Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 136, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 June 1920 — SHORT SKIRT IS THE MODE [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

SHORT SKIRT IS THE MODE

Short skirts, long waists, short sleeves —these are the salient features of the spring mode as it becomes established by usage from day to day. In one of the windows on Fifth avenue during the past gala week, writes a New York fashion correspondent, there were exhibited two gowns presumably for the street, but they were abbreviated and diaphanous in the extreme —so much so that one uninitiated in the change in fashions could not have been expected to recognize them as street garments. . Two women stood before them,_ regarding their shortnesses and thinnesse.s with awe. “Don’t you suppose they’ve made a mistake?” said one; “surely those dresses are meant for evening wear. Why. look at the sleeves and the low cut necks!” Yet the figures on which they were draped were wearing hats and gloves. It wasn’t a mistake by any means, and the observer was destined to meet more and more of the same sort in her jaunt about the city. For they are appearing in greater numbers every day. There is a decided acceptance of all of the short cuts which not long ago seemed not ordained to be favorites of American women. There is no denying the fact that the short skirts are pretty and, in most cases,' becoming. They give a proportion to the dresses of the hour that could not be nearly so good were the skirts allowed to be any longer. Every once in a while, along the thoroughfares where well-dressed women are wont to make their appearance, one sees astonishingly beautiful street clothes with skirts so short that they are nearer the knees than the ankles. The short skirt, without doubt, bids fair to become the most distinguishing feature of feminine apparel for 1920.

Long Sleeves Scare. The shorter sleeves are not so readily taken up by some women generally, though the longer ones are almost impossible to find in the shops. They are not “the thing” at all. One might as well accept short sleeves or no sleeves, for they seem as inevitable as the high cost of living. A special design is the only way around the idea that sleeves shall nos end an inch or so below the arm pits. And special designs these days are confined to the few. The rest of us must accept the dictates of fashion as they stand and decide to glory in them. After all, the short sleeve Is much like the collarless gown when it comes to applying it to the various

types of feminine beauty or nonbeauty. Women will insist that they cannot wear the style, that it is not becoming to'their type, and finally, when they do stop struggling and accept the fashion as it stands, they find that they really look they surprise themselves. And then, when they come to analyze the situation, they discover that they have been refusing to accept the change merely because’ it is new and that they never- really have given It a chance to prove whether it is becoming. This happens as often as drastic changes are* introduced in fashion, and time and again women have worn the thing that they announced to begin with they could never countenance. It bids fair to be the case of the sleeve, and those who are looking toward that shining vista, economy of material, will welcome the shorter length. A French" designer has announced emphatically that the long waist is the line especially adapted to the American figure. - Some one is heard to murmur: “Whnf ls this American figure tfiat the French love so. to prattle about?” Well. It Is not as yet the French figure, which is allowed.to be as plump as it pleases, wherever it pleases. We still lean to straight lines in this country, and the figure which is not built along these lines may he corseted to the state where it seems to be. It ia tor such a figure that the French artist of renown designates the long-walsted tpodels. And you have only to observe them on

straight, more or less flat figures to see how really beautifully they are adapted to the contour. Callot If doing the dress to perfection. She has sent over many lovely models. The skirts are full' or plaited, and while often they are made with tighter underskirts, many of them leave the fullness of the: skirt to be the only line below the dropped waist. Long-Waist Model. For Instance, there is one model from this renowned house made of gray satin, with a full skirt falling over a tighter skirt of black satin. The straight, long, flat bodice is embroidered in gray in an all-over pattern of large design, has wide cuffs of black satin on the very much abbre-

viated sleeves. Another design from, the same house is made for wear. It has cream satin draped over black satin, making a sort Of cascade skirt, and-the Father low and pointed neckline is edged with wide beaded bands of gold and pearl-beaded embroidery. A long-walsted model for afternoon wear has a Chinese brocade waist and lower panel of the skirt made over a foundation of black satin. Then there is a fuller skirt of navy blue serge, draped from a low waistline and allowed to hang over with an uneven help, one side being very much longer tl)an the other and the draping meets. Paquin has made some successful long-walsted models, as h&ve Madeleine et Madeleine, Jenny, and Lanvin. Most of the other designers also have done things with long-walsted effects, but these are the ones which accent the idea especially for the American women whose figures they * say they have studied with a real Idea •of providing gowns peculiarly suitable for them. Around about New York the serge dress as yet holds sway. This and the suit of serge are the only new things,' on account of the weather, which have had the least chance to show themselves. In the restaurants at lunch time, when coats are laid aside, one sometimes glimpses a gown of taffeta, which material bids fair to gain more popularity than has been accorded to any one fabric for many seasons past. . >

Most Desired Fabric. At night, tor dinner and dancing, taffeta has made its appearance as the most desired fabric; the evening gown is rare that does not have taffeta used in its making in one way or another. Sometimes tulle or chiffon holds the -place of honor, but upon examination taffeta Is found to be the foundation material, for the particular standlng-out quality is the thing that is absolutely necessary to the modernist of evening adornment. Taffeta has that lovely texture which makes It stand out, but at the same time it falls in pleasant folds. Especially the newer taffetas have been refined in weaving until they are perfect. In Paris the rage for taffeta goes on. Even after the openings were over,’ the designers kept on and on making new things from the lovely material- Two models, one for afternoon and one for evening, each made with taffeta for the foundation material. are worth noting. One Is draped', almost entirely in tulle, and the other is embroidered heavily; either serves as a model for American imitations or American authentic copies. The afternoon frock Is combined with organdie. and this strange combination of materials (silk and cotton) has .taken a fast hold on the designers hereabout. One sees it in combinations of black taffeta and cream organdie, of blue taffeta and white organdie, of gray taffetaand apricot organdie, qpd. so on. tn varieties unlimited. Hats are even built to carry out this combination of materials, and some perfect specimens can be seen*

Embroidered Organdie Trims This Attractive Frock of Taffeta.

An Evening Gown of Taffeta and Tulle With Interesting Features.