New-York tribune., 1888-03-25
ODD NOTES ABOUT NEWS FASHIONS
SPRING is HERE IN TIE SHOPS, AT LEAST
CHAT AB~UT THE MINOR DETAILS OF SUMMER OUT
FIr-HATs UMBRELLAS AND CANES.


The man who bought his clothes in the treacher-
ously mild two weeks just before the blizzard Is
! still waiting for chance to wear them. let the
taors and outftters insist that spring is here and
their show windows would almost make one think
it was long past Easter. Not in many years have
the furnishing shops been filed with such gorgeous
wastcoat materials such aamboyant scarfs shirts
and other outward apparel college boys tennis
blazer is nothing to one Of this seasons shirts,
either linen or aannel, and in width, depth and
variety of dye Their stripes far outdo the
prudent Josephs coat of many coors. Ties and
collars made to match, fill the show cases with
equally luxurant shades and tints All the
warmth and glare of midsummer are inside 1t
Is only when one turns away that he remembers
the dirty piles Of snow still melting in the streets
The striped shirts date from two three years
back, when few mild colors came In fashion,
Just to show a little beneath wide scarf. White
collars were worn, sometimes collar with
similar mild stripes. Now collar and shirt are
made all of piece, and with the tendency to cut
waistcoats lower and lower. Almost as broad an
cxpanse of shirt front is shown with morning
dress as one used to see with an old-fashoned
bigll-cut claw-hammer Again waistcoats OF fancy
patterns have como into general use this summer,
complicating still further the question of warning
colors A well-regulated imagination must rccOil
in horror from some Of the barbarc combinations
in shirts, ties and waistcoats it Is now possible
for bad taste to make
new sort of fancy waistcoat has been put on
the market this spring 1t is made Of soft, cottony
material, fits snugly and unlike the orthodox
white waistcoat is never starched The color and
pattern are the same, however and only close
;pcD will cbo differences.
garment has several advantages over the old one.
1t can be rolled up and put in valise it fits
much better and does not soil so easily 1t never
should be sent to the laundry, either. Any tailor
will undertake to sponge 1t out when IL beSins TO
show the effects Of dust and wear. Beng . some
thing of a novelty yet the tailors charge sllght
advance on it-say Sl2 or S3, while the other
waistcoats cost from So TO SlO
Scarfs for summer, both madc-up and four-in-
hands. are made a trife broader now. The colors
are generally light, and the patterns as varied as
the patches of IA crazy-qullt The dreSs tles' Doih
white and black, are cut wider ana longer tnah
usual and the bow is consequently a formidable
one wiea tied 4 novelty which goes eood way
toward a satisfactory comprcmise between Duylhg
a ready-made cravat or tying one 5 own IS made
up bow which counterfeits exactly the Jerklness
Of a lazy mans handiwOrk. These new bows are
made either in lawn or in bac silk sn Ihfy tbsm sTe
for fifty cents apiece The others usually cost
thirty-hve cents
There is little change from season to an
other in the shape of Derby hats Heavy-welght
ones with silk Innings are used in winter and
lightweight ones with no Innings ana alr-holes
punched in the top and sides are substituted IN
summer. The colors change little. gray draD
and pum-coored material being popular now
The crowns, if anything, are trlne lower TINS
spring, and the brms roll up snugy. Enorls are
being made 10 introduce a soft hat for summer
use and English precedents are being set up in IT'S
favor. But whatever success it may have IN the
country it is almost certain that the soft hat VIII
never get into vogue in town. good many
straw hats will be worn III the city this summer
A few coaching men and downtown bro 1ers Will
come out in May with tai white mats; put even
if the mercury goes uD to 90 degrees the average
New-Y Yorler will be satisfied to suffer through the
summer in an orthodox Derby.
An uptown firm that sells walking sticks says
that the younger men about town are getting
to carry canes of altogether different shapes and
weights in winter and summer. The winter walk
ng-stick should be heavy and stout, support
on slippery days, and in keeping with cape coats
and other ponderous projections against Ihe
three to four inches long, Of horn, silver or silver
plating. Lighter sticks, all of wood, polished at
the handlcs,have come IN for mlder Weannef GtE
silver or fancy tips odd-shaped knobs OF Doue
ivory and different colored hard woods Silver
heads are at discount now because Of the cheap
plate limitations with which unscrupulous max
ers have flooded the market
There are few novelties of course, in the way
of umbrellas The t.rdency is to long umbrellas
with fine light frames and nicely finished handles
so that in fair days they may be used as walk
ing-stclls London made umbrellas are unusually
light and trim They are cheaper too, if bought
abroad. Here English and homemade ones bring
about the same price. This varies with the value
of the handle and may run from IS 10 sZo'
The cane and umbrella makers are waging
controversy over the use OF the word sterling,
on the silver they put in the heads Of umbrellas
and canes Probably iity-o Mt stick Is sold
now that hasn't good solid Trademark on IT,
Some firms defend the of the mark on the
poorest kind of plating while others stand up for
telling their customers just what sort OF silver
is used and what the real value is. trust
worthy firms name on stick umbrella handle
is the only guarantee nowadays of genuine value.
The mere word sterling isn't worth the polished
| tin il is so often stamped into