Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1884-01-17
The Secret Of Dressing Well.
BRING ouT TIE GooD FONTS A>D COS
CEAL IHf BAD o>E> A. M CH As Fo,-
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\ wealthy lady who vas unpleasant.
distinguished by red nose. dtspairing Of
assistance from her neighbor.ng modlstes,
went 10 Worth for a costume tOr ,ptc.ai
occasion. After study lng her peculIarltles.
that celebrated man arrayed her IN a black
and white striped sin dress made with great
simplicity. and under her chin he placed
great garnet bow and another IN her hair
Her friend, we're gratihel Al her dlstln
guished appearance. and observed with
pleasure the purity OF her complexion. Her
accustomed beacon light palel IN the deeper
glow Of the garnet bows. The genus Of
Worth had succeeded IN doing what doctors
had vainly essavcd. anu ior the lime had
once more pat her nose INTO proper relation
with the rest OF her face.
Women Of leisure can scarcely be accused
Of negIectng their toilets but their efforts
are often mIsdrecied because of lack Of
artistic taste. The great secret Of dless-
and women vii. do well TO consider il ,eri-
ou>l, undoubtedly lies IN eifacing or mod
lfying the weak points and accentlng the
good ones. Dress may be compared in this
respect, saws cOnnolsseur, tC the arrange
ment of the stage No manager would
place his star on one side Of the stage and
on the other magnificent parterre. richly
carved cabinet and an immense rare vase
for the reason that the public attention
would invariably wander from the principal
point. On the contrary. ne would group the
parterre, the cabinet and the vase. and in
the center be would place his star. thus Sc
curing a single and concentrated effect. The
women of southern Europe, especially the
,pIar.tapl b.s -,
dress, of the minute attention TO detail TO
procure a charming and effective ensemble,
and they instinctiyely concentrate the OBJ
servers attention on their most attractive
feature by their skillful management of col
ors. The majority Of women will dispose
obtrusivel, the red, yellow, or any bright
additions to their .oilet while the Spaniard
will veil il mysteriously in black, and the
pure bits of color She uses in the flowers
half-hidden in the coils OF her hair behind
her ear, making it thus an additional relief
to the surroundings that set of her face.
and not an object in itself to claim an undi-
,ided attention.
American women have the instinct of
dress, and what they lack is courage TO as
sert their individuality. They seek variety.
but it is variety within the limits prescribed
by the dress-maker, who is confined by her
fashion plates, and, considering her styles
apart from the wearer, merciessly advises
the same drapery and waist-form for tall and
short, thick and thin. If women would
consider their personal peculiarities and die
tate accordingly, they would be better
dressed.
Quiet color is always most effective. Brill
liant colors at once attract the eye, but soon
exhaust it. Quiet colors need not necessa.
rily be dark gray is quiet but also light.
An artist declares that what is known as
white should all be made over to babies.
The usual white muslin. organde. victoria
lawn, nainsook and their kind are not for
women. Such whites are too cold in shad-
ow and in sunshine too glaring. The only
whites that should be worn are the cream
whites. The dresses Of the time of Titan,
Rubens and Vandyke owe their distinction
to the way in which they display the face.
This display was chiefly due to the ruffs,
worn not alone BY women, which with spec
ial intent surrounded the face and made a
background for il, softened by broken lights
AMI shadows. Women with beautiful necks
do MT require high neck dressing, and even