Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-05-26
Changing Costumes.

| From Harper's Bazaar.
There is a world of comfort in the COM
parative freedom which We now enjoy from
| the tyrannous rule OF an absolutely rigid
fashion. A generation or so ago. or even
later, every one had to look like a stereo-
typed edition Of the first fashion plate of
the season. To vary from the type. TO vary
from the prevailing color In which II was
worn, was to be beyond the pale-dreadful
Iate!-and the utmost latitude was some
slight difference In trimmings; and this va
Ration, and the richness or cheapness of
the material. made almost all the discinc-
| ton there was In the dress Of those who
came out OF the front of the brownstone
dwellings and Of those who came out of the
back alleys.
Those fashions were directed by the ca
price OF the fsvorites about q throne. The
woman who had something TO conceal con-
cealed IL, and all the world of women IN
Christendom must do as she did, whether
they had anything to conceal or not: or else
she had something to reveal. and the world
OF women must keep step and adopt her
habit, whether they had anything to reveal
or not Now We are set free from the thral-
dom OF kings favorftes; we acknowledge
no one exactly knows why, the authority OF
certain types sent out from Paris from
London, from Berlin. all more or less har-
monio3s with each other, varying Just
enough to give freedom. and we adapt the
| type to our individual need and fancy max
Ing still further variation, most usually pre-
| ferring II as we see II worn by some one
who has an air and style OF her own, SO
that on a base relating to prescribed shapes
all manner Of modulations flourish pre-
venting the wearying OF the eye with same
| ness. and allowing for personal taste and
choice.
Perhaps We have never had a more grace
ful or proper shape for q short skirt than
| that which now prevails. allowing for the
free movement of the limbs sweeping OF
With Its fullness behind, and supporting
Itself. so that while 1t presents long lines Of
grace II does not drag or receive the coil OF
the pavement And in the evening gown.
the large dropping sleeve has made any ex-
tremely low cut to the waist seem incon-
slstent ana inharmonfous, for without bare
arms why bare the shoulders and breast?
80 only Just enough OF the throat and chest
is barred to give the head its proper setting.
a thing exceedingly well fitting to the pre-
sumed modesty OF the bud Thus. while we
have revived the voluminous sleeve of the
time OF the Stuarts. again Of the Georges
again of fifty years ago, we have revived n
with constant improvement fashions like
other things moving in a spiral, every
round degree higher than the preceding
| round.
Thus, perhaps in time we shall evolve the
IDEAL dress, which will meet at once all the
requirements OF comfort and OF a sense of
beauty and fitness. and of that chic withon,
which no dress quite fills the eve I-ndouht-
edly we shall always be. In a measure de-
pendent upon our. dress, for there is some
~ H.e oiu sasihs tnat me teatherS
make fine birds. Yet even should p model
dress ever be devised we natter ourselves
that a fashion journal would still be reoui-
site TO tell how to make 1t, vary II ana
beautify It, Recollecting the beauty Of va
rious medieval costumes that did not
change In a lifetime II is evident that dress
reed not rely upon constant change for its
charm. Change may be confined to the or
nament upon a substructure that remains
the same. and a woman, as we frequently
see today, in the revival of old costumes
from old portraits, may be lovely In the
gown Of her grandmother