The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1883-08-04 00:00:00

GOSSIP ON DRESS.

AT the Garden Party given last week at Marl-
borough House by their Royal Highnesses the Prince
and Princess of Wales the toilettes were remarkably
elegant, nearly everyone wore short dresses, and there
was every variety in material and in fashion. Velvets
were much patronised, but the young ladies generally
were in white, with coloured trimmings. The Princess
of Wales's costume was of very fine white India
muslin, the skirt and draperies, edged with coffee.
coloured lace, and the bodice trimmed with the same
so as to form a fichu; a white bonnet with an aigrette
and strings of pale blue. The Princesses Victoria,
Louise, and Maud wore dresses of fine cashmere of
dark crimson; jersey bodices and skirts; white straw
hats, bound with crimson and trimmed with 6cra lace;
black stockings and high boots. The Duchess of
Albany wore a bodice and skirt of stone-coloured silk,
with draperies and trimmings of a darker shade; a
simple straw bonnet, with small wreath of flowers.
The Grand Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen's dress was of
the palest shade of mauve, shot with white, very
simply made, and a white bonnet. Princess Christian
of Schleswig-Holstein wore a crimson satin skirt
covered with black lace, and a bodice and tunic of
rich crimson satin and velvet brocade; bonnet
trimmed with cherries. The Grand Duchess of
Mecklenburg-Strelitz wore a mauve silk, striped with
a darker shade and trimmed with white Maltese lace
and a lilac bonnet. The Duchess of Albany wore a
dress of soft white lama trimmed with gold em-
broidery, the skirt looped high with crimson satin
bows and ends; a bonnet with red ribbon and lace.
Princess -Elizsbeth of Hesse wore pale terra-cotta
satin and white bonnet; Princess Mary wore black
and crimson; the two daughters of the Princess
Christian wore dresses of crushed strawberry-coloured
fine nun's veiling; straw hats trimmed with black
velvet and white lace. Princess Mary's daughter was
in 6cru muslin over pink, and her son wore a sailor's
dress.

IN its weekly article on "London Fashions," the
Queen says there is a new departure noticeable as
regards she skirts of young ladies' ball gowns, the
hitherto indispensable " waterfall " being replaced by
skirts of tulle and net, arranged ballet fashion in
flounces of unequal length. The numerous skirts are
trimmed with perpendicular rows of satin ribbon
fastened lightly upon them, the effect being pretty
and decidedly novel. Other skirts of straight folds of
pale tinted tulle are worn with low bodices of satin
made with long coat tails, edged with gold or silver
lace. Plain skirts are now adopted in preference to
those studded with pompons, though these are still
used fastened to the ends of lengths of variously
coloured ribbon, and are frequently made into bunches,
and placed at equal distances round the waistband
beneath the basque of the bodice. Garlands of flowers,
real and artificial, are just now seen in great profusion
as dress trimmings at all smart balls, and the theory of
"painting the lily" has really been put into practice,
the latest novelty in floral decorations being garlands
of June lilies dyed in tints of blue and pale pink, with
complete moms.

Mama the prevalence of the sea-side season, cis-
tumes for yachting and boating naturally occupy the
attention of the fashion journals. The authority just
quoted says that plain white flannel is still the
favourite, as it is the most appropriate material for
boating purposes. The newest costumes are made
with a loose blouse bodice (which has a sailor collar
of some bright hue), and a deep kilted skirt,
finished at the edge with many rows of narrow braid
to match the collar. An especially pretty and simple
costume has just been completed for the Princess of
Wales, the description of which affords the beat
example of the prevailing mode. The plain
skirt is of the finest white serge, trimmed horizon-
tally with close-set rows of narrow flat braid
of bright navy blue; the space between the
rows is of the exact width of the braid itself, and, at a
distance, the skirt appears to be composed of thick
corduroy. The tunic is in fishwife style, but turned
up only at one side, showing a lining of navy blue,
edged with four or five rows of narrow white braid,
The drapery at the back is full and slightly puffed,
with a revers of navy serge at the left side, similarly
trimmed ; the close-fitting bodice of white serge has
revers and cuffs of blue, braided with white, the waist-
coat front of blue serge being covered with rows of
braid, to match the trimming of the skirt. A costume
thus made looks well in almost any shade of serge,
with skirt and revers of striped flannel; for instance,
deep brick-red, with linings of pale blue, grey, and
white stripes, or black, with crimson, cream, and
blue,

"MAN 0' WAR" suits for girls and boys are pre-
ferred by many parents for their children, this style of
dress being peculiarly suited for violent exercise and
rough wear, particular mention may be made of the
new waterproof drawers and knickerbockers for young
folk of both sexes, as extremely useful for " paddling"
and seaside wear. The little petticoats and under-
clothes are easily tucked into them, the children kept
warm, and their garments preserved from contact with
the sea water. They are simply made with merely a
deep elastic hand at the waist; the same run round
the bottom of each leg. The girls' tailor-made suits
In man o' war style are very bec 'ming and suitable for
play and home wear, the loose blouse allowing the
complete freedom of limb and action so necessary for
growing children. Blouses of fine serge, trimmed with
narrow gold, silver, or Russian braid, are especially
pretty for young girls' evening wear, worn over kilte3
skirts of pale blue or any coloured serge, the coloured
sailor collars being trimmed to match.

Seams are still greatly in favour for the adornment
of young ladies flee and dinner dresses, principally of
chinoS patterns or of flowered centres with satin edges
of some deoided colaur (says the Queen). Particularly
handsome are those with out velvet flowers, on pale
cream or pink satin. One of the latter tint, having a
pattern of large tulips in shades of purple and crim-
son, is novel and effective; and another of cream satin,
with garlands of large pink roses, lilac, and purple pan-
sies, looked exceedingly well with a costume of white
spotted 6cru muslin. Wide soft silk sashes, half the
length being of some popular plaid, the other covered
with a pattern of cornflowers, buttercups, ivy leaves,
thistles, &c., are pretty and less expensive than those
with the velvet flowers described above, which, by the
way, are also suitable as side panels on white satin
ball gowns, with trimmings of lace and bows of narrow
coloured ribbons.

FOR travelling and useful 'wear, fine cloths, with
narrow checked lines, are greatly used, and a costume
of this description was worn by the Princess of Wales
on her recent visit to Newmarket. The skirt wrui of
fine fawn-colour cloth, with crossed lines of dark
brown; the perfectly-fitting double-breasted jacket of
brown Melton was slightly open at the throat, showing
cravat and stand-up collar of white linen. More
elaborate walking dresses are mho made of these fine
cloths in briek-red, drab, and steel-grey. A drab
costume consisted of a plain apron front edged with
black and gold cord; this reached almost to the edge
of the skirt; triangular pieces were cut away from the
sides, the space completely filled with a most elegant
design of black and gold braiding; the waistcoat, cuffs,
and collar of the jacket bodice similarly trimmed to
match. These mixed braids are fashionable, and
are largely used for walking dresses and jackets.

THE writer of an article on "Yachting and travel.
ling dress " in a London contemporary says that for
yachting and fishing dress the leather skirt has been
found invaluable. It is not unsightly, and can be
sponged perfectly clean after a long day's sail, when
it has become splashed with salt spray, or after a day's
fishing, and be quite dry and presentable the next
morning. It is a matter of regret that it should not
be more generally adopted by those who walk much,
especially in autumn and winter, both in town or
country. Serge •is the best material for such
hard wear as is implied in the above men-
tioned pursuits. If made solely of pure wool,
it will resist even the staining power of salt
water, and will not shrink under the double
test of heavy rain followed by hot sunshine. Scotch
tweeds also possess these recommindations, provided
they be malle of pure wool. The trimming should
be as light as possible, braid being preferable on that
account to what is called "self-trimming," that is,
such as consists of the material of the dress. In point
of colour, brown, navy-blue, dark red, and grey in its
various shades, almost monopolise the department of
travelling dress. Green is popular, but has been
found to stain with mud. Black shows the presence
of dust with painful conscientiousness, and also attracts
heat. White is liked, but soils too readily to prove
otherwise than expensive, and inconvenient for wear-
ing in railway carriages and on steamboats. The
new braids introduced this season are complex, con-
sisting of a mixture of gold, silver, and one of the
colours enumerated above. With navy blue or red,
an affective trio is attained. Large quantities are
used to trim a costume, and when this is the case the
weight is appreciably Increased,. Stralsht lines fol-
lowing the outline of the tunic and flounces compose
the ordinary method of applying these braids, but a
wavy design which would adequately cover an equal
surface to that occupied by five or seven closely set
parallel lines would be preferable as regards both
lightness and economy.

A. rnarrY yachting or tennis dress is made of navy
blue serge, the panels on the skirt being rather Wide,
and showing between them folds of fine striped
flannel, the colours in which are white, blue, and
yellow. The tunic is turned up with this flannel, and
is so fastened as to he available as a packet for the
balls. The pleats on the skirt are held in position by
bands of elastic, so that while they yield to each move-
ment of the limbs, they yet return to their original posi-
tion when the player is at rest. The blouse bodice is worn
with a band, either ef navy blue serge or of the stripes.
Three who think their waists too small—if such
persons are to he found—will select the stripes for this
purpose. Those who think their waists cannot look
too diminutive, however disproportionate to the width
of shoulders and hips, will choose the dark. Vicngna
is still popular, probably because of the excellence of
its draping qualities and the softness of its texture,
which admits of a number of folds being grunped
together without clumsiness of effect. Too many
ribbons are considered out of place on yachting dresses,
which should be taut and trim, as well as in other
respects coquettishly nautical.