The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-11-21
Copyright, 1871

copyright, 1871
Last winter, if you belonged to
class of any kind, you discovered that it
was fashionable to be industrious
When the richest girl in town came in,
she took off her coat and gloves. pro-
duced a small bag and from it took a
half knitted golf stocking, and all dur
ing the lecture or reading those needles
worked as industriously as if they had
been managed by a German fraulein,
while the stocking grew under Your
very eyes This seemed queer. but to-
ward the last of the season the climax
was reached when one afternoon at the
opera well known girl sat listening to
the delightful music and working away
at a piece of tapestry, done in old fash
toned cross stitch. Now it is predicted
that the locker on and the listener will
be equally industrious. and the predic-
ton is reached by the oldest way. Not
that some one says so, not that any
fashionable girl predicts or advises it,
but in the most expensive shops there
are displayed wonderful cases and bas-
kets for holding the necessary utensils.
~
ing a semiprecious gem set in each
knob; tiny baskets, holding all the uten-
sis for embroidery in silver gilt, while
thimbles of the most wonderful designs
and invariably of gold are offered to
protect the busy fingers. The little scis-
sors have their tiny silver gilt handles,
and many of the sewing utensils are
SUSPENDED from a chatelaine. When
this is the case, there is a silver Eeedle
book a silver egg that opens and shows
the gold thimble inside it. a pair of sill
YER mounted scissors kept from doing
damage by being in a silver sheath, the
silver stiletto and the long silver book
intended to hold embroidery silks. Hon. |
estly, one must confess that the opera |
is hardly the place to exhibit ones abil- |
ity with the needle, but 1t looks rather |
well at a morning lecture to see our |
young women busy as possible on some |
thing intended either to decorate the |
home or be used in some athletic game. |
She who does not embroider or knit |
stockings, uses coarse bright woods and |
forms either q slumber rug or a Tam hat |
for the man of her choice. How very
seldom one sees woman utilizing her
time and her wit in making something
for another woman, This does happen |
though in these days of knowing how, |
for it is the fashionable girl who is not |
only the adept but the artist, as far as |
.needlework is concerned. When very
young. either her German or English |
governess taught her to sew, and as the |
years have progressed she grows proud |
of her ability not only of welding the |
needle IN the ordinary way, but in pro-
ducing wonderful effects in silks and |
41aaA
last hers and many another life. She en- |
broiders. as did her great-grandmother, |
in quaint cross stitch, a covering for a |
chair. She works out on gorgeous vel |
vets, with gold and silver thread and |
gay spangles, the hangings for a room, |
for she always undertakes to do one |
piece of work that is to be very fine and |
which is to be either in her mothers or |
her own home for future generations to |
admire.
Another fad which has overtaken the /
fashionable girl is the selling OF her old |
gold, and by this / mean all the old |
gold mountings, heavy bracelets, big |
crude brooches and inartistic pieces of |
Jewelry, that have accumulated within |
the last 90 years. OF course the best
Jeweler gives her absolute value for the |
gold, and then for it she may take |
either modern piece or select some bit
OF silver or gold in the way of a toilet
utensil that will last her for a long time
and stand as a representative of her
economy. The only daughter in an enor-
nous family, who managed TO collect
many bits of the precious metal, is more
than delighted because in exchange forit
she got six beautiful gold thimbles. and
these she VIII offer as prizes for the
1-.sw, -.
This work will be, not embroidery, not
cross stitch or knitting, but exquisite
fine sewing done on linen cambria, and
with such a needle as only a fairy can
manipulate. 1t is fine to know that
our girls are approaching the delights
OF needlework, and it is good to know
that among our very wealthy people
such industry is encouraged, since there
is no. woman in the world who can af-
ford to be ignorant OF this strictly femi-
nine art. Who does not know how many
a sorrow has been lessened while one
set regular stitches, and how many a
JOY has been increased as the homes
grew with each flying visit that the
1leedse made the cloth?
one naturally connects needles and
pins. for. according to Mother Goose
through needles and pins the average
trouble in the world is sure to begin |
but apropos OF pins, it would seem as
II the husband of today would be forced /
10 give his wife absolute pin money. as Z
he did in the days of Queen Eliza beth |
when pins We're sold. not by the dozen
papers. not by a single paper. but bv
the half dozen, and she thought her .
self fortunate who possessed a round
dozen OF good pins. but today to hold
up the fancy neck dressing. to catch
the Veil in place, 10 arrange the lace
craVa1, there are very small gold pins.
each with tiny gem just at the top. /
OF course these are mere chips. but they I
are sufhciently good to make a pin cost
from IS cents TO s. apiece. For her Vho
wears much purple there are pins ser
with small amethysts: for her who is !
devoted TO green there are pins topped