Idle Ideas in 1905 | Page 8

the whole scheme falls to the ground.
Eyebrows and eyelashes, the professor assumes, the lady would like to
match the hair. Too much eccentricity the professor does not agree with.
Nature, after all, is the best guide; neatness combined with taste, that is
the ideal to be aimed at. The eyebrows should be almost straight, the
professor thinks; the eyelashes long and silky, with just the suspicion of
a curl. The professor would also suggest a little less cheekbone.
Cheekbones are being worn low this season.
Will the lady have a dimpled chin, or does she fancy the square-cut jaw?
Maybe the square-cut jaw and the firm, sweet mouth are more suitable
for the married woman. They go well enough with the baby and the
tea-urn, and the strong, proud man in the background. For the
unmarried girl the dimpled chin and the rosebud mouth are, perhaps, on
the whole safer. Some gentlemen are so nervous of that firm, square
jaw. For the present, at all events, let us keep to the rosebud and the
dimple.
Complexion! Well, there is only one complexion worth considering--a
creamy white, relieved by delicate peach pink. It goes with everything,
and is always effective. Rich olives, striking pallors-- yes, you hear of
these things doing well. The professor's experience, however, is that for
all-round work you will never improve upon the plain white and pink.
It is less liable to get out of order, and is the easiest at all times to
renew.
For the figure, the professor recommends something lithe and supple.
Five foot four is a good height, but that is a point that should be
discussed first with the dressmaker. For trains, five foot six is, perhaps,
preferable. But for the sporting girl, who has to wear short frocks, that
height would, of course, be impossible.
The bust and the waist are also points on which the dressmaker should
be consulted. Nothing should be done in a hurry. What is the fashion
going to be for the next two or three seasons? There are styles

demanding that beginning at the neck you should curve out, like a
pouter pigeon. There is apparently no difficulty whatever in obtaining
this result. But if crinolines, for instance, are likely to come in again!
The lady has only to imagine it for herself: the effect might be
grotesque, suggestive of a walking hour-glass. So, too, with the waist.
For some fashions it is better to have it just a foot from the neck. At
other times it is more useful lower down. The lady will kindly think
over these details and let the professor know. While one is about it, one
may as well make a sound job.
It is all so simple, and, when you come to think of it, really not
expensive. Age, apparently, makes no difference. A woman is as old as
she looks. In future, I take it, there will be no ladies over
five-and-twenty. Wrinkles! Why any lady should still persist in wearing
them is a mystery to me. With a moderate amount of care any
middle-class woman could save enough out of the housekeeping money
in a month to get rid of every one of them. Grey hair! Well, of course,
if you cling to grey hair, there is no more to be said. But to ladies who
would just as soon have rich wavy-brown or a delicate shade of gold, I
would point out that there are one hundred and forty-seven inexpensive
lotions on the market, any one of which, rubbed gently into the head
with a tooth-brush (not too hard) just before going to bed will, to use a
colloquialism, do the trick.
Are you too stout, or are you too thin? All you have to do is to say
which, and enclose stamps. But do not make a mistake and send for the
wrong recipe. If you are already too thin, you might in consequence
suddenly disappear before you found out your mistake. One very stout
lady I knew worked at herself for eighteen months and got stouter
every day. This discouraged her so much that she gave up trying. No
doubt she had made a muddle and had sent for the wrong bottle, but she
would not listen to further advice. She said she was tired of the whole
thing.
In future years there will be no need for a young man to look about him
for a wife; he will take the nearest girl, tell her his ideal, and, if she
really care for him, she will go to the shop and have herself fixed up to
his pattern. In certain Eastern countries, I believe, something of this
kind is done. A gentleman desirous of adding to his family sends round
the neighbourhood the weight