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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (May 2, 1915)
Omaha Sunday Bee Magazine Page The Lady Duff-Gordon Describes the Newest, Oddest Millinery and Its Relation to the "Fashions That Stick" By Lady Duff-Gordon ("Lucile") sf N one of my many articles on fashions-made-C in-America t hinted that one of the reasons . I Paris continues to be and ha to be the centre of fashion to 'because tt tt the home of the coquette and those Interesting little cabaret folk that one meets in the restaurants and on the race courses. These people with their peculiar dar ing are Invariably each season- the origin of some funny, original, queer little line or of some almost barbaric manipulation of the b air something like "bobbing" or of hands with red finger tips, or chalk white makeup, or the new "stubbed" toes, and goodness knows what else. But whatever tt Is, there It is. These people with all their wild Ideas Invariably start some sew line, Invent some new color or eome new arrangement that Is one of the foremost factors In the following season's note and -sometimes dictates tine whole season. ' In America one sadly misses these little people. There Is no one here of Just their type Just as there Is no life of Just the kind they represent. Nor , U It necessary at all that you should have either, so long as your own representative dancers and ' actresses will "take the tip" and create these Inter esting things In the same way. All tt needs Is a pice of Ingenuity, originality and daring. Among the last tot of stage clothes I hare de signed for such famous dancers as Mrs. Castle and Florence Walton and others, I have tried as much as possible to do some of these extraordinary things, and I suggest that America, If it wants to become a centre of fashion, et about to create the same hunting ground for ideas in New York and Chicago and Ban Francisco and the other big cities' that exists In Paris. Each great city could nave Its Longchamps, its Dleuvllle jibo on. Let your man nlklns promenade In astonishing clothes to be adopted and adapted later by the more sober peo ple; let your cabarets and restaurants be filled with ADY DUFF.CCRD6N. tU fa- KutMLnc!lN ! London, sad forjol crMtar - of ftthioe ia dn world, writ nch Wek th fwhioa articla for ii aewtpapw, proaliog all tUt m awwl and txt ia tylat for wU drctted wonea. Lady Duff-Centos 's Paris tullih meal bringi hot into dots touch, with thai ccnlr of faahioa. r w - f ' ; 9 , r 'V'' ' 1 f; ' J! " V ' ' ! ' J. 1. V . x r V A Black and White Spring , Dress, With the New ' 'Aero- naut" Collar and Cuffs. ("Ladle" Model.) f t ; , The Window Pane Hat, with Its Silvery Pane and Peacock Blue "Curtains." Vn Interesting Little "Zebra" Dress and the x "Window Pane" Hat from a Side View. ("Lucile" Model) ,1 these cunning little people with the bis courage that is so necessary to push along the wheel o fashion. They over-accentuate and exaggerate, tt la, true but to Impress the new Idea thai to necessary. Just as Billy Sunday does In his line of endeavor. After ward, when one has inoculated other with the Idea, the exaggeration and over-emphasto are taken out and the new Idea la full strength and real beauty is all that remains. On this line of thought one logically at this point takes np the matter of things decorative in fashion I know there are a number who say often of many of my things that they are "so unpractical." Now, a person who really dresses to be decorative Is, as a rule, not a business person. Her only aim is to be decorative and to attract attention. But always tn her decorative fashion Is the new and original Idea, and always that idea can be adapted to the need of others not so decorative or who do not wish to attract so much attention. That is the fashion toned down and refined to suit the world on the outer side of the footlights and still retain ing all Its originality and charm. Look at this new window pane hat. Of course, I can hear some of you American ladies exclaiming "Never I" But let me hasten to explain. This may ' not be for yon personally, but please understand that this hat and many other more striking things are worn almost unnoticed at the Parle race meet lnga, and tt to the modification and the adaptation of these that eventually reach America, as Its mod IflcatVon will. In this case, eventually reach you. This window pane hat is nothing more or less than an eighteenth century form worn so low over the face that tt is impossible for one to see without the transparency in front. It Is composed of pea cock blue aerofane over a silver colored fan of very fine transparent composition somewhat like cellu loid, the blue giving a particularly attrac tive appearance to the eyes inside. The back 1s turned up with a large bouquet of flowers i that repeats the garland around the front In the top right hand corner we have another of the sabre effects I spoke of the other week ia black indestructible voile. She reminds one of the white 'queen in Alice in Wonderland, with the Va ' Dyke underskirt and her graduated tub shape figure. The white lines are composed of Russian braid. Black and white buttons follow the entire waydowa the front, both below and above the buckled waist band. ' The other photograph is a natural colored tussore faced with black and white. She has the most queer aeronaut collar, rather like the top of her eacque, being a complete circle many sizes too large tor the bead and with a strap and buckle that tighten It In much the same way that a mallbag Is closed. The same buckle appears again at the wrist and leaves at the neck an unevenly pleated frill. 8he wears a black tagal bat, with a martial plume. The parasol Is a very, very long one. And that reminds me to say that parasols are to be this season what they always ought to be real works of art. Both the parasol and the ambriUa -did you know It t are really of klncly and priDntly erurtn. They were at first never lntndd ch common place uses as keeping off rata and sun. No, indeed They were umbrellas of honor, saeree urtbrilas parasols of the gods, and so os And bxM thsy were such high symbols the best artists and weav ers and craftsmen and Jew pi rasksas lavished their best work on them. Tbu the practical Occidental took them, and behold art gave place utility , But this year we are goins back to origins just as we are in dresses. You'll c some surprlsla j ones of mine later on here, I hope. And so much for to-day, . , l !. . . . 1
