A wife can ladle out with a spoon more than the husband brings in with a ship.
Fabric and color.
No one should ever be able to tell by looking at you what your clothes cost. A dress may well be beautiful in and of itself; but when you are wearing it, the dress should set you off and not the other way around.
In the month of January I wrote a little about the choice of lines in your wardrobe, but it is at least as important that you make a happy choice of fabric and color.
Remember that coarse and uneven fabrics make the skin appear softer. Hairy fabrics, velvet, and fur will also give you a delicate complexion. If a lady with wrinkled skin wears smooth or shiny fabrics, the coarseness of the skin will only become the more conspicuous.
It is a well-known fact that of two equally large surfaces, the lighter one will appear larger. So if you would gladly add a cubit to your height, you should choose light colors. Keep your outfit — shoes, stockings, dress, and hat — as much as possible in the same color, so that it works as one large surface. Vertically striped fabrics are becoming, but the stripes must either be only in the weave, or else they must be so narrow that the overall effect is not spoiled. Stout ladies can also wear vertical, very discreetly striped fabrics. It makes them appear taller and thereby slimmer. Preferably choose dark colors if you have a few pounds to spare.
Horizontal stripes and checks can make a long, thin figure smaller and plumper, but there too choose discreet colors, as exaggeration most often works against its purpose. A skirt and jacket in two colors, light trimmings, all ornamentation that emphasizes width, are also things that can be worn to good effect by tall, thin ladies. If your shoulders are too narrow in proportion to …