Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-05-04
THE SAVANNAH MORNING NEWS: SUNDAY, MAY 4, 1884.

needle work. Flannel skirts of striped
pink and white, or pale China blue and
white, are trimmed with deep Florentine
| lace, and upon matinee robes Of foulard
or China silk is expended fabulous quantl-
ties of Mechlin-nOt real, Of course-but
an excellent imitation. At the health ex-
hibition, to take place in London this
month, novelty for underwear is an
nOunced, which, il is expected, Will at
| tract great attention. 1t is new silk
! ''lOng cloth,' warm, soft, gentle, and
/ specially adapted TO those who cannot
bear contact with flannel or any wooden
material. 1t is difficult to see how silk
I which is cool and repellant can be made
warm and absorbent as the new
/ fabric is said to be, but as most things
/ are possible nowadays, this may be. 1t
/ is ecru in color and has plain or twilled
I surface, as preferred. The Health Con-
! gress will revive the interest on the sub
/ ject of dress and afford an opportunity to
! Lady Harberton's active Rational Dress
/ Society to make another display of sra
| tiOnaP' costumes, which, if not generally
acceptable, serve to popularize many good
! ideas.
An annual congress or dress exhibition,
| in which all sides would have an OppOr-
/ tunity to be represented, the new things
would be brought before the public, and
/ the whole subject opened as one capable
/ of individual modification and improve
ment and not subject to arbitrary law,
would be useful and educational, and
sometime New York may be big enough
and original enough to have one of its
own.
AN INFANT OUTFIT.
The other day a check was sent in to
the especial ORDER department of large
Broadway house which, it was explained,
was the payment for an outfit provided
for an infant which had been left mother
less and taken charge Of by rich and
dOting maternal grandmother. Only two
years before the same house had furnished
the rousseau for the lovely young bride.
! Now the grief of the mother at the loss of
the daughter she loved found consolation
in lavish OutpOuring of rich gifts upon
the head of the unconscious baby she had
| left. 1t was five months old now and to
be short coated. This was the occasion
for the outfit, which included nundeen
real lace dresses, a coat of white corded
silk hand embroidered and trimmed with
/ fine wide duchess lace, a white cloth coat
/ lined with silk and trimmed with Fl0ren-
tine lace, and lace cap, marvel of soft
/ waves of lace and narrow satin ribbon
and marabOut feathers.
! In the department where this order was
/ executed hung silk quilt of very dainty
wOrkmanship-sOm of the pieces embrOi-
! dered; some hand-painted. This quilt
was made on and sent from the ''free
| bed" of a hospital by a woman once rich,
! who had spent thousands of dollars at
| this same store, but now thankfully avail
! ed herself of the interest of one of its pro-
| prietOrs in an constitution" to procure a
/ shelter a place to die in, and the means
! to die decently. Her husband had speculat-
! ed and lost. Her health had declined. She
/ had no friends willing to take in and pro-
vide for a woman used to luxury and dy-
ing of cancer, and it was through the in
! terest of this plying merchant, who had
known her in her prosperous days, that
she was so far relieved from her terrible
position as to be placed under shelter and
kindly cared for.
INIPQRTED COSTUMES.
! This is an "off' year and all the BUYERS
! from Paris agree that it is very difficult
to find attractive novelties. Fashions
abroad, when they "catch on" as one
slang phrase puts it, always last two
years, so, although there may be an effort
to get up something striking to please
American buyers, there are no decided or
revolutionary changes. Even the imagi-
nation of French milliner must lie fall
low sometimes or it would not be capable
of the great efforts which are expected of
! it. There is no lack of distinction, how
ever, in the costumes as exhibited by a
( young Ond enterprising firm Of importers
and dressmakers in West Thirty-ffth
/ street. Among the most noticeable was a
4 lovely toilet of golden brown changeable
/ silk combined with heliOtrOpe also shot
with gold and covered with white lace.
! The lighter shade, lace-cOvered, formed a
! plated vest and narrow front, the lower
/ sides of the front being fiOunced in deli
/ cate Mechlen in maiden-hair fern pat
! tern, and the upper portions covered with
| paniers of the gOlden-brown silk, which
| also formed full train and basque. A dark
| shot silk in ruby and bronze shades was
| covered with fine black Llama lace, pro-
ducing the color effect of old Venetian
! glass, and a velvet dress of Ottoman COM
! bined with rich velvet figured grenadine
| was dazzling with showers of sparkling
let. which covered the entire front. A
! great deal of lace is used, principally
| Mechlin, or rather an admirable imitation
! of it. Some charming white dresses were
! of surah or Ottoman covered in front with
ruffles of delicate lace in the maiden hair
! pattern, which is a great faYOrlte, and
combined with embroidered Grape, the
! embroidery in small dots, satin finished.
| A thick satin-wOOd brown, was made
with plated front, sufmOunted by a small
/ apron bordered deeply with an exquisite
network and fringe of golden brown and
! bronze beads. The basque was covered,
excepting the sleeves, with a similar net
work: but below it at the back the full
! skirt hung in rich folds quite plain. A
/ singular dress was of uncut velvet III bis
/ cult color upon mulberry satin. A tichu
of China Grape crossed the breast IN a
! quaint, suggestive fashion, and extended
/ to the skirt, where it formed a pointed
/ apron which was embroidered and caught
up with a clasp of odd tilagree workman
ship. There were several poplins, one
I gray with narrow feather band trimming,
] another cinnamon brown trimmed with
/ broad, fiat Persian embroidery. A ball
/ dress, made for Easter, was of gauZe Grape
! over white satin, the trimming fine,
wide, white silk embroidery flounced and
/ laid in plisses. The front was covered
! with this embroidery, caught up on one
! side with punches of white lilac. The
| bodice was of full gauze crossed over
the satin, and the drapery of the same was
almost concealed under wide sashes of
/ satin ribbon. A calling dress was of
dull terra Gotta, satin brocaded, with gray,
! uncut velvet, and made as a coat cos
tune, with lining OF satin and border Of
gray feather trimming. A pearl gray
cloth was trimmed with fiat, silver braid,
very wide, and more like a fine canvas
than braid.
THE NEWEST IN HATS AND BONNETS.
It is not known how much of the I'M
ported millinery comes now from Eng
land and is not unfrecuently sold as.
! French. The English styles are credited
with being more Dractcal-less fussy and
more specialized. The coaching hat is
distinctively English. 1t is large, of fine
split straw, with moderately high crown
and straight brim, which is faced with
velvet, olive or bronze. The exterior
trimming is a mass of soft lace and
feathers, with enameled flies or bugs
nesting in their folds, the insects being
real, Of the most brilliant tints, and
riveted upon perforated gold plates to
which the pin is attached, which fastens
them and renders them eligible for dress
decoration. The walking hat is more
round and less bOat-shaped than formerly
1t is always in colored straw, dark or
gray-blue, brown or rock gray, or ecru.
The trimming is velvet in two colOrs or
shades, and large wing, birds or a group
of mushrooms.
The English bOnnets are small and cot
tage-shaped. A favorite trimming upon
straw is two narrow rOuleauX of velvet,
gray, black or ruby, wound about closely
with twisted silver cord. Bunches of
white lilacs, buttercups and daisies, min
gled with real meadow grass or natural
white clover, are the principal features in
the decoration; and to these is generally
added coquilles of soft white lace and
hi s Ta. III ael