Evening star., 1899-03-04
NEW MOURNING GOWNS
First Costumes AustdBe Exceedingly Plain
and Absolutely Black.
Grape is Becoming More and More
Fashionable Each Year Some
70 If
Dinner and House Dresses.
From Harper's Bazaar.

Every spring and autumn, when the new
fashions appear, there are many changes
to be noticed also in the gowns worn by
people in mourning. Black is thought to
be just the same under all circumstances,
but there is a great deal of difference, as
any one knows who has been obliged to
study the subject. Mourning can be the
most becoming or the most unbecoming
style of dress a woman can wear, and it
requires considerable time and thought to
choose wisely in this particular line of
goods. In no other class of goods has there
been such an Improvement as in the mourn
ing goods. Rusty black is very rarely seen
now, even in the cheaper materials, while
in the expensive qualities all the fabrics
have an exquisite black shade that is
neither blue-black nor gray-black, but sim
ply black, and this means a great deal.
Fashion DEGREES also that the first Co.'S
tunes worn for deep mourning must be ex-
ceedingly pain and absolutely black. The
Henrietta and Eudora cloths are, as a rule,
used for the first-mourning gowns. Eudora
is very much like Henrietta, but it is
heavier and a little different in the weave
These materials are very soft in finish.
drape well and are especially suited to the
styles of the present day, which are soft
and cinging. For princesse gowns there
is nothing better, and some most charming
gowns that have lately been turned out,
ly simple, and yet have a great deal OF
style. For street gowns Eudora cloths,
made with coat and skirt, are the smartest.
This gown can be absolutely plain or can
be trimmed with folds (milliner's folds, as
they are called) around the foot of the
skirt. The skirts are made with the fiat
back effect, with seams at the side, but not
in the back Many of these Eudora cloth
gowns are finished only with hem-a hem
sewed with blind stitching Machine stitch
ing does not look well on these cloths. The
coat should be of medium length, either
double breasted or buttoned on flap: have
narrow revers which open a little at the
throat, and have pointed turned-over cuffs
of the cloth. The buttons should not show,
unless the coat is conspicuously double
breasted in which case the buttons should
be covered with the same cloth as the
gown.
Among the new materials shown in the
mourning goods is the cravenette or water
proof serge and cheviot The great objec-
tion to wearing black in all weather has
been that 1t grew rusty and looked badly
very soon. These new cloths are said to
be. and apparently are. absolutely water
proof, and at the same time possess none
of the dsagreeable qualities of the usual
waterproof materials. The water simply
sheds off them as it would from the oft
quoted ducks back. the material being ap-
parently all the better for the wetting.
The manufacturers say that the material
is rendered water proof by a casing of glass
around some of the threads. These cos
cloths. should not be- trimmed with crepe,
but with the material of the gown For
street gowns to be put into hard service
there are great many serges. cheviots
and plain wool materials that make up well
and look very smart. hThese, as rule are
considered much lighter mourning than the
others and are trimmed with Grape.
Grape is a material that is becoming more
and more fashionable each year. one reason
being that while the best qualities are still
very expensive, there are a great many
cheaper qualities that can now be bought
that are very good The Grape used now
has nothing like as much dressing and is
much lighter than it was formerly, so that
a Grape veil of exaggerated length can be
worn without the disagreeable dragging
back sensation that the old wells used to
give to the head Ithis made up in entire
gowns, this being quite fad at present.
The cheaper qualities have more dressing
and more 1uster than the expensive ones,
but they are very greatly in advance of
those sold a few years ago. Entire gowns
of Grape are most becoming. They are
made up in house gowns, dinner gowns ana
street gowns. A gown of Grape made with
coat and skirt Is a very smart costume
ter than small folds Small folds also col
lect the dust more quickly, and somehow
lack the style Of the broad bands.
Dinner gowns and house gowns OF mourn
ing silk are among the novelties this year.
The silk Is dull in effect, absolutely luster-
less; the jet, too, with which the waist Is
trimmed is also lusterless. There is never
any white used on these gowns; that would
quite spoil the effect. The dull black even
ing gowns. or the black satin evening
gowns, with folds of white tulle just
against the neck, and tulle or net sleeves,
are among the new things shown for
mourning wear. The out-of door COS
tunes, trimmed with white tulle around the
neck and sleeves, are very dainty. The
sheer white collars and cuffs are more and
used widows costumes each sea-
son. They relieve the dead black astonish-
ingiy, and at the same time seem to height
en- mourning, if such a thing is possible
Widows wear, too, little white ruching
inside their bonnets.
Wells worn for the first six months,
and after that, except in the case of very
near relative, they are laid aside, and the
toque or hat is worn with a face veil of
net with a Grape border. Since Grape has
been treated in the way to make 1t water
proof there are fewer wells seen of silk and
nuns yelling, but as both these materials
are thicker than the Grape some women
prefer to wear them.
ETON JACKETS.