“Smart on the Sand at Any Age,” Woman’s Home Companion, May 1937.
In a two-page spread, the Woman’s Home Companion suggested these Companion-Butterick patterns for the summer of 1937. The second page showed the back view of #7356 and three versions of this little girl’s dress, # 7358.
“Smart on the Sand at Any Age,” WHC, may 1937. Companion-Butterick pattern for girls, No. 7358.
“The clothes you wear on the sand or by the pool this summer depend largely on whether you are six, sixteen, or sixty. Anything goes so far as fashion is concerned. Shorts, slacks, dresses, long coats, short coats — the choice is endless. But when it comes to what is most becoming — that is a different story.”
Dress and Long Coat #7357
Companion-Butterick pattern #7357: Dress or coat. May 1937.
“Suppose you are at the head of the family on the distaff side and you have decided not to lounge about in trousers. Then for you we suggest the brief dress which buttons over your bathing suit. Or, if you prefer, the long fitted coat. Both are 1937 imports from the Riviera and both come from pattern 7357. Try a printed pique or chintz for the long coat with huge (they can’t be too huge) figures. For the dress, be sure to pick out one of the most original of the colorful cotton prints. “
“Huge” prints on fabrics show the influence of Schiaparelli. The side-wrap dress — which seems awfully ‘nice’ to wear over a wet swimsuit — has a cheongsam-inspired closing and a sleeve detail reminiscent of some Chinese decorations. The long double-breasted coat is also shown printed with medallions.
Jacket, Trousers, Shorts, and Halter Top #7356
Companion-Butterick pattern #7356; Halter top, shorts, trousers and jacket. May 1937.
“You couldn’t be sixteen (or even a slim forty-six) without wanting to wear either shorts or slacks. Here they are topped by a halter that buttons on and one of those new jacket coats that hang like a man’s shirt — all, we might add, from one pattern — No. 7356. The neat-fitting slacks are practical in a plain heavy sailcloth or cotton sheeting, the shorts in either plain or printed cotton or rayon.”
I like the loose jacket with a deep pleat in back; this back view shows how the halter top buttons on to the shorts or slacks:
Companion-Butterick pattern 7356, back view.
Girls’ Dress #7358
“And if you are six, what then? Well, why not a sundress with straps that cross in the back and a conical cap to match? This is one part of a Triad pattern which also includes the pieces for a dress of dotted swiss with loops of white binding and a raspberry linen with rickrack braid.”
Companion-Butterick pattern 7358; a Triad pattern (three dresses from one pattern.) WHC, May 1937.
The text writer may have confused the trims; the rickrack is shown on the dotted dress. Here are the back views, in the background.
Back views of girls dresses #7358.
The lively illustrations are by Ernst.
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