This is perhaps the best kind of book that can
be written for the amateur dressmaker, for it assumes complete ignorance of the subject on the part of the reader, and only attempts-- to instruct in that which can be attained without exceptional ability. For this reason it barely mentions the actual design- ing of .clothes, but supplies rather adequate instruction on the manner of carrying out work from pattern and of adapting patterns to fit various figures. The chapter which deals with the incongruity of certain combinations of materials seems, at first, unwarranted until one recalls the striking dis- play of this same fault to be seen in the clothes of many Englishwomen ; while the hints on how to make the most of the figure by hiding its defects and emphasizing the good points by means of dress should prove very useful . to the amateur dressmaker who is as conscious of her defects as she Is of her attractive features. If the practical instructions contained in this book are •followed- carefully, there is no reason whatever for home-made clothes looking . amateurish or for simple gowns suggestingthat their simplicity is merely that of the sack with three holes cut for the neck and arms.
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