Mme Qui Vive

What to Wear and How to Wear it.
Madame Qui Vive
“Fashion is only the attempt to realize art in living forms and social intercourse.” — Oliver Wendell Holmes
It is unimaginable that American designers may in an instant strip Paris of its glory — the glory that it has never shared in the past few centuries.
When America finally does this, it will have to teach itself not only art, but also the craftsmanship of designing clothes for women. In France, the best talents are already occupied.
Bakst, the designer of costumes for the Russian Ballet, created sketches for Paquin. They were too bold, and still they were enormously influential. Poiret borrowed some ideas and this season, the Callot displays were designed with a hint to Bakst’s creations. Parisian couturiers make up impossible styles that meet all of the requirements of contemporary fashion, even though they do not have a glass full of absinth in their hand. They study history, they study art, they appreciate true beauty. Hailed be their names! They have earned their glory. If America wishes to take their crown away from them, then it will have to start from the very beginning and learn! Airiness in clothing is evolving faster than it is ready to proceed, especially in evening wraps; therefore, a woman yearns for a simple unsophisticated costume.
[Сopyright 1915, J. Keelly]
Caption:
No matter what weird forms there appear, an elegant small costume is the best of all.