- Publish date:
For Fun and Games
This Christmas you can go to the races, drive the Mille Miglia, bowl tenpins or play pool right in the family rumpus room. For as sport moves indoors for the winter a whole new group of at-home games are ready for Christmas entertaining and Christmas giving that turn the home into an arena. To go with the new games and the parties that will be given around them, there is also a new variety of holiday clothes—for host, hostess and guest alike—which have all of the verve and color of outdoor sportswear. The host's old velvet smoking jacket has changed into a coat as bright as blazers—or as peacock-hued as the Paisley jacket worn by the chess player in the picture at the right. And the hostess assumes her seignorial position in game room clothes as colorful as the boldly plaided Scottish mohair hostess skirt worn by his partner.
For men, particularly, this signifies a shift from the conservative all-black dinner jacket to patterned jackets and others of brilliant colors made in comfortably lightweight fabrics. Worn with black tie, pleated or ruffled dinner shirt, tuxedo trousers and patent leather shoes, the blazer that goes south in January perfectly befits the December host. The clothes and the games shown on these pages will brighten any Yuletide party, or the heart of anyone who finds gifts like these under the Christmas tree.
Autodrome, a new Italian-made car-racing game modeled on the Mille Miglia, is for two players ($28.50, F.A.O. Schwarz).
Bumper pool game ($40, Gotham) is played by guest in red Viyella blazer (F. A. MacCluer, $55), hostess in velvet skirt, velvet-piped cotton blouse ($70, Brigance).
Hand-Carved chess set ($1,000, E. S. Lowe) is pondered by man in Paisley, lady in mohair skirt, cashmere sweater ($120, Bonnie Cashin for Sills). Dunbar furniture.
Backgammon game takes on holiday sparkle when played in all-over-sequined sweater and pants ($85, Sportwhirl). The host jacket is of silk and wool, Paisley-printed ($65, Franklin). The backgammon set is part of a leather-covered chest of at-home games ($110, E. S. Lowe).
Home soda bar ($1,750, James J. Gavigan) has all the gadgets. The hostess wears flowered velveteen pullover and pants ($55, Brigance), serves guests in silk dinner jacket ($80, After Six), satin and velveteen "smoking suit" ($70, Brigance), madder cotton jacket ($50, Franklin).
Game-Room bowler wears a peacock-printed cotton shirt and velveteen slacks ($25, Lady Guilford). The portable bowling set has 12-foot linoleum alley, 10 pins, 2 balls, backstop ($19, Klauber Games). Capezio shoes.
Horse-Racing wheel has canvas runner for placing bets ($80, Abercrombie & Fitch). Lady croupier wears Scottish mohair pullover ($50) and leather slacks ($60, both Bonnie Cashin for Sills), the player a madder-dyed cotton host jacket ($55, Franklin Clothes).
SEVEN PHOTOS
JERRY COOKE
