From eight to twelve our little girls shoot up like daffodils in the spring rains. Sometimes it seems as though they are all arms, legs, angles and awkwardness- that they outgrow their frocks before you can finish them. But if we choose their clothes wisely and well, most of the difficulties ascribed to the “difficult age� can be happily overcome.

Garments properly cut with ample fullness and large armholes, roomy and soft in line, eliminate the angles and can be worn until they are worn out because there is no “fitting� problem to them. When clothes are comfortable, simple, pretty, but inconspicuous, the girl herself gains poise and freedom from self consciousness that does much to eliminate the awkwardness.

Every one of these practical dresses has been planned to do all that clothes can do for the growing girl. Moreover, all of the dresses are about as easy to make and to launder as a pillow slip.

Bluebell, a two-material frock, 25-4-14, for the lass of about twelve summers is ideal for school and vacation wear. It is equally good made up in an excellent quality, non-crush, fast-color dress linen, or in a less expensive sun and tub proof cotton with a linen-like finish. The body of the dress is a deep Copen blue, the applied hem, collar, and bottom of sleeve, a cool Nile green. Where the hem is applied and the green section joined to the sleeve, the embroidery is effectively placed with green stitchery worked on the blue and blue on the green material. This embroidery is as easy to do as cross-stitch. It is nothing more nor less than running stitch, worked in one direction and then back again filling in the spaces on the return row, so that the result is a continuous line of stitches. (See detail of embroidery.) A simple band of this stitch worked in green follows the line of the long raglan shoulder seams.

The neck finish is the regulation sport type with a green collar and facing for the opening at the front. Eyelets are worked in green at each side of the opening and are laced with cords made of twisted threads of the green embroidery cotton. Little tassels for ends of cord are made of the same thread. It is well to reinforce the bottom of the slash with a few stitches of buttonholing in green. The sleeve is slightly full and gathered into blue bands at the wrists. A girdle may be worn with this frock, or it may be left to hang straight from the shoulders if the unbroken line is more becoming.

Iris is as fresh and crispy cool as spring itself, and is made of lavender and white checked gingham with chambray trims of lavender and yellow. Nothing could be easier to make. There are just two seams and the most abbreviated kimono sleeves, and the dress is simply gathered into a binding at the neck with a shore placket opening at the back. The chambray bands on the sleeves and the wide applied hem on the skirt, as well as the neck band, are all set on with piping of yellow. The appliqué trim is easy to do and really smart. There is a patch of the lavender chambray with a patch of yellow applied to it as the detail illustrates. Cut out the patches 1/4 inch beyond the stamped lines, turn in to the lines and whip down. Apply the yellow patch to the lavender before applying the latter to the dress.

Rosemary is quite ready for her eighth birthday party in her rose pink voile cross-stitched in white and French blue. Note the new bertha, a style feature most becoming to “angles.� The making up consists of seaming at sides, binding armholes with self material (the dress is sleeveless), gathering the two sections of the bertha and neck of dress and binding with voile. Narrow hems on the bertha are blanket stitched with white.

Work cross-stitch border on hem on “wrong side� of material. Turn tiny hem on edge of skirt material and blanket stitch over it. Then turn up deep skirt hem on right side of dress and hem invisibly under blanket stitching. This brings the embroidery on the outside of the hem and makes it easy to let down the skirt.

Narcissus is a little peasant frock of fine white cotton Canton crepe bedecked with red and black cross-stitch. Raglan shoulder seams are finished to give a corded effect. Turn in the edges of armscye and sleeve and bring together, then overcast with long stitches of black. Bindings of self material around neck and slash at front of dress, and around sleeve, plackets, above cuffs, as well as lower edge of cuff itself are overcast with long stitches of black, first in one direction and then in the other to give a cross-stitch effect. Ties of twisted strands of black cotton with tassels are used at neck and to tie cuffs.