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The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 12, Issue 7 (October 1, 1937.)

[section]

New Zealand buyers have been particularly active this season. The stores are filling up rapidly with wares from the United States, England, the Continent. Not frocks only, but hats, shoes, accessories, undies, bathing and sun-outfits are arriving from many lands.

The scorner of feminine fripperies can find much to condemn in the welter of colour, softness and sheen that the drapery emporiums are spreading so enticingly. A walk through even one large shop tires one almost as does the watching, eyes right, eyes left, of championship tennis. There is a continual switching of attention with an ensuing feeling of daze, necessitating emergence into the drabber street. But even here things of interest, especially in shop-windows, scatter the attention.

* * *

Frocks are elaborate, featuring tuck-ings, frills, embroideries, pleatings, or contrasting insets. Street frocks are accompanied by boleros, coatees, finger-tip or three-quarter length coats or redingotes. If there is not one of these, the style simulates one as in the case of the bolero front or the redingote-frock, which, by the insertion of a contrast panel down the front, gives the effect of an edge-to-edge closing.

* * *

In addition, accessories — belts, buckles, dress-clasps — are becoming larger, brighter, more assertive. If a frock is severely plain, it hastens to contradict that effect by having a particularly dashing belt, sash, buckle, metal posy or necklace; and probably the accompanying hat will be an airy wisp of a thing—a twist of net or ribbon, the twirl of a feather, the glint of a flower, a flirt of veiling. Fashions are like that, refusing even in one costume, to be pinned to any one mood.

* * *

Evening frocks flow and billow, and, even for young girls seem opulent. Consider the effect of old-gold cire satin under its long redingote of brown net; or of cire lace (over taffeta) ballooned into sleeves, fluted into a basque, frothing at the wide hem-line; of coarse but narrow cream lace in horizontal or vandyked bands a foot apart on an otherwise demure net gown. Every model startles!

* * *

Gilt and chromium, untarnishable, are specially featured in jewellery. Sets comprising necklace, ear-rings, brooch and bracelet may imitate old examples of the jeweller's art or may be quite new in design. Especially rich-looking are twisted cords of gold. Lapel sprays, mainly large, are in silver or gold or enamelled in bright colours. Precious stones of all descriptions are imitated and scattered lavishly in this new jewel revival.

* * *

Belts in leather feature novel punch-ings, lacings, combinations of colour and metal motifs. Buckles and clasps are ingenious in both material and design. Wide belts featuring peasant embroideries will make gay many a simple frock as did the collar and cuff-sets which brightened end-of-winter frocks.

* * *

Handbags are following the trend for elaboration in costume. The leather is rarely left unadorned. It may be shirred, tucked, punched, stitched. Shapes are being experimented with. The “kodak” bag (you can guess the shape) is new. I have also seen several smart semicircular bags. Many bags feature top handles. The top closing is most popular; in many cases knobs, of ingenious shapes, are pressed past each other to close the bag.