clerk sold
her but not the least bit along the
line OF what she really wanted.
Another important phase of the
financial limitations The girl must
Shaye her limit as TO price already
ydehntte in her own mind or she is
liable to get something much more
expensive than she can really afford.
Z x ;; <
THROUGH the medium of the do
l. mestic science and art classes in
the public high schools, the girls are
LEARNING many valuable facts that
htlp them immensely when shopping.
'For instance. the Intelligent shopper
has learned enough about textiles to
be able to judge OF their quality and
specific uses. She will inform herself
about the properties and values of
WOOL, cotton, linen and silk; how
they wear, shrink. crease or crack;
why taffeta splits so readily. and the
KIND OF serge cloth that is apt to
wear shiny quickly. Among the staple
fabrics she knows that india linen"
IS really made entirely of cotton and
that popfin and some OF the pongees
are mercerized cotton.
such shopper understands the
ecohomv OF buying ali linen or all
WOOL 70 certain purposes and yet
puylhE cheaper substitute that may
look ~ well but will not wear SO
long 'or other purposes.
Mahv glr!s do not stop to think
mat The kind of clothes which they
ShouId buy can best be determined
by the NEEDS and uses TO which they
VIII be put. a schoolgirl can get
'lnuch more wear out OF a simple
Jersey or tailored serge frock than
Arom more elaborate cloth frock.
et the business girl who must dress
St seven O'Clock in the morning for
business to be followed by dinner
downtown finds the more elaborate
but inconspicuousiy SO frOck the
more practical for her purposes
a The high school girl finds many
occasions when she can use sweaters
nd pleated skirts in the winter time
zine girl in the business world how
4eNer. has small use of such a COM
bination of clothing except in the
spring. summer and early fall when
she may may 20 into the open after work
and play golf or some other game.
The girl who expects to go to
many concerts and teas during the
winter season will need either a very
III GSSS ClOtI dTtSS OF "a simple SILK
frock of rich material. On the other
hand, the schoolgirl who goes in the
balcony to the comparatively few
concerts which she may attend and
only goes to the most informal of
teas once in a while with her intimate
girl friends. does net need 4 dress
of this type at all,
ANY girl can use n simple dark
blue serge suit TO advantage on many
occasions and simple afternoon and
evening combination dress is another
Indispensable costume Most girls
and a cape in their wardrobes.
X = x; /:
r IKE everything else however. the
II dress problem for the young girl
IS one that must be decided by
each individual girl She must take
into consideration the amount OF
ASponey she can spend for clothes dur
ing the coming season, the clothes
Il left over from last. year that can be
used again, the precise needs for
completing her new wardrobe, and
then visit the shops to fill those
needs
1t usually has proved more satis-
factory to go shopping in what has
Wheen termed "wfndow shopping"
II fashion at first In many cases the
shopper VIII tFten see just what she
wants and get ii al her ease, that is
without the strained nervous tension
that she is liable to feel if she waits
until she absolutely must have the
particular object OF her search and
then dashcs in frenzfed fashion in
one store and out of another in fran
tic state of mind.
1t has become. a proverb with more
than one group of shoppers that one
IS much more liable to find exactly
what one wishes when one is "iust
looking" and doesn't feel the pressing
need of buying, than when waiting
for actual need. The fact that the
hest dressed women of ordinary
means are generally those who fol-
low these methods would seem to
verify this modern provrrb.
1t il a matter of congratulation to
the heads of the domestic art depart
menCs in local schools that the girls
in their classes take such personal
interest in the clothing that they
1lake. According to these chief in
S struetors, the girls can hardly wait
BuntIl they have pulled the final bast-
ings from a dress or put the lining in
q hat they have made before they
want to don the completed work and
wear il for all the world to see.
In this way girls ana clothes are an
inseparable problem in the public
schools and form one of the most
sSAractical answers to the common
ense schedules and adaptation of
studies in these schools.
Paoeantry and Girl Scouts