The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1887-01-29 00:00:00

GOSSIP ON DRESS.

DIE following is from the Queen: Just now, every-
one in London is attending the annual sales at all
the shops. The winter season has not been a bril-
liant or successful one as yet, and people have been
chair in laying out their money. The reduced
pricos on the tickets of ready-made clothes, materials,
handkerchiefs, and the various pretty trifles which go
to complete a toilette, are therefore. attractive to
most people, and the wares are brought up quicker
than they would otherwise be. There has been a
great run on rough-surfaced materials of late, thans
to the sharp winter weather. They are considered
in better taste for skating and other outdoor amuse-
ments, and are also warm-looking and comfortable.
Hats and bonnets aro popular, made of the same
Astrakan and fancy cloths to match the coats, cloaks,
and gowns; and gauze veils of the same colours,
spotted with chenille, are worn with them. Plush
and velvet are only seen at afternoon weddings or
private enter ainments. Even at private views at
the popular galleries the toilettes are noticeably
plain, conspicuous for their perfect fit, and neat
draping,

Prxm seems to be still increasing in populaiity,
and the long coats made of it, with prominent pleats
at the back, and fastened at one side of the throat with
a short length of fur crossing over, are graceful, and
look well on all occasions—except a rainy day. The
dark brown ones, which are the most worn, look ex-
actly like rich sealskin. The long jackets in the
curly or Astrakan cloth, especially in deep ruby, navy
blue, and grey are much worn, with muffs to match,
also in black, with buff cloth waistcoats and cuffs, and
gold braid and buttons. The sleeves and collars are
of plush, and the muff is lined with the same, and has
straight, upstanding bows, like the bonnets, or some
coloured wings. Hoods are to be seen on some of
the little dainty plush mantles, and a few of the lead-
ing modistes pride themselves on the speciality of
their own particular arrangement. Long, plain, plush
gowns, with full back pleats, are worn in the morning,
as well as between tea time and dinner, in the house.
Tea gowns are as general as ever, from the black
velvet one with cascades of black lace, to the most
delicate. tinted brocade with old point guipure. One
recently ordered for an invalid to dine in, was of pale
blue and pink brocade, outlined with gold threads, on
a cream ground, opening in front over a petticoat of
Brussels point, mounted on pale pink satin, with the
opened fronts showing the lining of pale blue satin.
The collar of brocade was turned over to show the
pals blue satin lining, and tied with ribbons of pink
and blue satin of some width, which were again tied
and caught up at the waist, and fell among the lace
folds of the petticoat. A Brussels point
collar, mounted on wire, stood up above
the brocade one, and there were ruffles at the
sleeves. The lace everywhere was delicately caught
up by old paste buttons. Barege skirts are miming in
for quiet dinner wear, with smart little jackets of soft
silk and lace. Some of these jackets are very
elaborate. One, for instance, would be of cream-
coloured Surat, with cream lace vest and olive-green
plush revers. But the prettiest and most becoming
ones are the black velvet, with black lace ruffles and
vests. Young girls are wearing white muslins, spotted
with coloured wafers, and pale-coloured figured
muslins for small dancing parties. They are made
very simply over silk underskirts, and worn with
wide soft silk sashes matching in colour. A new net
for veils is in vogue, but it is not general as yet. It
has a crossed-barred surface, like the ground of some
of the old laces, and is thicker than the spotted nets.
It can be had in brown and black. Chenille-spotted
net is a good deal worn, and also (during the cold
days, when the wind. is keen), gauze spotted with
chenille, or very small tinsel dots. Real lace veils
are scarcely seen now, except on elderly ladies. When
the spotted ones are not worn to the tip of the nose
they reach below the mouth, and a few are mounted
on a wire and hang quite loose round the bonnet.
Velvet ribbon, with picot edge, is used for bows and
loops. Red felt bonnets, trimmed with fur, are
fashionable, and also red hats.

CIIILDREN have been wearing high-flapped shoes
with buckles, this winter, for entertainments; they
look smart with the black hose. Instead of buckles
some have bows, and all have modified heels. It is
a pretty fashion to tie up the child's bair in a bag
wig with a bow of ribbon. If the hair is cut rather
short, it looks well to comb the top hair over to one
side (usually the left) and tie it together with a bow.
It is very general now to tie back the long hair just
at the poll. The prettiest little children's pelisses are
of cream plush, trimmed with beaver or black fox
fur. _

Tun rough curly cloth is greatly worn by children,
as little cloaks with sling sleeves, or as long jackets
with prominent back waist plaits. Plush is nearly
always used for the collar and sleeves. The round
wide-brimmed felt hats, turned up at the back and
one side, with two large velvet rosettes, with a third
one placed almost at the top of the crown between
the other two, are becoming and stylish, especially in
ruby, brown, or navy blue. The velvet ribbon is
nearly an inch wide, and encircles the crown in two
or three bands.

DESCRIBING the fancy dresses at a recent ball, a
writer in the Daily News says: It is always curious,
at gatherings of this kind, to observe how the cos-
tumes reflect, as in a mirror, the passing styles of at
least five or six thousand years. A lady of the Middle
Ages, her sleeves almost sweeping the floor and con-
taining almost as much material as the whole of the
rest of her dress, is seen waltzing with a barrister in
wig and gown, while a few paces distant a war nor of
ancient Rome is gyrating in company with an I ncroy-
able in a truly incredible hat. At the ball in question
one set of quadrilles alone contained representatives
of ancient Greece, French opera-bouffe, England in
Henry VIII.'s time, the period of powder and patches,
and the barrister, whom we have always with us at a
fancy ball. The "square" was an anachronistic, but
apparently very enjoyable, dance. The powder period
was much in favour with ladies, many white wigs
being worn, and effecting an extraordinary transfor-
mation in the appearance of the wearers. The cloud
of white hair about the face Makes dark eyes doubly
dark, and gives to blue or grey ones an expressiveness
that adds to any original charm they may possess. The
picturesque riding dress of last century was well carried
out by a lady who wore one in a greyish shade of blue
velvet, with white lace jabot, high collar, lined with
lace and braided in silver. Her wig of soft white hair
was surmounted by the orthodox three-cornered
riding hat in blue velvet and silver, trimmed with
ostrich feathers. Those who feared the heat and
weight of wigs had in some cases undergone the
troublesome process of having the hair powdered.
Powder will not adhere to the hair without grease,
and though pomades were indispensable toilet neces-
saries some twenty-five yeirs ago, they are not popular
at present. Consequently an operation that very
-nearly resembles boiling the head has to be gone
through on the day after powder has been worn, in
order successfully and completely to eliminate the
grease. There is between the wig and powdered hair
a comfortable medium which some coiffeurs most
skilfully manage by powdering only the outlying edges
and fringes of the natural hair, and hiding the rest
under " postiches" of artificially-whitened locks,
which have only to be unpinned and laid away in a
box when the festivities are ended. This convenient
comprornize had been effected in several instances.

AMONG the most original dresses was a very pretty
"France," in white satin striped with blue and red,
with flags embroidered on the stripes. The skirts
were abort, revealing blue stockings and red shoes.
The sash was striped in the three colours. On the
shoulders, a golden eagle stood upright, and in the
hair a similar eagle, erect like a Spanish lady's comb,
was supported by a miniature flag, folded to the exact
size of the eagle. The fan was a tri-colour flag.
.A
lovely dress represented an arum lily. The white
draperies of the skirt were partly covered with enor-
mous inverted lily petals, touched with powdery
yellow where the curves began to unfold, and relieved
here and there by the broad green foliage of the
flower. The white wig had a lily petal of about the
natural size arranged in front, and the fan was a large
lily counterfeited in some fabric that might have
passed for veritable lily texture had the blossom been
small enough for verisimilitude. A white dove con-
stituted the idea of another good dress. A wing,
magnified to about twenty times the natural size, ex-
tended at either side of the skirt from waist to
.hem.
On the shoulder was a white dove, life-size, and in the
hair its partner nestled. Lovers of birds will
feel comfortable in knowing that these were
" made " birds, and that no real doves had
been slaughtered for the purposes of decora-
tion. The fan carried with this dress was a
large group of white wing feathers. A stewardess's
costume, in white and blue, suggested to many ladies
present uneasy memories cf an unkind Atlantic. A
cleverly-carried out Incroyable dress in pink and
blue, w th huge coal-scuttle hat, was to be seen waltz-
ing with a Texan cowboy; and the next couple that
paceed proved to be an English gleaner and one of
the Corsican brothers. A grasshopper in two shades
of green with long antennm of the same colour sur-
mounting the coiffure may be said to have had a
certain rural affinity with a woodland maid in nut-
brown dress, a squirrel perched upon her shoulder.
Belonging to the garden rather than the grove was a
lady whose satin skirts were embroidered with
flowers, and who wore a hat made of inverted velvet
pansy leaves. Twilight, all a mist cloud of soft
grey, with some faint reflection of the sunset still
pervading the whole, was starred with silver from
head to foot. Close following, as was bst natural,
cam 3 Night, her sombre darkness relieved with a
superfluity of crescent moons, a small one in the
hair, and a lirger one on the dress. Snow and Frost
were not as liberally represented as is ususl at fancy
balls, nor was any dress of this kind particularly
sucussful. It is a mistake to suppose that small
pieces of cotton wool, hair-pinned out over an ordi-
dmary coiffure, convey any climatic idea to the mind.

MANY of the men's dresses were of great beauty.
The embroidery on the robes of a Tunisian noble was
of the costliest kind, and wa,s certainly never worked
in England. Many Arab and Egyptian costumes were
Worn—a fact which is doubtless owing in great
measure Co We late 'camPaighs. The curious head-
coverings were, in several cases, conscientiously worn
during the dance, and perhaps the heat thereby en.
gsndered was less than that caused by the wigs of the

barristers, which appeared very seriously to incom-
mode rapid waltzers unaccustomed to this appreciable
addition to their natural growth of hair. A Knight
Hospitaller, his limbs in glittering armour, happily
combined his military religious order with the exact
amount of worldliness needed to enjoy a scene so
festive. Quite a third of the male guests wore
uniform, a kind of dress which "saves think-
ing" and also avoids the necessity of donning
a wig. A man who wore a riding dress of
the last century had either forgotten his wig
or lost it. The closely cropped hair of the present
mode looked thoroughly out of keeping with the
dress. It is probable that there never has been a
fancy bal without a Marie Stuart. There is always
at least one lady found to possess courage equal to the
representation of her—of all queens most lovely and
most unlucky. To the same period belonged a small
Edward VI., dipped in dye of modern heliotrope, a
beef-eater or two, and an archer. There was no
henry VIII. William Shakespeare's counterfeit
presentment was curiously like the portraits of our
poet. Sir Walter Raleigh did not on this occasion
revisit the glimpses of the moon. Many other historic
dresses were to be seen; among them a stalwart -V ir-
ginius, accompanied by a slender Virginia. Mephis-
topheles, all flame, colour, and oblique black eyebrows,
danced much with a Marguerite, in white and blue,
with long plaits of red-brown hair. John Bull, as
shown in the caricatures of the last century; Paddy,
in many-coloured garments, and with a bit of
"real green" in his hat; and a West Indian
planter in broad-brimmed hat and white suit, may
be said to have been among the more commonplace
types. A male shepherd, who had apparently wan-
dered here from Arcady, and who must have been
astonished at the difference of climate, carried a lamb,
a woolly, wooden thing, or led it by a blue ribbon.
Strephon's hair was wreathed with ox-eyed daisies and
a garland of roses was hung round his neck. His
costume otherwise was idyllic, if scanty. A French
Pierrot, all in white, wore a huge frill which in the
sanatory moments of the wearer rose about his head
and obscured it from view with curious effect.
Richard of the Lion Heart would probably have
stared in amazement at such an article as a ball pro-
gramme ; but his modern representative had
evidently seen the thing before. Knights, warriors,
poets, sheikhs, milkmaids, gleaners, CarmensAsmer-
aides, all grouped round supper tables in the magni-
ficent hall of the hotel, presented a charming scene,
and one which the philanthropist, equally with the
frivolous or the artistic, must have enjoyed, when
he reflected that each person present represented
an addition to the funds of a very beneficent insti-
tution.