The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1886-03-11
fHE RENAISSANCE IN DRESS.
d FASHIONED IDEAS
COMING ONCE MORE
TO THE FRONT.
SPRING AND SUMMER MATERIALS,
DAINTY COLORS-NEW FABRICS
AND NOVELTIES IN ORNA-
MENTATION.
From our own Correspondent.

New YORK, February 26.-The most
noticeable thing in the early spring, as in
Inc more elegant winter dresses, is the alb
.ence of drapery. The prettiest ball and
evening toilettes have been made with
skirts straight at the back-even when
thev we're Shorthand the trains are al
WI VS. plain though full. long dancing
dress is now seldom seen; never upon
young girl. Married ladies wear them
sometimes, because dancing, with them,
is more incidental--less of a business
and train emphasizes their married dig
nity. But the short evening dresses have
been unusually short this season,
and very delicate in color and material.
Fine white, water-blue, yellowish-green,
shell-pink, and fawn-brown have all been
much used, in happy conjunction with
other shades, on not too striking contrast,
The use of analine dyes and the fresh ex-
periments made with them, point to il
iimitable possibilities in the way of color
and combination. 1t is impossible, even
now, to make those understand live
away from the centers, and are not in
terested in the study and development
of color-the difference between the re-
sources in this respect, of yesterday and
to-day. There was time when the
strong, crude, primary colors were uni
versally employed, and the woman who
wore blue would not touch orange or red
and vice versa. But the foundations of
tlese DID, hard-shell notions have been
broken up. The soft and infinite diver
sity of modern tint and shade adapt
themselves to every variety of complex
ion. and lend themselves to all sorts of
combinations. To describe them would
be simply to give a catalogue of epithets,
which are only used to describe color; be-
cause the modern vocabulary falls short,
has not kept pace with modern develop
msnt of resources, and does not provide a
Nomenclature. Thus we have "cape au
lail," ''clair de lune," mushroom" shades,
''terra-cotta," 'gendarme," strawberry"
auseda," solve, land hundred more leach
oue divided up again into groups of
tiuts and shadings. Benighted women
still occasionally ask: "What colors can
] wear to suit my complexion" quite I'M
aware of the revelations of exquisite color
which have come to US of late years, and
the ultimate adaptation of color, like
Light, to all bodies and all souls.
The best dressed women to day, are
bflyhc WIZ dIO du bOOlhS luu duupO
ing modern ideas; who can use the ma
torials of which there is great and COM
Y1ratively inexpensive profusion-an
original way-and put their own labor in
TO ,haping and making and decorating.
If girls would take the time they spend
in making useless and, generally, ugly
fancy" articles, and put it into pretty
embroidery for their own wearing, and
into the art of cutting and designing
Oheir own clothing-or even copying the
patterns already made to their hands
they could dress beautifully on very little
money.
Spring materials have been on exhibit
ton for a month past, and cloths and fan
nas, in lovely lime and yellowish-white
;;lts, to be embroidered in silver, or with
gold cord, and fastened with chased but
tons, shaped like small cherries. Other
wool fabrics show open embroidered
stripes, lined with color-or other tone
OF the same color - woven
into the groundwork; and many
new varieties of tapestry cloths
arc seen, in which the figure is absolutely
Aat, and is woven sin and in" with a
mixed effect like marbled or agateized
wood, rather than any distinct pattern
Canvas reappears in many pretty and sug-
gesltive patterns, some open-worked in
stripes; an imitation of drawn work used
fccl tides, and the like; Others with alter
matte clustered and embroidered stripes
or stripes woven in tapestry stitch. The
diagonal effects are new and particularly
pretty in the thin albatross cloth and nuns
yelling, which show diamond and other pat
terns without contrast of colors, while the
lace patterns suggest many charming
possibilities to young women who possess
skill and taste, in the way of lines of
color in ribbon or velvet run in to form
tests, tabliers, panels and the like.
Basket effects in braid and cross-bars of
the material lined with contrast are not
nav, but they were not general last season.
though very much admired this season
They come in wooden patterns, providing
a result almost equal to hand work.
Rough dots and knots and irregular
lines and bars appear in tweeds and chev
lots, which are always in vogue for jack
cts listers and the like, and the boucht
fleets have even been transferred to cot
ION, which seems a good deal like run
ming a thing into the ground" But fash
enable cottons are not like old-fashionet
cottons; they are not made for semi
weekly washing. When they need renova
on they are given away or thrown aside
Upright plating, stripes, tucks and EN-
broidery are the main features OF spring
dress-making. Some lovely fawn-coloret
materials are simple masses of fine tuck
ing, with soft pink lining and vests. Th'
bbnnets are fawn color to match, will
sprays of pink trailing arbutus. These
costumes are not imported, and are no
expensive. They were designed and made
at home, which will account for the ex
quisite work put upon them.
THE EMBROIDERED DRESSES
IN patterns are quite feature of tn
season's importations. The finest dis
ptay delicate coloring and marvellous eft
iects in bead work embroidery. Simple
wool costumes have fronts appliqued ant
outlined with beads-of glass or wood
the latter no longer restricted to natura
colors, but dyed to match any color o
shade. Leather color is, however, yer
favorite shade; and upon this the carve
rosary beads constitute a most effectlv
means of decoration. This year the
seem to be likely to be run for all they ar
worth, as they occupy an importan
place in millinery ornamentatlon, as we
as in the atelier of the dfessmaker. Sill