The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1885-10-10 00:00:00

GOSSIP ON DRESS.

• AUTUMN has fairly arrived, the weather has broken
up, and light clothing can no longer be indulged in
with safety. Light colours such as crear:: white,
ivory, beige, delicate fawns, yellows, greens, blues and
browns giveTlace to those of deeper, warmer tones
for day wear, and plain fine lace trimmings are super-
seded by those of chenille and feather, or heavily-
jetted and beaded laces of coarser make. Fashion
will, for once, walk hand and hand with common
sense.

WOOL is hygienically considered the best of all
materials for Autumn and Winter wear, and fabrics
composed of it alone, or combined with plush, velvet,
and velveteen, will now be the ruling order with our
leading tailors and modistes. There are plenty of
novelties, prepared or in preparation, in which wool
bears the principal part, and the rougher and more
shaggy the surface of the material used the more
effective, according to the present style, will be the
costume composed of it. Stripes are still in the
ascendant, and far from their reign being over
shortly, as was predicted, it seems as if in full
power.

-
, THE Kyrie stripe, feathered stripe, and etamine
Pekin are among the newest introductions in striped
dress stuffs. The first-named, which wed be very
much worn, is a soft woollen fabric, having lines of
what looks like camel's hair' drawn out into tiny,
irregular rings, which, though of the same colour as
the ground, yet stand out effectively from it, piesent-
ing a silky and glossy appearance. Plain Kyrie cloth
is manufa3tured to make up with the striped, and can
be had in ai shades including the newest green layer
and newest grey, which is neither smoke" slate, nor
lead, but partakes of the colours of all three.
Feathered stripe is merely a replica of the striped
zephyrs, the pretty and much-admired novelty intro-
duced last spring; only the fabric is of a woollen
instead of a cotton-like nature. The frise loops are
always the same colour as the ground, only larger
than in the zephyrs--more in the form of knots.

ETAMINE Pekin is a beautiful but somewhat costly
stuff, which has broad plush .stripes on a close canvas
ground. As usual with all these striped goods, plain
material is sold to make up will it. A handsome
dress composed of striped and plain etarnine'plush is
thus made; the skirt of the stripe, and the polonaise
worn over it of the plain, but trimmed with bretelles
of the striped material, as are also the cuffs and up-
right collar; the bodice is cut to simulate a vest, the
coat falling below it in points in front with elongated
basques behind, which reach the edge of the skirt ;
the drapery is cleverly arranged between these
basques in loops, and brought round beneath them
to ihe sides in pointed folds, which are slightly
fulled.

THE "Annandale is a remarkably pretty little
gown, and very likely to be popular, as it is stylish as
well as simple; it is composed of striped Kyrle,
which has threads of myrtle-green, ind;go, and grenat
' in it, and a perfectly plain myrtle-green cloth; the
pointed front drapery, bodice, and drapery arranged
in sash form at the back, are of the plain cloth, the
skirt being of the stripe, and gauged quite high on the
right side, which causes it to fall in graceful folds.
The bodice has a vest of the stripe, which is outlined
by myrtle-green velvet bretelles, which are continued
over the shoulders reaching the waist at the back,
striped material being let in behind between the
braces, giving a decidedly novel effect to the dress.
• •

ANOTHER pretty style of autumn toilette is in brown
homespun and pink and brown striped silk; the short
jacket bodies, of homespun has three large brown
wooden buttons on each side, beneath it is a vest of
the narrow striped silk, which falls considerably below
the jacket, also showing above it, the collar being one
of the high round kind now so much affected; the
sleeves are turned back at the wrists to show the pink
and brown silk with which they are lined; the skirt,
of homespun, has a short front drapery, which falls
behind in long loose loops, and is arranged over box.
pleats and narrow kilts alternately, set on the skirt.
A sailor hat of brown straw, trimmed in front with
loops of the striped silk, with two brown gold-dusted
quill feathers fixed upright between them, was pre-
pared to wear with this dress, which was intended for
a young lady.
*
AMONG other new dress fabrics may be mentionea
two fancy cloths called respectively coupures and
armures. Both are all-wool materials, the former in
tiny checks, which look very much like canvas cloth,
in tab= laver and deep ruby. This stuff is exces-
sively pretty, as indeed are the arnzures, which are
in small narrow stripes instead of checks. In serges,
the Bournemouth, the Elgin, and the Duchess are the
newest. The Mikado check canvas makes a very
pretty dress,, as does the Rampoon costume cloth.
This is in black, the frisO stripes having a very soft
and silky appearance. Rarnpoon Fris6 can also be
had in colours. Lotta is another striped material in
those colours which are warm though light, and has
the rough, coarse look at present apparently the sine
cull non, as far as dress fabrics are concerned. The
Lorne has coloured plush stripes on a plain ground,
and the maruja stripe is a fresh introduction in
velveteen, made in stripes of two colours, each being
about an inch wide. The combinations in which it
looks best are dark and light brown, red and navy
blue, sage green and myrtle, and amber and purple,
made up with a plain velveteen, or cloth of one of
the colours of the stripes. The result is a very
stylish costume at a reasonable price, for it is by no
means expensive.
* * *
TIIE rage for vests and waistcoats of every descrip-
tion in lieu of plain bodices is still at its height; short
or long, full or plain tight-fitting vests are made with
every form of draped or undraped skirt. The fashion
is an economical as well as a pretty one, it being com-
paratively easy to remodel an old dress on these
lines—given enough velvet, plush, brocade, or other
rich material for vest, cuffs, and, if possible, skirt
panels, one of the many new woollen fabrics serving
admirably to blend with it for draperies and bodice.

IN the matter of out-of-door garments this season
it will be a case of every person wearing what finds
favour in her own eyes, for every taste can be in-
dulged in—at least, so it would seem from the yariety
of styles. Long mantles and coats covering the dress
completely, and short dolmans, visites, mantellettes,
and coats will be equally worn; plush /rise, damassd
velvets, and thick cloths with raised surfaces, being
the chief materials for long cloaks and mantles,
which will be mostly made with sling sleeves, and
trimmed for autumn with large wooden buttons and
chenille fringes, intermixed with wooden beads,
which, stylish as they are, have one grant disad-
vantage—they add terribly to the weight of the gar-
ments they ornament,
• - - • •

JETTED and beaded fringes will also be largely
used until winter has fairly arrived and furs are
again brought out. Of short coats, loose, semi-fitting,
and tight, there is an endless variety. A stylish
model is in Kyrie cloth, made short and tight in the
back, with loose, deep fronts cut away sharply to
show beneath it a long, smart vest of plush a shade
lighter in tone than the cloth, which in this instance
was a red brown. The buttons fastening it were
quite works of art in wood carving, the collar-clasp
being a marvel of clever workmanship,

MANy of the newest hats are of stockingette and
plain silk, velvet, or plush; these are very high in
shape, and have the narrowest of brims, the trimming
in which—in most cases birds or birds' wings -bear a
part—being arranged immediately in front. The
fashionable world—Paris world, that is—is exercising
itself greatly on a momentous question—whether
crinoline shall be reintroduced or not Two factions
have been formed, for and against, and rumour has it
that the ayes are in the majority. We can only say
we hope sincerely that the rumour will never develop
into absolute fact, or that, if it does, and a fashion
open to so much that is vulgar, objectionable, and
downright dangerous again finds favour in the eyes of
Parisiennes, our countrywomen will unite in refusing
to countenance it, and show their good sense by de-
clining to make themselves slaves in this respect to
the goddess fashion by following the diccates of
French man milliners and modistes, whose only aim is
to promote change and increase the cost of dress.

MDLLE. NEVADA'S bridal—and to some extent pro-
fessional—trousseau, has been the sole subject for
gossip in Paris for several days. It had been on view
at the lianat's apartments in the Hotel de l'Athenee.
All the American ladies in Paris and the French
fashionable world attended the exhibition. There are
dinner, ball, concert, visiting, and travelling dresses,
and various easy-fitting and picturesque toilettes to
be worn at home—that is to say, in the railway car in
which the diva will reside during her tour through
the United States. A blue satin robe, with long train
and trimmed with marguerites and long silvery
grasses and bluish jet with silver sheen, ex-
cited the greatest admiration. It had a moon-
light effect. A travelling pelisse of blue velvet,
and hat, muff, and wrap to match were of royal
blue velvet, lined with soft satin quilted over
eiderdown, and trimmed with a soft long grey fur of
rare beauty. Each of Mdlle. Nevada's concert dresses
is to accord with the character of the operatic heroine
whose melodies she is to sing when wearing it. All
are elegant and costly, but some aim at an air of girlish
simplicity. Others are of regal magnificence, and
with the footlights shining on them will afford delight
to the American ladies who go to bear the
Californian cantatrice. The pocket-handkerchiefs
bear the names of the characters Mdlle. Nevada
has personated. Thus one set are marked
Gilda, another Lucia, a third Mignon, and
so on. Under garments of cobweb fineness,
in which camblic, muslin, delicate linen, and Valen-
ciennes and Mechlin laces were artistically combined,
were heaped on the side tables. The shoe and
stocking department was remarkable for variety of
designs, colours, elegance of finish, and smallness. For
each dress there was a separate pair of shoes mad set
of thread or silk stockings. Mdlle. Nevada's number
is seven, a fact which will give some notion of the
Cinderella-like aspect of her foot. The bonnets and
parasols had not come home. In the jewels was a
back comb with a large spiral ornament in diamonds,
the gift of Madame Mackay.