The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1883-11-15
Fashion Notes.

SlOJn DO0Dets are mucn WORN Will clotH
costumes.
Shirred yokes and full waists are again in
vogue.
For tall, slender women no wrap for cold
weather use can be found more cmfortabe
and becoming than the long French mantle,
cut in exceedingly graceful curves in the
back, and half fitting in front The medi-
um-priced wraps in this style are made of
black ottoman silk, and trimmed with full
feathery fringes and ruches of chenille. The
more expensive garments are made of large
patterned brocades, the designs being of
raised flowers in the velvet or chenille
Heavy quilted satin Innings are more popu-
lar this season than those of fur, on account
of the annoyance caused by the shedding OF
hairs where fur is employed.
AT Questionable church wedding last week
the three bridesmaids wore dresses of dark
royal blue plush, made short, with full Marie
Stuart TUNES, and sharp-pointed bodices.
They wore London gypsy hats made of white
velvet aud lace, with short full ostrich tips
wreathing the crowns. Their long white
gloves of Danish kid were not drawn over,
but passed underneath the lace-trimmed
sleeves. The first bridesmaid carried bas-
ket of blush roses at her side, the second
basket of carnations, and the third, young
lady of sweet sixteen, held a basket over
flowing with trailing vines, ferns, white Ill
les, and tea-rose buds. Each young lady
wore with her costume pair of bronze
shoes, the tops of which were made of dark
blue velvet the exact shade of their dresses.
Braiding and floral embroidery both look
well if used sparingly as dress garniture,
but become vulgar and bad form when car
ried to extremes. The same remark applies
to the sleeve f1lled in on the shoulder seam,
and to the crinolette, which, in spite of the
laws of the Rational Dress Society, has with
the autumn fashions, with their full lines
and high drapings, entirely broken It's bonds,
and is indistinguishable from the small Grim
oline. But gathered sleeves are becoming
eccentric; the dressmakers are not satisfied
with fulling them and placing them high on
the shoulders, but even the best modistes,
who are the most chary of running into ex-
tremes, are placing pads in the shoulders to
make them stand up higher, exactly as gen.
tlemen's coats are padded following also
of the fashion among ladies of the time of
King George III.
Dark royal blue is this season a very fash
ionable color. New dinner and reception
dresses are sent from Paris composed of this
rich and elegant hue, in velvets, plushes,
0hA III kAS5hAANCnu pdtlA ldDIiCS, UIOCduoQ
with leaves and blossoms of pale gold or sill
yer. One superb costume has a trained
skirt OF dark royal blue Lyons satin, bro
caded with dropping clusters of silver liacs
and rOsebuds. The nnderdress is of white
satin, covered with white lace founces. the
designs being delicately outlined with silver
threads. These founces reach all the way
up the front of the skirt. A second dress is
OF dark royal blue velvet, made short, the
panels box-pleated, founce and half-open
sleeves lined with pale gold satin. The cor
sage is very close fittingand jersey shaped,
with very open square neck, trimmed with
very open square neck, trimmed with a
high velvet ruff, with gold lace pleated up
full inside.
The leign Of bonnets for the promenade
seems to be over for the present, and every
one who can adopt a hat of the period with
out putting too severe strain upon her
beauty to-day is wearing one, and wearing
them, unfortunately, all about of one shape,
with total disregard of age, feature, com
plexion or style. From long array of mod
els imported early in the season, the popular
shapes seem to have dwindled to few re-
stricted styles. If you cannot wear the
Henri Deux, with its uncompromising brim,
you must take the Henri Trois, shape
which follows as natural sequence to the
Henri Deux. There is little difference in
the shape. The brim is curlier, and the
crown round instead of square The hats
themselves are trimmed with as many birds
heads, breasts and wings as you may indi-
fashion is concerned there is no limit.
A very unique style of evening dress, af-
fected by asthetically inclined young ladies,
is a costume of pale yellow yelling, satin or
cashmere, made with short, full skirt,
tucked to the waist. Above this skirt fall
the full, solt folds of s'marine- blouse,''
and above this blouse is worn cut-away
jacket of black velvet, richly EN- 5roidered
An immense sash of pale yellow satin gives
the required fullness in the back. A black
velvet bag is suspended from the waist
by a slender gold chain, this hold
ing a kerchief, which must be ex-
posed to view and must cost a great
deal of money. Black silk stockings
and black velvet sandals show themselves
by reason of the shortness of the dress skirt,
and the long black gloves of Swedish kid
must reach far up the arm and be edged
with narrow black lace. A cluster of arti-
fetal Jacque roses, delicately perfumed and
fastened near the left shoulder, gives the
finishing touch to the dress.
Some of the newest overdresses are so long
pas to reach to the bottom of the dress skirt,
both front and back. The drapery at each
side is usually caught up very high. with
buckles, or loops of ribbon run through a
slide. The other extreme is a very short
bunchy tunic or pannier overskirt. Either
style is equally fashionable The question
of suitability and becomingness is therefore
the only matter to be settled in making a
choice of the two very opposite styles. Very
few of the gray dresses now 10 much in
vogue are trimmed with colors. Here and
there you see dash of mulberry or crimson
velvet, but although both colors harmonic
with and look effective against gray, they
are not considered in nearly such good taste
as an entire gray dress either trimmed with
marabout feather trimming or made up
with velvet of deeper shade either plain or
brocaded. For instance smoke gray otto
man silk skirt mingled with gray velvet looks
well with an overdress of the silk, and
short Newmarket jacket of the same, trim
med with marabout, the jacket opening over
Louis XIV. waist-coat of velvet, fastened
with silver buttons in old Roman designs.
The gay Henri III. felt hat is trimmed with
sea gull's wings and loops of dark gray vel
vet run through massive silver buckle.
The novelties of the past month continue
to fulfil the promise of tasteful elegance held
forth by the early rumors of the season. The
latest modes in dress are both charming and
sensible. There is an almost endless variety
of material used in the richer toilets of the
season, and usually the fabrics are of good
wearing quality, well retaining their fresh
ness and beauty for an indefinite period.
The exception to this general rule is the ex-
quisitely embroidered and fower-brocaded
dresses of India muslin, Persian null, silk
tulle and silk grenadine, SO successfully re-
vived this season. Toilets composed of these
most delicate textures are exceedingly per-
ishable. This, however, is of little account
where Nmoney is no object'-they are in