The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-04-12 00:00:00

GOSSIP ON DRESS.

THE lamented death of H.R.H. Prince Leopold.
Dake of Albany was, of course, followed by the noti-
fication by the Lord Chamberlain of Court mourning,
and by the Earl Marshal (the Duke of Norfolk) of
general mourning. The order prescribes Court
mourning for six and general mourning for three
weeks, commencing from Sunday, March 30. Court
mourning will therefore cease on the 11th of May,
and general mourning on the 20th of April.—The
Queen. in a short article, says: There seems to be a
consid arable amount of confusion in the public mind
as to the classes of persons to whom these several
orders are addressed. Those who are required to wear
Court mourning are all the members of the Royal
Households and their wives, the members of the Em-
bassies and Legations, and the families of those hold-
ing public appointments, such as the Ministers of
State and Members of the Government. For
all these the order is that for the first
three weeks the ladies " must wear black
dresses, black or white gloves, black or white shoes,
feathers and fans; pearls, diamonds, or plain gold and
silverr ornaments. After the 20th of April they are
to wear black dresses, with coloured ribbons, feathers,
flowers, and ornaments, or grey or white dresses,
with black ribbons, feathers, flowers, and
ornaments." Of course, those in actual atten-
dance on any members of the Royal family must,
during their period of waiting, wear deep mourning.
For the general public, the period of mourning or-
dained is so short that it would be the worst possible
taste to evade it, as some ladies seem disposed to do,
by wearing coloured feathers in black bonnets. Any
black materials may be worn, for it is not necessary
under these circumstances to resort to purely mourn-
ing materials. In fact, for the three weeks, the dress
worn should be precisely the same as that
worn by the members of the Court circle
during the first half of their mourning. It
is well to point out that any deviation from this rule
would be in the worst possible taste, for really some
ladies appear to have such an aversion to appearing
in proper mourning as almost amounts to insanity,
more especially as they constantly wear black when
not obliged to do so. It can be no great hardship to
anyone to substitute black or white feathers or
flowers for coloured ones for the space of three weeks;
and it makes all the difference between looking
ecnnme ii faut or not, without putting it on the
higher ground of proper respect. Those who know
best how things should be done will wear plain black
for the three weeks, with perhaps some slight relief of
white flowers in the bonnet or on the bodice of an
evening dress; and we imaginkthat among the upper
classes many, if not all, will elect to wear mourning,
if not quite so long as the Court, at any rate some-
what longer than the general public.
TIIE same journal observes that the public have
shown their true and entire sympathy with the Royal
family in their bereavement by the manner in which
they have responded to the order for general mourn-
ing. They have not been content to wear any black
garment they might have by them, but, as a rule, are
buying plain woollen dresses without jet or lace, made
in serge, cashmere, or nun's cloth, sometimes trimmed
with ottoman silk. Neither brocade nor plain velvet
are considered sufficiently distinctive. Some simple
gowns are made with broad box-plaited flounces, on
which are bands of ottoman silk; a draped tunic and
bodice of cashmere, with silk waistcoat. The better
class of dresses are made in ottoman, muscovite, or
bengoline, sometimes trimmed with satin Duchesse or
Merveilleux. Flounces fringed at the edges by un-
ravelling the silk is a new and effective finish.
Black cloth jackets or capes of the material are
worn with these. The accordion plaits are adapted
both to the silks and woollen stuffs. Where
crape is worn it is trimmed with jet passementerie
and appliqués of jet on silk embroidery intermixed
with bright and dull jet. Jet collars and full crepe
fronts and waistcoats, bordered with crape, are also
made and much worn; and black feather trimming is
a fashionable garniture on dresses, waistcoats, and
jackets. For dinner wear silks are trimmed with jet;
Merveilleux and poult de sole are worn, but not
brocaded silk. The bonnets worn are either all jet,
or jetted straw or plain chip straw, with black flowers
or ribbons.

THE sad event already alluded to has, of course, put
a stop for the present to all fashionable movements
of an official or public character. Many private
parties and receptions have also been postponed.
After the period fixed for general mourning has
elapsed, the usual routine of society will be resumed.
In the meantime the ingenuity of modistes will develop
some novelties in costumes appropriate to a season of
general mourning.

TTIE new spring hats for children are mostly of
fancy straw. The crown, of sugar-loaf form, and the
wide brim lined with velvet, matching in colour the
mixture of the straw, which is usually parti-coloured,
though sometimes of three varieties—Tuscan, with
red and black, yellow with red and green, white with
red and blue, and other combinations. A hat of drab
and red straw was lined with red velvet; the brim
was turned up over the right temple, and fastened to
the crown by a cluster of red satin ribbon, brocaded
with dark velvet spots. A band of ribbon surrounded
the crown, and was tied in a bow behind. A small
boat-shaped hat for a girl of twelve years had a
gathered brim of vivid poppy-red satin, and a puffed
crown of the same veiled with bege net, embroidered
with crimson spots. On the left side was a spray of
ears of corn, tied with bows of blue and maize velvet,
upon which was a butterfly of scarlet, yellow, and
black. The crowns of all fashionable bonnets are
composed of embroidered canvas, the designs worked
in coloured silks or metallic thfeads of gold, bronze,
or silver, or of net besprinkled with beads. Hats are
still of the large high-crowned shape, thoroughly
French in style, and elaborately trimmed.