St. Charles Republican intelligencer. (St. Charles [Charles City], Iowa) 1856-1857, 1857-04-16

The Fashions.

The Fashions.
The windows of the fashionable
stores in Philadelphia and New York
are already gay with the spring and
summer goods. The new silks Of a
superior kind have founces woven in
the material. or narrow Bayadere
stripes. Stripes are more fashionable
than plaids. In de lains, the stripes
usually covered with palms in rich
colors on delicate grounds. Chintzs
and lawns are unusually pretty this
year. They are unsurpassed for rich
ness Of color, and are mostly of a palm
or arabesque pattern Skirts still con-
tinue to be worn long. For thin, or
wash dresses, the basque is not worn,
eccept for morning dress, when the
basque is like loose sacque, finished
with a frill and belted around the waist.
Organdies, lawns, &C., intended for
dinner or evening dress, are to be
made with q round waist, with slight
fullness, and confined by sash of rib
bon matching the dress. Corsages
made low in the neck, and worn with
a pretty little cape of the same mate
rial as the dress, and trimmed with a
lace edge, promises to be exceedingly
popular. Either black lace, or white
null basques look exceedingly we'll
with these corsages.
A rumor has got abroad that the
French Empress (who rules Paris, and
Paris we know rules the world of fash
ion, has diminished the width of her
crinoline, and that consequently two
ladies will be able to pass each other
on the side walk hereafter. The latest
Paris fashions, however, give no hint
of this. Five, six, and seven skirts
still continue to be worn, founces
spread wider than ever, and there is
no prospect as yet of our fair bellies
looking less like Dutch ships than
heretofore.
For outdoor wear, silk basques will
be much worn. Shawls have also re-
gained their popularity which they
should never have lost, especially with
tall persons; or those who have long
necks and sloping shoulders. Bonnets
retain much of the winters shape, but
promises not to be so overloaded with
trimming. Black Lace Jackets con-
tinue to be much liked. They are, in
deed, particularly convenient, as they
are adapted to be worn with any silk
dress, One of these jackets is CON-
posed of rows of insertion of black
lace edged with narrow lace, and join
ed together at intervals to form the
shape. Some are composed of black
tulle, nearly covered with narrow rows
of black velvet, and bows and the ends
Of the same. Occasionally a light
trimming Of jet is intermingled with
the velvet or other trimming. Jack
cts made in the same style of white
muslin, with puffings, through which
blue, pink, lilac or green ribbons
could be run, would be very "dressy."
Sleeves for morning wear are some
times made large and plain, confined
only with band at the wrist; and
sometimes they have two pufings,
with gauntlet cuff turned back, and
ribbon run through it to correspond
with that worn at the neck. The morn
ing collars are generally Of embro ider-
ed muslin, with or without trimming
of Valenciennes lace. The under
sleeves, for full-dress toilet, are made
of tulle with pufings and a lace
frill. They are always decorated with
ribbon or butterfly bows. For ordina-
ry visiting toilet nothing is prettier
than embroidered muslin sleeves with
cuffs of the same, slit up for the hand
and trimmed with lace. Collars are
only moderately large. Pocket-hand-
kerchiefs for evening costume are pro-
fusely ornamented with lace. For
plain toilet, less lace is used, but they
are rich in ncedlework. For visiting
dress and morning wear, those with an
open-work edge, or with rows of hem
stitch are generally selected. For this
purpose head-dresses with colored en-
broidery are also much in vogue. A
very pretty little cuff is now worn in
moderate evening dress, which de-
serves the degree of favor in which it
is held.
OFFICE SEEKERs.-The crowd of men