The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1896-02-03

FICHU.
the bias portion comes over the hips, the
result is even more unsatisfactory 1t is
next TO impossible to cut plaid gown SO
chat no part of the skirt will be bias, ex-
cept with great waste of cloth. Still, as
plaids are popular, we must put up with
a few little drawbacks.
Plaid woolens are very much liked for
several reasons. First they require very
little ornamentation and look their best
without any; next they wear well and do
not show every tiny spot and speck, as
does the smooth faced material. The
plaid silks are made up in a quaint and
olden time style, following closely those
worn some 80 years ago. They look their
best when developed in those modes.
One plaid silk gown was shown in
great establishment this week that caught
the eye to the exclusion of everything else.
The plaid was large, with blue and green
red and yellow stripes forming the bars.
The front was on the straight, with no
front cores, the superfluous material being
laid In fold on each side. The curve of
the side breadths brought them bias, and
the center breadth in the back was straight.
The skirt was Al yards around. Few
skirts are any wider now. The waist was
a snug seamless one, and the wrinkled
gigot sleeves were of dark green taffeta
just the shade in the plaid. A full front
and draped stock were made of the same.
There was a Marie AntOinette fchu in
cape form in the back, crossed in front
and ending in deep tabs in the back. All
around this was a knife plating of pale
blue silk like that in the tabs. This
matched one of the stripes. The cape,
coming out we'll on the shoulders as it did,
shows one of the coming events-namely,
the lengthening of the shoulder seam, to
give a dropping effect. 1t was hoped that
this would pass us by, but 1t Is seen on too
many of the handsomest gowns. The Ger
mans have already adopted it, and some of
the Paris dresses are made SO, and still
more fine English gowns for home or Wis
iting gowns, never for tailor made cos
TUNES
Bustles, too, are making sly little adj
vanoes toward popularity. Bustles, when
not too large, are really great addition
to the set of skirt, and no one can deny
that they give certain style that no fiat
skirt can hope for BuStles are very dis
Greet just now, but that is the way all new
fashions come in. Just little bigger ev-
cry week, after the mind has been aocus-
toned to the fact that there are bustles,
and then-why, they are as big as ever
and win furnish a new theme for the news-'
papers. Give us bustles, give us anything
but hoops, and we will not complain.
1t seems a little curious to me to notice
how very little attention is called to the
almost unprecedented use of buttons as
trimming when so many are put upon diff
ferent garments at time. They are so
we'll chosen in color, size and kind that
however many they are they pass muster
with hardly passing thought. A fayorite
fancy is to set them on straps, in lines on
the full military capes, and as the material
moves with the motion of the wearer they
come into view. a drab cloth cape treated
In this way had dozens and dozens of half
inch white pearl buttons, and it looked
refined and ladylike. On gowns and waists
they are set with a reckless profusion
Pearl buttons, however, are not the only
kinds used. Silver, gold, bronze and Jet,
besides some orocheted, are all worn. The
gold buttons just now are considered ex-
actly the thing for the quaint oriental
silks. A case in point is gown of figured
oriental silk, the colors soft old rose and
yellowish green. The skirt was quite
plain. The waist was draped down the
front and edged with ecru lace. This left
plain old rose faille vest front, and this
was fastened by seven gold buttons. On
each side at the shoulder were draped
straps of cherry velvet ribbon, each loop
fastened by gold button. That makes
10. Two more, and larger ones, are at the
belt, and 12 more on the sleeves. This is
a good many, when one considers their size
and remembers that a little gold on