Page:Book of Etiquette, Volume 2, by Lilian Eichler.djvu/180

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BOOK OF ETIQUETTE

you have little peculiarities of line and coloring that require special consideration. To select lines that harmonize with the lines of your body, colors that harmonize with your own coloring, and styles that harmonize with your particular type, is to dress well and attractively. Seek harmony first—and style afterward.


IMPORTANCE OF COLOR

"White was made for brides," but that is no reason why we, all of us, cannot enjoy it in its cool daintiness, youthful simplicity. White may always be worn—by young and old, at party and dance, in morning and afternoon. It is, and always will be, the ideal color.

But Fashion, in a different mood, demands many hues both soft and brilliant. And here again, whether she dictates pale pink or vivid scarlet, one must be guided by ones own sense of taste and harmony.

The colors of the dress must blend with the natural colors if beauty is to be obtained. Remarkable effects, as startlingly beautiful as the somber afterglow of the setting sun, can be obtained by the correct use of color. It may be contrast or harmony—but there must be a perfect blend.

To illustrate for a few individual types: the sallow complexioned brunette must never wear yellow, even though it is the favorite color of the season, for it brings out more clearly the yellow lurking in the sallowness of her cheeks. The person with "coal black" hair must avoid blues, light and dark; the colors that most become her are crimson, orange, dark red. Pink is the ideal color for the blond woman with warm coloring; black for the