Evening star., 1924-12-21
nv MARY MARSHALL.

ITO BE IS or thereabouts at
Christmas time and New
Years is to need party clothes
and still more party clothes.
For this is the season when
older folk must make way for the
youngsters; jazz-mad mothers must
give place to dancing daughters, and
one-stepping fathers must sit quietly
by and let their sons and their sons
chums from college dance with all
the pretty girls. For soon boys and
girls win be back at schools and col
leges, and all these gay holiday
frocks will be perforce hung away in
favor of more substantial campus and
dormitory costumery.
The young girls party frock is
short-usually a trife shorter than
her mother would suggest. Mothers S
question is not one concerning the
decorum Of the shortened skirt, but
instead she asks: Are you que sure
you won't be conspicuous with The
other girls? None of the well dressed
women I know are wearing their
skirts so short" But the young hol-
iday reveler is quite sure-the party
frock must be really short to look
smart.
And often the skirt is quite full.
This is an Interesting development.
In spite of the rule of the straight
scant silhouette, a very large major
ity of holiday party frocks show con-
siderable boufancy with a wide and
comfortable hem line.
Sometimes the skirt shows a full
moss all around, springfnE from a
snug fitting bodice that really de-
msnds q corseted foundation. or, II
not corset, al least a close, drawn
undcrbodicc The effect is truly mid
Victorian. Again there is the usual
straight natneSs at the back with a
generous waist line, while the full
ness is achieved by gathers at the
hps-these gathers often being held
out by means OF hoop frames or wir-
ing. Another way that the skirt full
ness is achieved is by means OF
HounCes or ruff1es which spring from
n sheath foundation, somewhere al
or below the knees.
One frock of this description con-
sists of a straight, sliplike founda-
ton of pink crepe de chine. with
fuliness just below the hips produced
by innumerable strands of pink tulle
Each OF these strands has beer
dipped in pink sealing wax to form a
bead at the end. At the left side
there is an enormous caboChon oi
pink tulle.
Not hard frock to copy, this. and
one sure to cause comment because
Of those odd little sealing wax beads
The enormous tulle trimming at the
left is worth comment, because &C
many OF the evening frocks worn BY
we'll dressed young women this Win
ter have shown this penchant fol
trimming at the left hip. Sometimes
there is a perfectly plain sheath ot
velvet or brocade or metal cloth with
an enormous bow of ribbon or chol
of tulle or a huge artificial flower a.
the left hip.
There Is a growing tendency to add
rufies, of lace or chiffon. on meta
frocks at present, since to younger
women the gold or silver frocl
OF classic simplicity is sometimel
a tri1e trying. There are fiounce!
or ruffles of gold lace on golt
cloth foundations. One youthful holi
day reveler wears a frock of silve
and blue lame, N-necked, with panels
at each side, having deep bands o
chiffon embroidered in blue beads.
THE fluffy tulle frock in any of the
gay holiday colors bids fair to b
the seasons favorite. Sometimes thi:
type of frock looks suspiciously like
ballet dancers costume, as it wa!
known 80 or 40 years sgo-close fit
ting. sleeveless bodice with short full
skirt OF tulle. This same type OF
frock. close fitting, sleeveless bodice
combined with short full skirt, is
sometimes developed in taffeta. A
yellow tafreta frock may be worn for
holiday dances by a fashionable de-
butante. 1t has gold lace at the neck
and hem. and is further embeilished