Wristlets Save Short-Sleeved Sweaters
Question: It’s bound to happen come Wednesday, so here’s the problem in advance. What do I do to save the Christmas sweaters with sleeves that stop well above my wrists? I have long arms, even for my height, which is 5 feet, 9 inches. And even if I don’t get any new sweaters, I already have some that need appendages--or something. Please don’t tell me to take them back to the store because no store carries great-looking sweaters with sleeves long enough for my arms.--V.S.
Answer: You’ve obviously discarded the idea of getting your sweaters to work by pushing your sleeves up. So here’s another suggestion: Sew rib-knit wristlets on your sweaters, then cover them with jeweled bracelets made of bugle beads, pearls, rhinestones or sequins. New York designer Carolyne Roehm uses Lesage embroidery to achieve this look in her new evening sweaters for spring. Roehm also creates necklaces by ringing necklines in the same jeweled embroidery--a good idea for anyone who’s ever ruined the neckline of a sweater with makeup.
Q: While on vacation in Hawaii, I purchased a wraparound garment called a pareu. It came with a single page of instructions for various ways to wear it. Alas, I lost the instructions. I remember seeing a booklet called “How to Wrap a Pareu” in one of the shops on Waikiki, but of course I can’t remember the name of the shop or the address. Do you know of such a booklet anywhere?--T.P.
A: Five ways to wrap and tie the Tahitian pareu are available from Patterns Pacifica. The instructions include wrapping methods for a beach cover-up, a day dress, a hipster skirt and an evening wrap. Pattern 5020 requires 1 3/4 yards of 45-inch-wide fabric for small (Sizes 6-8), two yards for medium (Sizes 10-12) and 2 yards for large (Sizes 14-16). If Patterns Pacific are not available at your local fabric shop, you can order directly by sending $2.50 plus 65 cents for postage to Pauloa Hawaii, 519 Reed Lane, Honolulu, Hawaii 96813. Pauloa Pattern 1009, also available through the same company, is a longer version of the same garment. It is priced at $3.75 plus $1.25 for postage.
Q: I have a gray wool-flannel suit that is a Size 10. Even though I am now a Size 16, the jacket still fits. The skirt, however, needs enlarging. It has a zipper on the left side and four inverted pleats, front and back. I was thinking of buying some gray plaid fabric and hiring a dressmaker to put inserts at each side of the skirt. Then to tie the look together I could use the same plaid and make a stole. What do you think?--R.L.B.
A: I think you would be better off to buy a new, gray plaid skirt or to have one made. Solid jackets with plaid skirts are very much in fashion right now, and you could use the gray flannel from your Size 10 skirt as the second “face” of a double-faced stole that’s plaid on one side, solid on the other.
Q: Where can large-size women get basic housedresses at reasonable prices? I believe that we are being discriminated against in today’s clothing market. Everything I see in the stores is for misses sizes. What about the larger, older woman?--J.P.
A: Because of our country’s awareness of fitness and nutrition, there are proportionately fewer large-size women now living in the United States--hence the closing of such large-size retail specialists as Roaman’s. Additionally, the women who do wear Sizes 20, 22 and up seem to have moved out of the housedress market into sportswear. Today’s housedress is really a sweat shirt and jogging pants, as per the new Richard Simmons selections in Montgomery Ward’s current catalogue.
There are, however, at least a few remaining firms supplying casual dresses for the half-size market. One such source is Old Pueblo Traders, Palo Verde Street at 33rd Street, Box 17800, Tucson, Ariz. 85726. In this firm’s current catalogue, there is a button-front shirtdress made of cotton and polyester, illustrated on Page 44. It’s priced at $26, Sizes 14 1/2 to 24 1/2. On Page 41 of the same catalogue, there’s a Models Coat design featuring snap-front closure, three-quarter-length cuffed sleeves and inseam pockets. This polyester-cotton plaid dress is $36 in misses Sizes 8-20 and $38 in women’s Sizes XL (38-40), 2X (42-44) and 3X (46-48).
