1936 On the Continent

they do want will be found there. A special reputation has been attained by
Peter Jones
in Sloane Square, because his big general drapery store manages to keep its head up among the haughtiest single dressmakers of the West End. His evening wraps are notable.
    In Knightsbridge, which is growing in importance,
Woolland
and
Harvey Nichols
represent the good-class shops where quality and fashion keep an even keel.
    For materials
John Lewis
in Oxford Street is so good that practically all the “little” dressmakers, and certainly all the home-dressmakers, go to him first for anything they need, from tweeds to lace.
Russell’s
in Leicester Square have a special reputation for ribbons.
    Peter Robinson, Swan & Edgar, Barker’s
and
Pontings
have a kindly eye for the needs of the woman who is over-size or under-size.
Sports Wear
    For sports wear, in addition to the sports departments now run by so many first-class dressmakers, as instanced by
Molyneux’s
new departure, there are one or two firms which are thoroughly reliable. Not only will their wares be in the latest fashion, but will also be of the soundest possible material, soundly and well cut and made.
Lillywhite’s
, just off Piccadilly Circus, is a case in point; and
Fortnum & Mason’s
offer things which lend a new attraction to sport.
Mary Brown
in Wigmore Street also specialises in sports clothes.
For the Moors
    Those who are going to the moors, and would like to be rightly dressed, should have expert advice before they enter on the very complicated questions of plaids and tartans. The Scottish manufacturers naturally say it is better to wear the wrong tartan than to wear no tartan at all; but that is only in their business moments. Out ofbusiness hours they are as sensitive as any other Highlander to the traditions and historical events recorded, to the eye of those who know how to read them, in the disposition of every thread of a Highland tartan.
    For advice in this matter, which may not seem important to the newly arrived visitor, but will certainly seem important when she gets to Scotland,
Scott Adie
in Conduit Street cannot be bettered. Their tartans are right, and their tweeds are good.
Tweeds
    Harris tweed, by the way, has conquered a ground of its own, especially since it started its trade mark. The art of making the genuine Harris tweed is so many centuries old that it is said the Vikings must have brought it to the Outer Hebrides. In accordance with gentler ways of living, the original material has been brought now to such a point of softness that it can be worn by women for town use, and even in the evening, as well as by the sturdy islanders who live their hard lives within its folds. To-day genuine Harris tweed can be bought from all reputable London stores. The buyer who wishes to be sure of its origin should look for the mark on the selvedge—a ball surmounted by a Maltese cross, and encircled by a studded belt. This will ensure that the purchaser is not buying one of the many imitations brought from far beyond the limits of Europe. The original material is often still dyed, as in the beginning, from the mosses, lichens, seaweed or crotal, hidden in the crags of the wild mountain passes. The typical scent of Harris tweed comes from the smoke of the peat-fires with which the islanders warm their cottages.
    Another kind of tweed lately brought to London is woven in the Vale of Avoca, the gentle Irish river which has given us a song, unforgotten even in these days of jazz, about the sweet valley where the wild waters meet.
London Silk
    Those in search of interesting and original craft-made material should ask for scarves and ties of London silk.
    People do not associate England with real silk, but its history in that direction is really distinguished. It hasnever become a big industry, because of its expense; but both in Staffordshire and in the East End of London silks are being woven which are well worthy of attention. Possibly the person who knows most about these is Queen Mary.
The Silk Weavers
    Incidental to this trade is one of the curious and least known sights of London. Driven from the Netherlands and France by religious troubles, the silk craftsmen found a warm welcome from James I. Forty thousand of them settled in Aldgate, Bishopsgate and Shoreditch, and gradually spread towards Spitalfields. To-day you will find in the crowded streets of these districts descendants of those Huguenots proudly bearing their old French names. The