It is safer to dress rather older than younger than your age, it generally makes women past 30 look younger to dress thus; but much depends on the colours used. It is easy to lay down rules of colour for decided brunettes or decided blondes, but much more difficult to fix rules for those who belong to neither class, and who compose the majority. It used to be an old rule with portrait painters that the colour of a woman’s eyes ought to be repeated in some part of her head-dress. It is a much safer rule to repeat the colour of the hair in the dress. This is why fur is so often more becoming than anything else, it is often an exact colour of the hair. The only case in which matching the hair would not be suitable, is when the hair is unmistakably red. Then nothing but the quietest colours should be worn, with a good deal of white at the neck. Very dark shades of red and brown go best with it, but they must be chosen with the greatest discrimination. It is a safe axiom to lay down that all very bright colours should be kept away from the face; only the finest complexions can stand them in close proximity to the skin. The idea that pink is becoming to dark people is a mistake: only a very fair blonde can bear it. Maize is also most becoming to a fair skin, though it is also suitable, occasionally, to dark-haired people. Half-tints are the safest wear in the long run, and dark-coloured plushes, velvets, and satins, with their lovely reflection, are becoming to all. A slight knowledge of what are called “complimentary colours” in optics is useful, for it teaches the effect of certain colours on the skin. Thus bright blue makes the skin look yellow; mauve makes it look orange-tinted; bright yellow gives it an ashen-blue look; bright vermilion-red makes the skin look green. Thus it will be seen that half-tints will not be so mischievous in their effects. Many elderly ladies have a preference for violet or purple. Nothing could be more unfortunate. As people get on in life, the skin assumes quite enough of a yellow tint, without adding to it by wearing its complimentary colour—purple. Transparent materials, such as lace or tulle, are the most becoming settings to old faces. For younger people, harmony in colour is everything. Brown may have points of yellow or paler brown; dark red, a carefully selected pink. If grey is worn, a little pale blue may be worn in the bonnet. Then gold ornaments look best with brown and red, silver ornaments with grey and blue. In combining materials for a dress, it will be found that too soft or too stiff materials are more difficult to drape gracefully than one of each kind. Silk and cashmere make a very good combination, and a cheap and effective imitation of these can be made in merino and good alpaca. Short people should have outdoor mantle and dress of the same colour, as a contrast in these takes away from their height. But they may wear with great advantage a pelerine, or long mantle, which comes to within 2 in. of the bottom of the skirt; in that case the dress does not much matter. The fashion of tight sleeves and cuffs is very unbecoming to the hands unless they are small. The cuff ought to measure the same as the hand across the knuckles; dressmakers generally only measure the wrist, which is quite a mistake, as it is often out of proportion to the hand. A frill at the wrist is always becoming to the hand, but not always becoming at the throat. Short necked, plump-faced people do not look well in frills round the throat. A piece of lace laid on flat is better for them. Thin, long-necked people, on the contrary, ought invariably to wear frills at neck and wrist. Belts are unbecoming to all waists over 25 in. Tippets and fur collarettes should not be worn by high-shouldered people. The great secret of dressing well is to know what to avoid. To know where advantage can be taken of a good point is well, but to know how to hide a bad one is better. Frequently the best-dressed women we see are those whose own deft fingers have put the finishing touches to their toilettes.
Clothes for Foreign Boarding School.—(a) At Lausanne. Take 2 warm winter dresses (one for school, and one for church, &c.), 2 evening dresses, one light cashmere or beige dress, and 4 or 5 washing dresses. Two jackets (one for winter, and one for summer), a cloak or ulster, and a mackintosh. Much the same underclothing as one would take to an English school, with plenty of warm vests, &c., as the winter in Lausanne is colder than in England. Take a warm travelling rug, as sometimes in winter the “duvets” on the bed are not sufficient covering, and the rug will be very acceptable. July and August are the hottest months, but most people go to the mountains then. Take with you all in the way of clothes that you will require for the year, as dresses, hats, &c., are costly, and there is scarcely any choice there. Pack the things in 2 small basket trunks, rather than one large. Put such things as you will require immediately into one, and taking that with you, send the other and heavier one on by slow goods train. This will be found cheaper than taking all the luggage with you, as only 56 lb. of luggage is allowed free.
(b) In South Germany. For luggage, provide 2 leather-covered basket trunks and a black travelling bag, with necessaries for the voyage. If household linen has to be taken, pillow cases are best supplied at the school, being larger and different in shape from English ones; allow two large bath towels and a clothes bag, in addition to what is required. For dress, 2 thick blanket serge costumes, in addition to 2 cashmere dresses, fur cloak, eiderdown skirt, 2 knitted skirts, princess petticoats, high necked, in thick stuff, for winter wear, Galatea or white for summer; 2 short jackets, one thick cloth; also a shawl, as the passages are very cold, and a wrap is required for leaving the schoolrooms, as these again are rather over heated; white dress and pretty lace aprons and frills, for evening wear, when the young ladies are required to sit in the salons. Painting requisites had better be taken, for they are expensive; no school books, beyond church service and dictionary; add a few simple articles as suitable birthday presents for school friends, as the girls are expected to give on these occasions to mistresses and boarders, and it is tax on a girl’s pocket money. About 4 gingham housemaid dresses and 2 white cambric ones will be required for summer wear. Boots and furs are in comparison cheap in Germany. Seal fur caps are usual for winter wear.
Bathing and Swimming Dresses.—There are 3 main points to consider before deciding on the make of a bathing dress: (a) the place at which it is to be worn, whether an English or a Continental watering place; (b) whether the wearer swims or merely bathes; (c) whether the wearer is a child, a girl, or a middle-aged woman. The best materials for bathing dresses are summer serge, cashmere serge, alpaca, wool bège, and twill flannel; give preference to the first two, because they are soft, pliable, and light, do not cling objectionably to the figure when wet, and may be obtained in almost any colour. Alpaca is recommended for its lightness to swimmers especially, but both this material and wool bège can only be had in black and neutral tints; whilst twill flannel can be bought in all colours, is very comfortable and warm, especially for children, and has only one drawback—that its woolliness prevents it from being allowed in most fresh-water swimming baths, and renders it, for this reason, an unwise investment for one who wishes to frequent baths on return to town.
The best way to make a swimming dress for use in England, to ensure comfort and ease, is to have a loose bodice to the waist fastened into a broad band, from which the drawers are suspended, the bodice fastening down the centre, the drawers on the left side. The combination style of garment, i.e., all one piece from the neck to the knees, has one great objection, viz., that any mishap with the buttons is very awkward when there is no skirt. This need never be feared when the bodice and drawers are made separately and fastened at the side, and the only way to avoid it in the combination style is to make the dress open to the waist and then have it cut straight across and down the side of the hips for 5-6 in., so that it can be buttoned up on to the waist-band. A dress intended for swimming only should be as simple as possible. It should not come over the knees, and not be trimmed with a large collar or elaborate sleeves. Deep white cotton fringe or Torchon lace will be found to give quite sufficient finish. 3 yds. of 24 in. material will be found ample to make a dress of this description for a girl about 20.
Where ladies bathe with gentlemen their dress must come below the knees, must have a skirt from the waist, and must have sleeves of some kind, and these, whether long or short, or however loose, are always uncomfortable for swimming, as they cling and impede the movements of the arm, whilst the whole dress is made heavier by these additions. The only way to make such a dress more comfortable is in the first place to avoid making the skirt too heavy or too deep, and next to make the drawers longer than is really needed, and to fasten them in at the knee, so that the legs may be moved comfortably.
Children’s bathing dresses are best made in the “combination” style, of bège or some warm material, for the shivering cold feeling some children get in the water when they are not able to swim is one of the chief causes of their dislike and fear of sea bathing. Bathing dresses for matrons may be made in almost any style, however elaborate or heavy. A very comfortable dress for ordinary wear in England may be made with drawers reaching either to the knee or ankle, and gathered in by a band of turkey red or material with which the dress is trimmed, running alternately in and out of inch-deep slips made for the purpose; the upper part being simply a long loose blouse made either with a yolk, sailor collar, gauging, or any other design at the neck, and fastened at the waist with a broad band, so as to leave the skirt loose to the knees. A dress made in this way will take about 5 yd. of 24 in. material. Another kind of bathing dress is made with combination bodice and drawers, with the addition of a deep cape plaited into the neck and reaching to the elbows, and a skirt from the waist. Colour and trimming are the chief points in the finish of a bathing dress. Only those who really have a good appearance should choose a brilliant colour like red, blue, pink, or yellow, charming as these colours are in the water.
To avoid looking conspicuous, have some neutral tint or dark colour, and bright trimming. Black is particularly becoming for bathing costumes, as it shows up the whiteness of the skin, and it is convenient besides, because it can be trimmed with any colour or design.
Plain white canvas shoes laced with a colour to match the dress are perhaps the best; but straw or cork soles, with an upper piece of the same material as the dress, laced with broad strips of braid to match the trimming, are also good. The upper part should be cut from the pattern of a gentleman’s slipper, fitted, sewn on to the sole, and pierced with 3 holes along each side. The braid is fastened each side of the holes nearest the toe, laced across into the others, and continued sandalwise up to the knee. It is useless to think of keeping the head dry, so caps should always be made to allow for wetting. One good plan is to take a plain straight piece of stuff like the dress, about ½ yd. long and ¼ yd. wide; place it straight round the head, and fasten or tie it underneath the hair at the back so as to leave the rest in loose folds. A cap the same shape as a brewer’s is very pretty, placed on the head, with the point twisted once and fastened on the left side. When bathing, a Japanese parasol will prevent getting sunburnt. (E. M. B.)
Mourning.—The tendency of the day is towards shorter periods of mourning and deepening the mourning, so that half-mourning for aunts, cousins, &c., is almost abandoned, and only resorted to in longer periods of mourning. Crape is absolutely inadmissible with velvet, satin, lace, bright or glacé silks, embroidery, fringe, excepting the special “crape fringe,” or, indeed, with anything but mourning silk, paramatta, merino, cashmere, woollen barège or grenadine, or barathea. A widow’s mourning is the deepest, and continued longest. For the first 12 months the dress and mantle must be of paramatta, the skirt of the dress covered with crape, put on in one piece to within an inch of the waist; sleeves tight to the arm, bodice entirely covered with crape, deep, tight-fitting lawn cuffs with broad hems, and deep lawn collar. The mantle or jacket, of the same material as the dress, is very heavily trimmed with crape. The widow’s cap must be worn for a year, but not beyond the year. The bonnet is entirely of crape; it has a widow’s cap tacked inside, and is worn with a crape veil with a deep hem. When the crape on the dress requires renewing, it must be put on precisely as at first until the first 9 months have expired, after which, if preferred, it may be put on in 2 deep tucks, with about 1 in. space between them. Crape cloth is permissible, and well adapted for a rough or walking dress for the country; it wears well, and is not very easily distinguishable from crape at a distance. After the expiration of the first year, “widow’s silk” may be substituted for paramatta; but it must be heavily trimmed with crape. This is worn for 3 months, when the crape may be very sensibly lightened, and for the next 3 months jet passementerie and fringe may be used. At the end of the 6 months (18 months in all) crape may be left off, and plain black worn for 6 months; and 2 years complete the period of mourning. For the first year, while a widow wears her weeds, she can, of course, accept no invitations; and it is in the worst possible taste for her to be seen in any place of public resort. After the first year she can, if so disposed, gradually resume her place in society. It is usual for the pocket hankerchiefs to have broad black edges, and no jewellery of any kind, with the exception of jet, can be worn.