Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1889-01-25
NEW FADS IN FANS.
They VIII Play an Important Part
This Season.

They tell a story of Wright Sanford
which speaks eloquently of discern
ment in matters social. An intimate of
the late genial clubman had a niece. Il
shy, pretty girl from tho country,
whom he wished to induct into the
place that might have been filed by
daughter, and whom he took much
pleasure in esoorting to her first swell
ball.
"No use," said Sanford. ''She don't
like this sort OF thing. Better send her
home"
"How do you know" asked the fond
uncle. "She looks as il she were hav-
ing a good time"
Good timeP" rejoined Sanford.
Good time time? Look at her fan"
The white airy plume in question to
the keen eyes OF the society man who
could read its language told a tale.
Now it quivered with timidity, now it
jerked to and fro with short, uneasy
motions of embarrassment, now it
brought itself up with sharp turn be-
wildered, and now it recovered itself
and waved with conscious composure.
among strangers To be done. The
timid maid adrift in a new world con-
trolled her face 10 smiling enjoyment,
but her fan spoke plainly to the one
person present who had the key.
Three months later Sanford and the
uncle were standing together at a
second ball. Clever girl. Harmonic
ed with her environment, hasn't sheP"
Again the uncle hardly knew what the
clubman was talking about, and again
the diagnosis was based solely on the
behavior OF the fan. 1t had forgotten
all about its mistress and was playing
a drama Of its own, a drama where all
the parts were taken by the pretty NUT
terings of youth and high spirits in the
atmosphere OF music and -ayety in
which they unfolded their wings. San
ford had never spoken to the girl and
had seen her but twice, but two chances
at her fan had told him her social his
tory.
ARMED FOR CONQUEST.
The fan has never meant TO us what
1t does to the women of more vivacious
climes. We have never learned prop
erly to handle it, but this winter we are
taking lessons with will. The fan dis
carded from the furnishing point OF
view, has resumed with the pompadour
fashions its original vocation. Its jew
eled sticks of ivory or mother-of-pearl
nestle in fair fingers, the paintings on
its parchment leaves are of exquisite
workmanship, the ribbon loops which
hang it TO the arm or the golden chain
which fastens il TO the waist give oc-
fn,. l.
of dress decoration. To twirl it, TO
close it, to spread it, TO let it rise or
fall, to say with ii come here, 90 away,
/ am charmed, you iatter me, | am
bored, you shock me, you are rude to
carry on a conversation with one adorer
while the fan is holding piquant
talk with another TO make it express
every thought, every ripple of feeling,
TO be all things to all men and some
thing else to every woman-this is the
newly revived school of the fan in
which we are beginning to study some
very old lessons.
1t is the revival OF the ostrich feather
which has contributed to the rejuven-
escence of the fan. Not in ten years
have the regal plumes had the vogue
on which they are entering now. We
load our hats with them, we wind them
about our necks in long feather boas,
we cover our evening gowns with them
making them take the place of flowers
on the uncovered neck and the white
arms, we put the longest and most beau
tiful ones we can find into plumy fans.
Fans move in two directions. There are
not many in the market OF last years
medium size. New fans are very large
or, per contra, they are very small
The bigger the ostrich fan the more it
is esteemed, always provided the feath-
ers OF which il is composed are natural
plumes. not joined or "made." A fan
OF pieced feathers Is never worth the
having. An honest feather fan is not
one to be ashamed of, however tiny,
in desirability as its plumes grow in
length from ten, twelve, fifteen or
twenty inches. and even TO twenty
nine, these last being worth a small
fortune. each feather hard to get and
harder TO match, being in itself treas
ure.
THE DEBUTANTE's FAvoRITE.
The white ostrich fan is the one
which the debutante loves; the black
fan is esteemed by matrons. These two
colors are not, however, in future to
monopolize the field. The newest
feather fans displayed by leading jew
elers show an odd. notified effect, black
fecked with white or gray, white fleck-
ed with black, crimson and white and
other mixtures. Many costly fans are
seen with the component plumes alter
mating in color. pure white feather
next one OF pink or blue; a black feath-
er next cardinal. These striped fans
take less well than those showing differ
ent tints OF the same or harmonious
colors, as where soft straw-tinted tips
deepen into yellow and rich brown next
the quilts. In colored fans of a single
hue there is vivid terra-cotta which
lights up famously and promises to be
the novelty OF the season.
The handles for ostrich fans are as
varied as the suitable materials, Ivory
richly carved in open work patterns re-
spends to the pompadour craze. Tor
toise shell is used often ana oftenest of
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