Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 4 March 1951 — Page 19

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(CALL IT THE “COSTUME LOOK" . . or «

the “costume complete” ’, . . or the “en-

- semble.” Whatever it is called, it's the fore-

most idea in Spring 1951 fashions. It's the one. thing above all others that will give the wearer of a new spring outfit the air ‘of knowing just what's what in fashion. It may be a dress topped by its own coat + « . most frequently the-coat in duster silhouet. Or it may be a dress with a bolero, a stole, a capelet, a nipped-in jacket, a tunic effect: In each of these instances, it is the frock plus . . . the plus being something to give the effect of a complete, well-planned, well-assembled outfit. y Nor is the ensemble idea confined to the dress-plus duo. It is found, also, among suits and coats. Many suits have companion stoles or detachable capelets. Coats, toa, often appear with such stoles and capelets.

» » » EVEN IN sportswear, the costume look can be found . .. in “duster” dresses which are wearable, -on their own, as dresses—or as coats to go with other frocks or with skirt-and-blouse separates. Top designers—and all the others for whom they are bellwethers—endorse the costume look for spring and summer. Pauline Trigere, presenting her Spring 1951 collection, showed loose coats related to matching skirts or dresses. One costume paired a loose reversible coat of navy-and-white plaid worsted (lined in plain navy) with a skirt of the plaid and a navy wool chiffon blouse. Hattie Carnegié’'s current collection stresses dress-and-jacket costumes for day and cocktail wear. Some of these are all of one fabric (wool, silk or print) but others combine two fabrics (wool with linen; wool with taffeta). ” » » - IN CHRISTIAN DIOR’'S American collection, the ensemble idea was so important that it also extended to dinner and evening gowns with long silk companion eoats to match or contrast. Nettie Rosenstein plugs the costume look for all it's worth . . . in both coat-with-dress and jacket-with-dress ensembles. Wool coats in solid colors or checks are related to the frocks with which they're shown. Or a black taffeta coat tops a sheer checked silk dress. One designer offering capelets to achieve the costume look is Adele- Simpson. Her fabric capelets are of the sling type, so often used--by furriers;-and-they -are-worn with sheath dresses.

Anthony Blotta's spring line also fea-

tures ensemble ideas: Stiff black silk coats lined with the same print that goes into the slim dress with which it's shown.

BLOTTA'’S silk afternoon dresses have . matching “jackets. Anna Miller carries the costume look into afternoon clotlies—gray silk organdy plaid coat over a pleated solid gray silk organdy dress. The costume look walks away with all the honors in Herbert Sondheim's collection. It is represented in street clothes, spectator sports clothes, cocktail and evening outfits. (Even his one-piece dresses sometimes look like costumes with their “builtin” bolero effect.) He likes the duster coat for evening ensembles, too. : The capelet angle of the costume look is given a big play by Maurice Rentner: He uses them for suits as well as dresses. With suits, the capelet effects are generally back-+ flaring, waist-length affairs. ° Cape-stole jackets appear in some of his suits. Single and double capelets are shown with his black and navy daytime dresses. Paul Parnes hasra couple of ways to promote the costume look. One is in the sheer dress with a matching fitted jacket; the other, in full-length coat-and-dress ensembles of taffeta (a three-tiered, fitted navy taffeta coat over a narrow navy taffeta dress). 2a - Stoles and capes bring the costume look to many styles in the Capri collection. There are stoles with printed silk dresses and capelets with suits. £ ~ o » re ALL THESE are proof that upper bracket designers approve the costume look. And —you can bank on it—what is done by leading designers quickly finds its way into the popular-priced field. It already has. The costume look is developed in every fabric . . . wool, silk, rayon, cotton, linen... as well as in every fashion category. And in each of them it has a special “extra added attraction.” This lies in the fact that the ensembled costume is a ‘‘convertible” one. The parts thereof may be worn with other items in the wardrobe—jacket or coat or capelet or stole over other frocks; dresses with other coats. Or, what seems by day an appropriate daytime suit may, with .the approach of dusk, shed its jacket to become a baretop dance frock. Costume accessories, from top to toe, are designed this season, too, to go all the way with the ensemble idea. Hats, shoes, gloves, handbags... all of them are in tone§ to match or blend with costume colors. The result is a scheme of dressing that “hangs together,” that has a smooth, sleek, finished look from crown of head to sole of shoe . . . in short, The Costume Look.

By LOUISE FLETCHER, Times Woman's Editor =