New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-06-23
HOME AND SOCIETY.
.nprss1NG FOR ALMOST NOTHING"
THEORIES AND PRACTICE WITH THE COTTON
rRocK-soME PARTISAN MoDEs-PHyIL1s
AND HER wAYs-SoMETHlNG ABOUT
SANDWICHES.

SANDWICHES.
~ should think you women might dress for al
r,ost nothing" remarked one Of group. with
masculine obtuseness. Look at Mrs NJ she at
wovs looks we'll turned out and yet she wears the
simplest little frocks. do not believe her DIS
amount to half what my wifes DO
A burst Of feminine laughter greeted this unso-
phisticated remark
You poor. ignorant man exclaimed MS oe',er
hal. with plying scorn. Give me carte blanche
N dress like Mrs. y. and should call myself
hannv, What do you suppose those little frocks'
a. Won call them cost her? Why. that seeming
s,,nIicity is high art and 1t requires a vertaole
artist to accomplish 1t. l would venture TO wager
that that plain little cotton toilet that she wore
Yesterday cost fully 1000 francs.
The wager was made, and. 1t goes without say
ing was lost by the poor deluded mortal who
,orcied q woman could dress we'll on nothing; for
i've cotton gown was one OF Pacqun's and cost
inst $500 II was blue and white cotton batiste.
made over a silk slip and had lovely Skill al
soft flowing rpples at the bottom and nttlhS the
slender figure smoothly over the hips. The blouse
waist was made full in front. over silk lining.
steel collar large puff elbow sleeves. lined with
grass cloth, and large Marie Antoinette fichu
trimmed with lace and knotted artistlcaily at the
breast with one befrllled and hanging to the knee.
and the other almost TO the hem OF the DRESS COM
nlce this toilet. Very little TO show for so much
money one would say. and yet after all IT is
lilo the difference between a sketch by an artist
NJ reputation and a picture by a nobody. The
cnhemeral nature OF materialzed design by one Of
the great French saroral artists Is the one draw
back which would preclude its ranking as veri-
table creation.
Very few French dressmakers, however. have
grasped the idea OF the American cotton frock, and
the specimens that come over on an order are.
as n rule very disappointing.
at IS delightful TO have the bitter bitten some
times" exclaimed Mrs Hautton couple Of days
ago 81 went to that extortonate Nine. IS this
morning for one OF those big. new fchus, and
found her. TO my great JOY. In despair over gown
which she had ordered from ROUTE. Figure 10
yourself she cried. I order from my friend.
NJ ROUTE. an inexpensive morning costume OF
cotton 1T must cost very leetle.' say. My la
dies they want a model elegante, but dune sim
plicte parfae send me one OF your pettes desseins
adorable write 10 him. but do not charge me
much And dis Is what receive-and for what
le voleur charges me 1000 francs!" and she held
up a cotton gown en- effet but so weighted with
hair CLOTH silk Innings. etc. that 1t weighed like
lead. while the plentiful lace trimmings precluded
any idea Of laundering
Now madam YOU can see how II feels when
you have a frightful bill to pay for what seems
very small and perhaps unsatisfactory result, /
said. malciously. An. ma chere Nine. Hautton.
c'est vrai: je suis ben pune; answered the old
hypocrite. who l know was secretly calculating
how much her absurd profits the fchu and sew
eral other things l had bought would help her
toward recuperatng herself on the ROUTE frock,
which. after all, she will probably succeed in
selling at profit"
Amateurs who go into trade apt TO lose their
custom through a want OF finish. Ideas they have in
plenty. and sometimes their productions charm
ingly original but there Is certain lack which is
very apparent when their gowns or their hats are
contrasted with the exquisite neatness In the
minutest detail which makes French CONNECTION
successful There have been number OF young
women Of good position who have courageously en-
tered into competition lately with the established
trade and il Is for their benefit that this criticism
is made. "Festna lente' should be their motto;
they should be exceedingly careful not to undertake
more than they do WELL and above all they
should avoid the mistake OF trying TO get al the
orders they can.
III you want to learn how to keep chickens sue
cessfully," said farmers wife. commence with
only two or three; do not get too many at once and
find out how they act" And 1t Is the same with
every undertaking: small beginning makes sue
cessful ending. and the majority fail because they
attempt too much. A lady who had given an order
for a couple Of simple little gowns 10 friend who
had started in the business exclaimed with pleas
ure when she opened the box which contained them.
they we're so pretty and we'll designed. She sat
down on the spur OF the moment and wrote note 70
the embryo tradeswoman. expressing her satSiac-
ton. Then tho inspection. Alas. the sleeves
were too short the inside finish untidy. the edges
uneven-in fact the amateur obvious In every
direction. How lucky wrote that note and sent It
off," was the somewhat natura. ejaculation. the
conclusion also could not be wondered at VIII
send the frocks to my dressmaker and have
them put right and say nothing about it-but snail
not try such an experiment again.
There seems no end TO the curious stories about
ewes lost and stolen One Of the latest is that OF
Mrs. A.. who recently took pair OF large ruby
sontaires to be reset at IS. where they had been
purchased. The morning after, the maid brought her
the card OF the firm, saying gentleman wished to
see her and on going down TO the drawing room she
found one Of the clerks who told her that the stones
which were apparently OF great value. were In
reality false and therefore worthless. Very much
agitated over the intelligence. Mrs A. asserted that
the Jewels had never left her possession since their
purchase and claimed that the fraud must nave Deen
perpetrated before she received them THIS. OK
course the firm denied, but the feeling on the sub
,ec, became very bitter on both sides and detectives
were employed by both TO ferret out the mystery
When a former butler OF Mrs. A. was proved to be
a discharged clerk Of the well-known jewelers. the
inference was obvious although no proof against the
has been found and the jewels have never been
recovered.
tn. .ummer's sun gofng and tennis. and yacht
ing and rowing, make a delicate white FEMININE
hand as brown that OF worker IN hayheh.
There are some people who take PRIDE IN these
Signs OF outdoor enjoyment. but the average woman
prefers TO keep her hands In dainty condition. ian
and sunburn certainly coarsen as well az discoior
the skin. A little care OF the hand. however, Will
keep the flesh white and soft and the nails well
rounded and polished and give the hand that ap-
n.arance that is a sure Indication OF refinement.
To-day a wei.-cared-for hand Is not an inoicat'oh
Of a useless woman but rather OF one WHO mas
learned to preserve her hands by careiu' n'a''ou'
,,g The wel-bred woman never uses tight gloves
Ho,bing ,e more indicative OF the backwoods breed
,nr than the crushing OF he hands In glove TWO
NJ three sizes too small-a fallacy Of our grand
mothers The glove to-day Is fitted comfortably 10
the hand. Al the best makers OF gloves man q
Wv =, widths as well as variety OF sizes-a
49, On sered as well as a short fingered glove. go
thai IL is an easy natter 20 ht the hand. though
ono does not keep a model in Paris.
W -. .. Len. I'm a perfectly healthy con-