The designers—architects of mode—realize the necessity for harmony of line and detail in a costume. It is this knowledge that makes them artists in their own field. And this field is as distinct as any other field of art. A knowledge of painting, for instance, does not imply a fashion sense and a knowledge of costume designing, any more than it implies a knowledge of music. Too often, a woman with a gift for painting attempts to apply this gift to her costumes, with the sad results that we have come to know as "arty." The woman artist is frequently badly dressed.
This does not mean that no woman should design her own clothes oF adapt a model to suit her needs. It-merely means that she should think well before she does any drastic changing. A belties tunic can be ruined by the addition of a belt, and a Lanvin robe de style can be shorn of all its character, when shorn of its inches, Above all, there is no enemy more dangerous to chie than the fancy collar applied indiscriminately "to soften the neckline." In this matter of creating clothes, it is well to follow closely those who have made it their life work, The great designers know the reason for each detail and its relation to the rest And their genius lies in combining this! technique with that subtle some-that is the feeling moment.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.