Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-05-03

| jackets.
From our own Correspondent.
New YORK, May l, 1S74.-Bridal
fashions are now in order in May, for,
contrary to the old superstition, May
weddings are no longer considered I'M
lucky and the FIRST young lady of the
land" has chosen this lovely month
for her bridal Mrs. Grant and
Nellie spent several days here
lately shopping. The trousseau
is ordered, the traditional white satin
wedding dress is in hand, and tie last
of May is set down for the ceremony.
The White House sets the example and
the grand castle Stewart follows suit
In the same month with wedding favors
for the Senator's fair daughter; and a
little later will be consummated an
out-and-out love match of which one
party is General Sherman's charming
daughter Minnie-about whom Duke
Alexis was so enthusiastic. Paris
and New York are to furnish trousseau
for these Washington weddings, hence
modistes are ransacking their trains
for new designs and devices wherewith
to garnish them.
/ The fayorite caprice for the richest
wedding dresses worn since Lent is
that of having long trains with their
soft flowing folds unbroken by panier
or hounce and then lavish all garniture
of lace and flowers on the front widths
en- tdblier. A mass of trimming de-
tracts from what modistes call the
character" of Wedding dresses, and
moreover interferes with the soft tulle
drapery of the bridal veil. The plan
now is to put three or four ounces of
point lace across the front breadth
and half of those attached to 1t; to head
these founces with clusters Of upturned
folds..of silk tulle, above which is ruche
of tulle supporting vines of orange
| tiowers. This trimming covers the en-
| tire front, the lace is then waved down
each side in spiral jabots with orange
garlands upon them. If the ceremony
Is performed IN church the corsage is
high with basque back and pointed
front; for home weddings low pointed
corsages are used with Grecian drapery
on the bosom or else a turned up Me-
Gici iraise. The corsage bouquet is no
longer set directly IN front but is high
upon the left side, and a spray of
blossoms crosses the brow and has a
poupOn cluster on the left side instead
of trailing sprays behind. The tulle
veil is long square of tulle with a
heur, and is folded to fall squarely over
the face; after the ceremony 1t is the
first bridesmaids duty to throw
theveil back from the brow.
CROSS BARS AND CHECKS.
Among the fashionable faneies that
Will appear IN MAY costumes, Is the re-
vival of checks, blocks, and eros bars,
not as entire costumes, but as the prin-
cipal part associated with gros grain
Of the color used in the plaids. A
kind of soft twilled India silk is the
fabric of which the barred part of the
dress is made; the ground is white; the
blocks or bars are black, brown, navy
blue, violet, or grey. The skirt,
flOunces, and sleeves are generally of
the plain gross grain, with basques and
overskirt of the plaid. These costumes
are exceedingly popular with young
ladies, especially IN nut brown shades,
| and the charming violet color, which Is
but another name for navy blue, dam
son, and plum color of last year. Black
and white associated are as popular as
ever; black and steel color are also very
stylish. Silver grey, chestnut and vi0-
let are the fashionable positive eolors.
The mOngrel hues are fast disappear
ing. ........- .-.... ..r.-r--
STEEL PASSEMENTERIE. --
Black silk dresses, deliberately trim
med with steel passementcrie, are new
er than those trimmed. with Jet. There
have been several efforts TO popularize
steel trimmings, but until now they
have not been handsome enough for
ornamenting silks. Among May i'm
pOrtations are dresses Of heavy black
faille with perpendicular rows of wide
galloOn black with steel beads down
the front widths and down the basque
There are also elaborate collars, belts
and anmonieries made of this steel
garniture. Black SiciGenne polonaises
are trimmed with row after row of steel
fringe formed of twisted strands of
beads. Such pol0naises are worn over
skirts of striped, black and steel silks.
Later In the season steel trimmings
viii be worn on black grenadines.
NEW PELERINES.
. The novelty In the way Of wraps is,
after all, not a novelty, but revival of
an old fashion, namely, pelerines, or
elbow wraps. They are made of black
Sicilienne, Cashmere, or silk, and are
wrought all over with let, sontache,
embroidery, and steel, and edged. with
heavy fringe or lace; their shapes that
of the simple round capes worn by
elderly ladies, reaching to the waist be-
hind, and to the elbows on the sides
without dipping there" The neck is
finished by a vOluminous fraise and
sometimes a collar also, and the front
is fastened by row of ribbon bows.
These have been purchased by young
ladies of fashion to wear with suits Of
any color, and viii, for a time, super
sede dolmans and mantillas. Small as
they are and simple as they seem, they
not seldom cost 500. -r.. a...-.-
TUNES.
Tunics-by which are meant all over
skirts, whether merely polonaise skirts
or those worn with basques-are lon
ger than ever. In many cases they arc
only aprons, and instead of being high
ON the hips they are only gradually
shortened to the back where they are
fastened by bows, loops and other sash
drapery. The apron is an lndispensa-
bic part of stylish costumes, and while
1t exists 1t is useless to say overskirts
are going out of fashion, and the only
ground for such an assertion is the fact
that dem- trained skirts of house and
carriage toilets are more often trimmed
In opera fashion than supplied with the
real apron or overskHt. There is
simple way of outlining an apron that is
the only effective way of doing so, and
therefore worthy of description. This
is done by putting a knife pleating or
a shirred ruffie on the skirt in the apron
design, namely reaching almost to the
toe IN front, rounding up on the sides
and quite high behind; then falling in
thewholespace below with rufies, having
perhaps seven behind and only two in
front. Other tUnics are designated by
lcngthwise bands Of galloons (of let or
stesD extending from the belt TO the
knee, and meeting a founce that goes
around the skirt.
There Is no more attempt to give
bOgfaRt appearance TO the back of the
dress hence bustles arp entirely die