Horsham Times (Vic. : 1882 - 1954), Wednesday 29 September 1954, page 2


SIED i(OTTON IS fJTINO NEW TOP

(Special Fashion Reporter) LONPýON:: .Ct(oton o as suddenly sprrng into the fashion limelight as a winter fabric. For :.he ,auturnn ,coll.ect.ions, the Britsh .cotton -manufacturer.s have .provided ;ediitihg new =fabrics such as s oede .cott9i and gaily pririted oQr.duryO.

The corduroy velvets have been the stars of the London fashion shows. " Delicate shades, as well as le more familiar brilliant olors, have been used for all nanner of day dresses and parts and leisure wear, while he new printed corduroys,.; 'esturing designs ranging 'am n formalised p isley ino- 1 if to spots arrangel like" the narkings on a leopard, have ' ncreased tile astonishing ver,utility of.the fabric. At Horroekses,",I saw a bevildering array 'of " crdiroy liesses. -here Is always a :al atmoSplhere" at a Hor'ockses collection, for among he audieiice you are liable1Lo re such tcelebrities as 'ady Jliurclill, ballet dancer, 'Mrlot Fonteyn, or the wives of sleign diplomiats, such as.,tle cery elegant Madame" Masigli, wife of the French Am,assador. 'Hiorockses slhow their colection in. thet, lovely house i St, Georges Street, Just off iariover '.Square. ' Althoutgh liey" are a 'wholesale house, Lhey :enjoy the :distinction of -eing dressmakcrs to thie Q?ieen, and in Australia duriig the Royal Tour, several p9 liue "cotton'. dresses worn by lie Queen were from -Horrockses. The Duchess of Kent, one f tihe most elegant vomen inthe world, has long been a client of this famous wholesale house.Corduroy Corduroy At their autumni collection, `Australipun mannequin Nola Rtose-modelledi a numllber of dresses, -including" one particularly lovely shirtmaker in cordiuroy. : This 'was In. literally, a leaovenly'shade of blue:i whlich made sie (and, I expect, Nola is wvpil) homellsick for tho. Auistralian skies whose exact" color it was. Even more imaginative, however, was the way in' wvhich printed cordutroy' wits tied for a pair of Light jeans' tild a Ulrtclling stole. For these, the design!er hlid chosen a gaily colored paisley printed corduroy. and lhaid ceanted thalll withll.atrapless black jersey top to make an ultusing, yet practical, 'hostess cnsemnble, After the show. I crossed: ilanover Square .to see the collectiont:o1 Sambo dresses. When I arriveu,qonathe doorstep, tile uniformed and .benedalled commissidnaire .wtlkad 'in front. of me, giving no-; tice of my arrival to qny- arrSy of painters perched high on ladders all round the foyer. These suspended operations so that I could pass, sun-bespattered, to the safety of the, showroom. Here I was shown the pride of the collection-a 'day dress in Lancashire's new .;sedo cotton. Tills 'really -has' the feel -of suede, and 'is 'beautifully ,w?arm, yet is dyed in bright clear .olors, so that it has :the ?s~parkle' of a summer fabric: ,This particular dress had a deep Puiftan ,collar, threequarter sleeves, and its 'full skirt with Unpressed pleats hlid a Couture :swing ,to' 'it. Tile fabric was emnerald green with .large black 'coint spots, 'and tile collahir was edged with . 'tiny roll of black' braid. I "was also shown 'a swag o1' color-paterns ' for "the "samc style, which could be ordered in,a Robin Redbreast scarlet. a. 'delicate sky-blue, or a subtle mushroom pink-all with. the same black coin spots. At tie Spectator Spott:. collection I saw some amusing after-ski wear. ' My ,particular favorite .was a.pair of skintight black Jersey trousers which coAtinued over ,tlle foot -like baby's py. JaIdms . and which had soft leather Soles wlhich did away with the necessity of wearing shoes--a pleasant relief aiter clunmpilg around in ski-boots all day I Here, too, I -saw dresses in corduroy printed with a le-a pard spot design. One, in brilliant scarlet, had a polo Icollar of black knitted ribbing. -short sleeves and a gaily swirl ing skirt. Tile same l eopard spotted fabric, tills time with a dellcate banana yellow background. -was used for a day 'dress cut on simple lines. with a V-neck, and an easy flared skirt. ':Jungle" prints such as these leopard spotted fabrics have become vastly popular, and I couldn't help feeling that, if I were a leopard. I would be so angry at this Imitation, that. I shoduld change my spots-to polka dots I