Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-04-26
ALL ABOUT THE FASHIONS.
SOMETHING FOR THE LADIES.
An Interesting Chapter Of No'ss-ccmbins-
,tou Dresses = Models for Black SILK
Dgssses-New Costumes. etc.

An Interestips Chapter OF No,es-Cembips-
uou Dresses - Models for Black SILK
Drssses-New Costumes. etc.
Harper's Bazar in its current issue
says: One Of the caprices of the season
is that Of combining materials that seem
ineopgruous in one dress, but the man
ner of arranging does not change. the
preference being still given to plain
fabrics for the basque and drapery.
with striped or figured stufis in the
skirt. For demi-season dresses there
are skirts Of striped moire and satin
showing olive, blue, and red lines laid
over in pleats, and the oyerdress of dark
blue wool Of rough surface, with vest
of the striped fabric; for midsummer
there will be canvas-striped skirts, with
a basque and drapery Of China Grape.
Mohair with canvas, alpaca with India
silk, Bengaline silk with wool lace, and
dresses Of lace made over watered silk
are. also fashionable combinations. One
of the new suggestions for street-cos-
tunes is the use Of dark-blue lustrous
mohair. with vest and fan pleatings in
the skirt made of India red silk Grape.
Blue velvet ribbon is used double like
binding beside the vest and fans,
and silver eyelets are placed in this
ribbon with silver cords run through
them. Another toilette that will be
worn in the first warm weather is a
dress of light gray mohair with the
pleated skirt hanging plain, and fan
front of eight or ten pleats Of white
canvas (etamine) set in from belt to
foot: the sides Of the skirt are plain
like panels, with a piped fold Of the
mohair bordering them, while the back
hangs in box-pleats the short polonaise
is very slightly draped, and has vest
Of white pleated canvas. The Eng
lish mohair goods can now be found
in most Of the large shops in
either single or double widths. White
mohair or alpaca with small red
and blue POmpadour figures is being
made up by the modistes in afternoon
dresses for young ladies to wear at the
seaside and mountain resorts. Some
velvet of dark shade to give character
to the dress and white bison laces are
the trimmings. Another combination
is that of soft satins in bayadere stripes
around the skirt, with plain surah for
the overdress; the new Sicilienne pop
lins also come in plain shade for the
basque. with velvet stripes around the
skirt: ecru Sicilienne with blue velvet
stripes on the skirt makes a handsome
costume for visiting and for day recep-
tions. while a simpler dress for young
lady has a skirt of Algerienne striped
satin, with the basque and sash drapery
Of dark olive green satin surah.
A favorite way of combining two
fabrics in every part of the dress is that
of putting single width Of the figured
goods down the back and the front Of
the skirt, while the sides are of plain
goods. laid in pleats toward the front,
and full breadth Of this plain fabric
is placed each side Of the figured goods
in the back the three breadths then
hang straight and are gathered
to the belt, while over them
as drapery are two pointed wing
like pieces of plain material, and
there are short lambrequin-llke drape-
ries on the sides and front. The basque
of such a dress should be Of plain
goods, with a V-shaped piece Of the
figured stuff set in the front and back,
and arranged in folds or pleats on the
collar and cuffs. These V-shaped
pieces are inserted, not set on,
and are especially becoming to those
who have short waists, as it
gives the appearance of length and slen-
derness now in favor. Another fashion,
also becoming to stout figures, is that
of striped stufis for the basque, such as
moire and satin stripes each an inch
wide, or the new canvas goods that
have stripes Of velvet or watered silk,
while one Of the most tasteful novelties
is ecru pongee striped with brown,
red, or blue velvet. The skirt then
can be almost entirely of the plain IA
brio, with merely borders ofthe stripes,
or else fans of it set in the sides, or in
the way described above for a single
front and back breadth.
NEW COSTUMES on THE STREET.
New costumes seen on Fifth avenue
give the effect of rich materials very
simply draped, yet made bouftant by
the cushion and steels sewed in the
back breadths. The object evidently
is to do away with pleated skirts for all
but very simple dresses, and series of
founces have also lost favor, though
most dresses have ruilies of some kind
on some parts of the skirt. Instead of
pleated wool skirts, the preference now
is for the effect of plain skirt
given by straight breadths Of the
light wool stuff lined with crino-
line lawn, and attaching them to the
false skirt under the draperies this
plainneSs may extend all round the
false skirt. but is more often onl ly on
the front and sides, while the back
is laid in some long folds of drapery
that arc not defined enough to be called
pleats. If this lower skirt is plain, it
falls upon a boX-pleated depassant on
the lower skirt; but if it is striped, it
may have gathered or pleated rufle
set upon 1t.
The apron drapery that evidently
finds most favor for simple dresses is
made to fall in two or three long straight
folds down to the left side and to curve
upward very high on the right, where
it joins the back drapery its beauty
consists in the full long curves that be-
gin on the right side in pleats sewed in
with the belt, but disappearing as they
fall into the folds on the left side. This
leaves large part of the lower skirt in
view on the left side, which may be
trimmed across with rows of galloon or
else have . lengthwise fan made Of rows
Of braid. The back fulness is then
quite straight and massed in two large
pleats, or else it is boufIantly pulled at
the top and hangs straight below.
Almost all back draperies now cover
the false skirt from top to bottom, and
are therefore closely sewed down the