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F OSTERED by prominent Clubwomen,
and engaging the Interest of all
women who have heard or read
of It, and these are hundreds of thou
sands, the competition for the Polymuriel
Gown will close to-morrow.
On June IB the prize of one hundred
and fifty dollars, awarded for the best
design for a practical gown suitable for
wear at any time of day, or for any oc
casion, will go to the contestant who has
submitted the design at once most beauti
ful and practical for all day wear and all
types of women.
Mrs. Mildred Johnstone Landone, who
originated the Idea, has placed In the
bank that sum. It was she who christened
the garment that Is to be, calling It the
Polymuriel, giving It the combined names
of her sister and daughter.
Mrs. Landone has as aides In her pro
ject Mrs. A. M. Palmer, the founder of
the Rainy Day Club and. In that sense,
Inventor of the rainy day skirt; Mrs. Flor
ence Guernsey, former president of the
New York Federation .of Women's Clubs,
eighty thousand women strong; Rose
O’Neill, wno Invented the kewpies, and
William Chase, the famous painter. They
will help her to select the most useful
and attractive gown to be worn by the
average woman all day.
Mrs. Landone's ideas regarding such a
garment she has expressed as follows, to
this newspaper:
The Probable Polymuriel
Prize Winner—The Same
Garment with Fresh and
Lace-Like Gulmpe for
Afternoon.
Thla Is the 8ame Poly
muriel with the Simple
Gulmpe That Makes It
Suitable for Morning
Wear.
Thla la a Front View of the Poly
muriel with Train Attachment
for Evening Wear. The Arms
and Neck Are Bared by Remov
ing the Long Sleeved Gulmpe.
By an Attached and
Sweeping Train Thla
Polymuriel Acquires
the Stateliness of an
Evening Gown.
By Mildred Johnstone Landone
A S t encduraglng Mend of the Poly
muriel gown movement says It may
revolutionize women's dress. I
hope so. It needs a revolution as badly
as poor Mexico doesn't
Understand from the first—that preju
dice may be disarmed—that the poly
muriel is not a must gown. It Is a may
gown Ita use is not compulsory. It is
merely recommended. Women may have
other gowns. If they like, but I hope they
will feel that they must have a Poly
muriel.
It is the purpose of our committee to
Recommend a gown suitable for anytime
Of day and for any type of woman. It Is
a sartorial averaging up. Every woman
longs for a gown that will be like her best
friend, one that will stand by.
New conditions produce new needs.
Since one-fifth of all women are working
lor a living the subject of suitable dress
that will not be a mere uniform is Im
portant. There is the tailored suit, of
bourse, but the tailored suit has not been
universally satisfying. It Is too stiff, too
uniform-like to suit all women. There
are women who rebel against it They
consider it unbecoming to them. The ul
tra feminine type dislike it because it Is
too masculine.
In other words, there Is a demand for
something of potter texture and more
womanly cut than the tailored suit.
Woman's life Is growing wider, more
complex Unlike the housewife's work
that kept her at home all day, the modern
woman's work takes her Into many places
In one day. She needs a gown suitable
for downtown and uptown, for morning
and afternoon and evening. She may
need, if she is a stenographer, for In
stance, to take "the boss's” letters in the
morning, meet a client of his In a hotel
lobby and take dictation, or report a
luncheon discussion at noon, and may go
to court te chaperone “the boss’s” little
daughter at a moving picture house in the
afternoon. When her work is done she
may wish to meet a chum, another self-
supporting grl, at one of the Bcores of tea
rooms or restaurants Chiefly for women,
and together they may wish to attend a
lecture, or, escorted by their best young
men, go to a dance for an hour or two.
What kind of garment will serve all these
purposes?
The clubwoman is a factor in affairs of
the world. In every city women are act
ively Interested in civic affairs. In many
of them women vote. A woman who has
these varied activities may go out in the
morning and not be able to return until
late in the evening. I have heard Mrs.
A. M. Palmer say she would be very glad
Indeed If she could feel when she set out
In the morning that she was suitably
dressed for the rest of the day, and for
any occasion that might claim her.
The woman in the home would be glad
If there were a garment so becoming and
Intrinsically beautiful, that she might
wear it at home and that would be equally
appropriate at a committee meeting at her
club, at a luncheon or matinee, for shop
ping or even for the theatre.
The universal gown will meet these
needs and others. It will remove the em
barrassment and banish the dividing line
between the rich and the persons of mod
erate circumstances when they meet at
public or social functions. A difference
in the estates of the prosperous and un-
prosperous will he less marked if there
be one gown that Is accepted as suitable
for all occasions. Women will not be
envious of each other's Polymuriel. A
Polymuriel will be a Polymuriel. That's
all.
My conception of a universal gown Is
that It be a comfortable, becoming, and al
though not stiff, formal garment. I in
cline to a two-piece gown. I tjiink a coat
necessary. The color would be dark. The
fabric should be serviceable so that It
may last from one season to another.
There might be slight alterations of such
accessories as collars and gulmpes for
afternoon and evening wear. The cloth
should be of neither too light nor too
heavy texture.
The Polymuriel. I hope, will end the
slavery to changing modes. It will not
have to undergo changes from season to
Beason and year to' year. It is conceivable
that a Polymuriel may be worn and be
very presentable indeed, in its third year
of service. It will be so suitable for even
ing wear that no woman need again say:
Cooxrlght. 1815, by th» Star Company. Graat Britain Rights Reserved.
Becoming to
All Types
of Women
and Suitable
for Any Hour
or Occasion.
‘1 shall stay at home because l # am too
tried to change,” or "I shall decline this
invitation because 1 have nothing to
wear.” She can wear her Polymuriel and
she will meet other women wearing theirs.
They will meet on common sartorial
ground.
The garment should be as beautiful as
possible, yet consistent with health and
comfort. Possibilities for attractive vests,
collars and cuffs and girdles should not
be overlooked; for hlgb or low neck, em
broideries or laces or anything that ap
peals to the wearer. I have in mind a
garment built on feministic lines made to
conform to our best aesthetic standards of
beauty.
The adoption of a universal costume
which is acceptable, will make a woman
healthier and will keep her young, be
cause It will eliminate the distractions of
changing fashions, v If she knows her
Polymuriel “will do” for any occasion she
wili not become a nervous wreck in try
ing to follow the will o’ the wisp of
fashion. It will lead. I hope, to a stan
dardization of beauty In dressing. Now.
when a new style is announced we gazd
upon it in wonder and rapture. Nothing
previous has ever been so engaging and
becoming. We hasten to possess or imi
tate 1L In a twinkling there is a change.
It has become ridiculous.
A thing that is ridiculous at one time
is ridiculous at all times. A garment is
either intrinsically beautiful or is in Itself
ugly. What a travesty upon our mental
habits when we are forced to admit that
the person dressed in shoddy garments,
but of the mode, wins our approbation,
while the out-of-date garment, though of
excellent quality, will claim only a de
risive smile.
My hope for the Polymuriel Is that It
will have the same function as the “cut
away coat” or the dress suit. It will be
honored, respected and welcomed every
where.
This Model
Would Not Meet
the Approval of the
Polymuriel Committee
Appointed to Select an
Ideal Gown to Be Worn by
| the Average Woman on All
Occasions, Because Although
Strikingly Beautiful, It Could Not
Be Worn Every Hour in the Day.
This Would Not Be a Successful Universal Gown Be
cause Stout Women Would Rebel Against It.
Results of the Contest for
Designs for a Gown
That Will Be
(Above) Another Concep
tion of a Polymuriel That
Can Be Worn All Day
and by Any Type of
Woman.
(Below) The Same Gown
Adapted for Evening
Wear.