The Portland daily press., 1877-03-30
GFrom Harper's Bazar.l
WI OIH

bornly as they now do that of Germany.
[From Harper's Bazar.l
New York Fashions.
Fresh importatons of spring dresses arrive
each week at this season of the year, confirm
ing anew some of the designs already received,
aud adding more varied novelties Thus far
the polonaise is the over dress most often seen
on both rich and simple costumes. While a
dissertation might be written on the various
shapes of this garment, its distinctive features
remain the same. The newest patterns have
but one dart in each 'front.' and this dart ex-
tends to the foot of the garment the greater
number are fastened on the left side and the
same proportion have long back seams be-
ginning on the shoulders; all of them are
plain over the tournure, in Marguerite fash
ion. Very elaborate polonaises are seldom
of uniform shape; they differ not only
in being draped differently on each side, but
their cores are unlike; as, for instance, there
will be only one long gore from shoulder to foot
while all the other forms are cut off like basques
and have separate skirts. In others, the two
materials that now enter into every over dress
are most irregularly arranged, one material
disappearing suddenly and reappearing in an
unexpected place, while the other FABRIC is
found where it has never been used before
Knickerbocker wooens with tufted threads,
wiry camePs hair in quadrille designs, soft
cameps ha'r plsinly twilled, black silk, black
damask grenadine and the new gazeline barege
of dark navy blue, are the materials used for
these new overdresses For the first warm
days, when wraps can be dispensed with, aIs
the cameps hair polonaises of gray, cream
color aud Grao, WITH eieeant cheEie gallc0ns
Of darker shades and frlDges of fantastic Moor
sh designs. For more novel over dresses for
young ladies are the Knickerbocker and Alge-
rienne woods with raised threads of Iudia colors
ou cream or blue grounds, or else the mouotone
gray or brown KnickerDockers, richly trimmed
WITH kn'ie pleatings OF silk, Breton embroid-
cries. strings of pearl buttons and fringes
Some of these have large buckles and clasps of
facet5d steel for boldibg their drapery in place,
while o. hers are entirely without drapiDg, hang
log pain from the waist, and stil others are
caught back by Breton bands. Black silk polo
naises are made with fiat peatngs FROM the
neck down the middle OF the back to match the
fan trains with which they are worn. Black
greDadine pOOnaises have large damask figures
are draped differently on each side and are
ribbon; the trimming is ruches of French lace,
and jabots of lace with ends OF satin ribbon
hanging in the shells. The new navy blue
gazeline barege Tor llama wool) is made up
with rich gros grain of the same shade and
trimmed with transparent galoon and rich
fringe in which threads of mandarin yellow
and~the new Vesuva red are introduced
Light tinted smoke-pearl buttons are used on
bstn dark and light cloths.
Cloth dresses of light quality are made up
n0StI0n hASOnpS Oh rfo
with square sides and fatty pleated backs
These dresses are NEAR to be very useful and
simple, hence rich fringes are not used, but the
over skirt has deep hem or silk facing (from
two to three inches wide), above which is
single row of very wide galloon. Still others
have five or six parallel rows of sewing ma
chine stitching in place of the galloon, and in
some instances this stitching is Of contrasting
color; for instance, Pngat puts pale blue
stitching on brown cloth, mandarin on olive,
SC.
The increased use of the sewing machine is
noticeable on the handsomest Paris dresses.
French modistes were slow to adopt this great
saving of labor, but they now appreciate it and
use it in conspicuous parts of the dress, for
hemming silk pleatings, for stitching them on
aud ia various places where American ladies
prohibit it. When neatly done there can be no
reasonable objection to this beautiful and sub
stantial sewing, and the Bazaar is glad to chron-
ice that anything so sensible is to retain its
popularity.
Among other simple and stylish dresses are
those of fine dela;ne in the smallest pin-head
checks of color on white. These have silk
skirt with a polonaise and sleeveless jacket. A
model that will serve for description is of brown
and white check on a seal brown silk skirt,
trimmed with knife pleatings of the silk, and
galloon brocaded in Indian colors and design.
The silk skirt has fiounce of the woel from
the knee down, made straight, and edged on
the bottom with rose-leaf pleating of brown
silk. To keep the front of the dress fiat, this
deep hOunce has no gathers in the front and
side breadths, but is quite full behind where 1t
forms fan train. The long wool polonaise
(also edged with pleated silkl has long dart
in each front reaching to the foot, brown silk
plastron, and white ivory buttons with brown
centres. Just below the tournure bands of
Indian galloon cross the back, and there are
bows and flowing ends held by pearl buckles.
The galloon also trims the waist instead of
cuff, and passes around the neck ending in
suiUez moi bow and streamers. The sleeveless
sacque has loug seams from the shoulder. is
edged with knife pleatlng and laps in front to
form tabs and Is fastened with single button
in each
The newest princesse dresses for spring are
of light Algerienne or Knckerbocker woolens
in dsshes of blue, green, or brown on white,
with silk of another color for sleeves and for
flounces. Thus blue and white soft Algerienne
wool princesse dresses have side cores, knife
pleatings, pockets. collars and sash ends of
ashes-Of-roses gros grain. The drapery is un-
equal, being massed in horizontal pleats ON one
side, while the opposite gore is of plain silk, on
which square bows of silk are laid The foot
OF the dress is cut out in squares and silk knife
pleatings border the SKIRT The Inevitable
pearl buttons appear on all such dresses. These
beautiful dresses will be copied by thrifty ladies
who wish to modernize p.rtly won dresses, as
one good dress may be made of two old ones,
or the best parts of a half worn silk dress may
be combined with one of the new wooden stuffs
described below
A fine half-transparent material called gaze
line barage isLmade of pure llama wool OF very
light quality IL is like beige in appearance,
though much finer, and IS IN dark rich coors
Instead of the natural brown and gray mixtures
of de beige 1t is especially admired In navy
blue, made up with silk and trimmed with
galloon aud fringe; it is also shown IN myrtle
green, nut brown, and tiileuL It measures
tbirty inches in width, aud costs rs cents q
yard The woolen suits necessary AZ the sea-
side and nice travelling dresses VIII be made OF
this fabric. Bunting resembles IL GIN appear
ance, but is more SUN ana wlry. Another
wool tissue also to be used for travelling dresses
is shot with colors showing Kuickerbocker ef-
fects 10y having rough threads of dark shade
raised on the smoothest surface. Atwood
bourrette is shown for similar costumes, and is
more expensive. 1t has raised figures Of tiny
leaves or flowers, or perhaps only dashes of
color. The price Is $1.25 yard tor goods near
ly thirty inches wide.
Seaside grenadlne is all of pure wool in lace
like open patterns and in matelasse designs.
This will be much used for the country, travel
ling, mountains, and also for towniwear later III
the fall. 1t is shown in ecru, tilleul, navy biue,
gray and green, and is 10 be made up III compi-
nation with silk. or the entire dress may be of
the gienadlne: 81 25 yard is the price. Cob
web cloth |. novelty this season. 1t seems
made up of threads OF loose zephyr wool tied IN
diamond figures with silk. This pretty lace
like fabric Is soft and thin yet strong, and is
SHOWN IN olive, bropze, tilleul, light blue and
ecru shades. it is double width, and only fonr
or five wards are required for an over dress,