St. Paul daily globe., 1895-12-26
wELL-GOwNED WOMEN.
Suggestions That May Help Her in
Selecting Attire.

Novelty and elegance in ornament
alton are now lavished on high
necked gowns for reception, street
and home use, and the evening gown
is made with a severity and simplic-
ity that makes a woman dependent
for effect upon her own charms. A
dress with skirt sweeping from the
hips, with bodice cut off the Shoul-
ders and set about the cutout with
overhanging panels, and with shoul-
ders slightly elaborated by spreading
pieces over the puffed sleeves, is the
usual design for evening dress, and
in such a woman blessed with fine
shoulders and neck is a lovely thing
to look at But if she isn't thus IA
vored what shall she co.? All the
devices of filling in with lace, of
ornaments set so thick about the low
neck that the neck itself is subordf-
mated, all these are denied her. 1t
is either low neck-really bare and
unadorned neck-or high neck; there
seems no medium.
ural that the women who dare not
essay low-cut bodices should strive to
make the dresses that are permitted
them highly elaborate, and they are
doing this already to such an extent
that 1t seems as if by midwinter it
would be the evening dress rather than
the house gown that is synonymous
with simplicity. Whether this result
70
street dresses is as yet an open ques-
ton. The promenade dresses of late
fall are markedly characterized by sim
plicity so far as cut is concerned, and
usually the fabrics are modest enough,
though occasionally one sees some
startlingly assertive novelty goods.
Ordinarily, too, the scheme of trim
ming is of the most slender proper
tions, but the devices employed con-
tain a hint of what the angular wo-
men may do if their plumper sisters do
not relax the rules for evening attire
in the formers favor. One street dress
of the type alluded to appears TO be
simple enough, an impression that 1t
is strengthened by the material, but
the buttons of the dress were of the
two-dolIar each sort. Whatever wo-
man can mean by this strange contrast
between stuff, general plan and orna-
ments except it is to urge the plump
contingent, through sheer envy, to at
least accord belligerent rights to the
scrawny sisters, is hard to say But
one direct result of this rivalry, since
such dresses may be worn by women
of any sort Of figure, is that 1t is easy
to have fashionable street gowns at
the most moderate cost just by select
ing buttons that are priced by the
dozen rather than singly.
In party dresses for young girls not
yet "out'' there are few changes or
style. Such may wear a short dancing
length skirt, gored to flare prett1ly, ana
the neck of the bodice is cut round to
show the throat but by no means to
be low cut The belt is either round,
with sash ends. or it is fitted slightly
to little point front and back the
sash bow tying to one side of the front.
Taffeta silk is the favorite material,
and lace, chiffon and ribbon are the
embellishments, with wild flowers,
rosettes, festoons and quaint touches to
suggest the completely of the maid OF
the past generation. All pale colors
are worn and now and then something
in quaint combination Of dull green
and rose.
The spreading loops at the belt are
being exaggerated ridiculously,. and
now little wing-lille affairs are shown
that spread at the waist almost as
wide as the tips Of the sleeves: and
that is saving much. Quite different
sort of belt is two hands wide and
made of silk elastic. Not only does the
material of the belt tend to a perfect
fit, but the belt is woven slightly to
shape. The fastening, also, is such
that the belt can be tightened after
the buckle is fast Nothing could
the figure. and the waist that has not
just the right set is reduced to perfect
lines at once when such belt is worn
that is, If the corsets beneath are all
ripnf