Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1877-11-03
IFom our O,cn Correspondent.

nAhtng-Ihe Cost OF Dress-Wf0ter
eloass and Paris COsfumes-Gioyes
md Laces
From Our OsCn Correspondent
NEW YORK, Oct. 23-There is nothing dull
or monotonous in the external aspects OF
city life how-a-dsys. The color introduced
into dress, and particularly the new ideas a
simple arts and art industries, fill our streets
with the bright and warm hued tenants OF
the autumn woods and fields, aud develop
new attractions for the plate glass windoy vs.
OF handsome uptown shops which possess
an increasing interest for the psssers-by. Toe
influx of the Chinese and Japanese eie lent
into our population and their manufacturers
into our life has also tended largely To diver
silly the minor arts, aud those fanciful occu-
10 indulge. Worsted work and crOcheting
have given place to painting on wool on
SILK, on china, to applique work after ia
I'D io crewaI .n nn ooeionme OF red nanuei,
what are curiously call ed "artisttc" designs,
because they are direct copies, or should be,
from nature.
All these things give color ani interest," 20
the out door aud Indoor life OF wJnsl
which Is of en- SO barren of attractions aud
added TO the sidewalk exhibit OF autun1
leaves, ferns, Florida grasses, holly I,hes
and berries give to our city walks Il .vor of
country rambles, as we'll rs the aivantage
OF knowing what can or is being done oy
those who keep abreast of the smaller activ-
tiles.
The fight between hand labor aud machin
labor takes on new aspects every day an
becomes exceedingly interes ting. Machine
work, machine patterns, M acnine designs
are necessarily arbitrary, unffor IN mech4n-
zeal; hand work is free, capable Of adapting
iLself To every fancy, and prOi lclns tue In
fiuite diversity fOuni In uiturarGorms tn
takes hand labor out OF the dull level OF
mechanism, andelevates.t inlo.the region OF
art. This idea has already found It's way
into dress, and clothing: TO be fashiona bic
nowadays, one must be original, not mere
copyists of other peoples id cas-. The leader
of fashion anywhere is the one who dresses
differently from, not the Que VINO dresses
like, everybody else. And so of other THINGS
those who have the courage to tax new
departure which Is generally ackuo Y gel
10 be good one, make a mark upol their
time, th sir generation, or the CO "a nus atty;
but it must be done msgnidcently, stro lgly,
as Goethe says.
A NEw DEPARTURE IN DREssMAKISG
L was interested the other day ia a little
circular that was put into my hands. TIE
originator had an Idea. 1t announ need new
departure" in dressma King, by making
prices Inclusive" of minor trimmings !, such
as sleeve and waist Innings, silk for sewing.
thread, whalebDne, and the like. FaShiona-
BILE Gressmakers in New York are accus-
TONED TO aud TO charge of fifteen ID twenty
five dollars for making suit, uniform
sum of two dollars and half for the Incl
dental articles used in m aking, which do not
include buttons or anything known distinct
iy a. trimming. The "new dep arturo was
really happy thought, and i'm sgine the
but VINO has been forced into 1t by disastrous
changes. Perhaps she has i'm happier DAYS
been abroad, and b ad the idea suggested to
her by her own pleasant experience of the
Inclusive" charges of the Paris dress
ma kers, who use the finest Innings and mate
rails for making, but make no separate
charge ior them, although their first and Only
one is so much more moderate than ours.
My clever dressmaker m ny, therefore, after
all, be an inexperienced one, but still 1
should be willing TO trust her, for II not per-
q m N ANA hrf d nn5f Of
which are bad, she Is surely possessed of an
intelll gence which will enable her to strike
out In new directions aud I'm time achieve
something worthy to be called artistic, even
in dTessmaking.
COST OF MAKING DRESS.
III may surprise unsophisticated people To
and which are only the average, for conpar-
atlvely plain cOstu mes, can be c1arsei and
obtained for merely making dress, bat this
is because they are unacq tainted with tue
cost OF living in The metropolis, OF rent, of
skilled labor, and the comparatively small
amount of routine work perform ed by unin-
terested iabOrefs in q wen time.
Dressmakers do not get rich even at fifteen
or twenty dollars per suit, If il takes three
persons six days TO make two, aud IL to the
aggregate wages of thirty dollars, for these
three, Is added rent, hire OF a boy, gaslight,
and the time OF a superintendent of affairs.
Yet ten dollars per week is lower than the
average wages which skilled dres smakers
demand, and receive, and two ordinary
suits, composed of silk, and wool, OF the
usual number of pieces, well made ID
nicely trimmed, would be considered cool
average Tor three persons TO accom- 81 iyh in
he time mentioned, one devoting her tim to
cutting, fitting, and arranging, another to
lhe making and putting on OF the trim ming,
and the execution OF the fner parts of the
work; the other, who earns less, TO the COM
'noner sewing, and that which is done by
machine.
WHAT 1T SHOULD COST WOMAN TO
DRESS.
An indignant Individual of the male per-
cation addressed to me recsntly what he
svit q thy Considered u highly sarcastic let
&c GA the sc Jre remark In one of nv
e,ters, 10 the effec, that the majority of wo-
men had not more than from Lw) hand red
ana my 70 I'VE hundre dollars PER annun
TO spend on tn sir entire WARDROBE es, and there
fore could mo- be expected 10 spend that sum
on one dress alone. - Not mora tina a Two hun
dred and fifty to five hundred dollars per al
num-" he repeats; he should rather think not,
and he adds, that perhaps 1 am no. aware
there are plenty of people with families who
actually Ire on these sums and less. @ lite
True. But. then, they do not dress, at least
only In such clothing Is the people who do,
give them, and they do not read fash ion aud
naturally fashions are not written, or created
true that some women spend too much on
dress, but il Is only true of q comparatively
small number; the majority spend too little.
There are men who make and lose hundreds
and even thousands OF dollars, who complain
of the cost Of q necessa' y dress, or q pair of
SHOES, purcha ed by their oHl wives. Com.
mold possession of money against those VINO
have 10 spend il. Women in the country, the
wives OF well to do farmers, and proprie.
tors, spend altogether too little on them
selves and their dress. Til ~ grow old before
their time with hard work, and they look
Older still from the poverty OF their personal
belongings. The subtle influence of bscom-
fDg dress, The refinement of habitual associa-
ton with the fine, instead Of the coarse, Is
un known to them.
The clothing of persons ought to be repre-
sentative OF their pOsit on, aud a m m sh ,uld
be ashamed, who has money to spend %
lands or horses, or his own pursuits to
grudge that which his wife needs aud which
she would probably have were she not tied
TO him Two hundred and fifty dollars seems
q large sum TO some men VINO can very we'll
afford il for a woman To expeud on herself,
but how nsuch will IL buy of ordinary cloth
ing? One silk dress, S6j; one wooden costume,
$685. one indoor dress, S15; summer dress IS,
making, trimmings and belongi ngs, $40; two
Wrapper $40; shoes, including slippers, SO;
hats for summer and inter, Sl5 Underwear,
corsets and hosiery, s25; cloak, shawl or
some other outside garment, So. Total, $3.50.
This liz a very bald e Sti mate; there is surely
nothing superhuous, and the prices are such
that good material could only be secured by
having the garments at least partly made At
home. Yet there Is no margin for ribbons,