The Jersey City news., 1902-07-22


Commercial Advertiser, embroidery is
out of place, as it distracts the attention
of those who sit round it from the beau
ty of the designs woven in the damask
itself Fine damask is always in good
taste, always a sign of refinement, and
the vagaries of fashion do not affect it,
so that the house mistress who has
good stock need sigh for nothing more
in the way of napery. But young people
who are furnishing or older ones who
find themselves for the first time IN a
position to buy pretty things because
Dame Fortune has paid them welcome
visit, like to have novelties. One OF
these is kind of spotted damask, sufii-
ciently fine, but bought by the yard and
made up, so to speak, with insertions OF
handsome lace, Reticella or point de
Vense being the favorites. Such tab
lecloth will have wide lace insertion all
round just above the hem, and second
further in, and must exactly correspond
y in size to the top of the table on which
it will be used, so that the rows OF IN
sertion intended to go on the surface may
come exactly on the ends and along the
sides, one appearing below and the other
above the plates. Under these insertions
are laid satin ribbons that match the
table centres, if one is used; or, at all
events. the flowers with which it is dec
GRATED. The serviettes have only one
row of lace insertion to correspond, but
narrower, and put just above the hem,
like the border of the talbleeloth.
A good, substantial, but not very line
Flemish or Irish linen is frequently
worked in medallions or other designs IN
cross stitch. and the great thing is to
have it done in one color only, crimson
and dark blue being preferable to any
others. The linen is not dazzllngly
white. but dead tint between cream
and ecru, and the colors, whether IN cot
ton or fax, are ingram. Serviettes must
correspond, and table sets of this KIND
are generally reserved for breakfast or
luncheon.
Quite new are the tablecleths OF hne
damask with the woven design only IN
the middle and forming the border, or
they are sometimes of fine plain linen.
At each end, and along each side just
above the point which the plates Will
reach. are rows of deep straight button
holes through which a ribbon is passed
At the four corners Louis Seize bows
of the ribobn are laid as fat as possible,
and carefully pinned or tackled down.
OF course, the flowers must match the
ribons.
Plain linen is frequently embroidered
in colored fax threads in single flowers,
such as bluettes and poppies, roses or
carnations, placed irregularly as if they
were real flowers strewn on the table.
They are at their best when new, and
become monotonous when continually
used.
Very nice table centres are produced
by having a strip made of five squares
alternately of guipure and linen, EN-
broidered. sewn together, and number
of similar squares loose. They can De
laid straight or diamond-wise IN con-
nection with the straight piece, ana
specimen glass stood on each with
ssblob'' of flowers in one distinct color,
such as coral pink geranlums or carha-
tions, or yellow pansies. When something
else is provided for the table, the white
SQUARES are very useful for duchesse
dressing tables or the top of chest OF
drawers.
Novel additions that look well on any
tablecloth have been introduced from
Manila. and are round doilies on kind
of cream glass cloth, very much resem-
bling fine semi-transparent Irish lawn.
The set comprises centre one about
nine inches in diameter and six that are
very much smaller, and all are worked
in different patterns. The embroidery
is wonderfully light, and the edges are
made of what looks like fine washing
net tackled under the margin Of the lawn
and embroidered in scallops. The more
intercourse we have with the Philippine
Islands the more plentiful will these
embreideries become, but thy can be
tolerably initiated by clever worker
with a supply of fine lawn, net and en-
broidery cotton. The genuine ones are
now and then to be met with at bazars,
and are frequently brought over as pres
ents by people who have any connection
with Manila, but there is no reason why
they should not be exported thence as
readily as the fancy straws
Substitutes for napkin rings are oblong
envelopes made of good linen, not too
fine. and with no dress on the surface.
The shape is an oblong piece OF stun
pointed at one end, which can be folded
in three, the pointed part forming the
Zap. This may be covered with design
of any flower or foliage preferred, but
narcissi, jonquils or small poppies look
best, not arranged in group or border,
but all over, like the pattern on chintz
or brocade. When the flowers are clearly
outlined with black the spaces in be-
tween are filed up with color put on
with a brush, and nothing answers the
purpose better than a cheap dye. 1t
goes on evenly and that is more than can
be said of the ordinary water-color paint.
The flowers and stalks are thus left
white and when the pastel blue, old rose
or whatever color is selected for the
ground is quite dry, the outline can be
gone over with long black stitches, or,
better still, with a strand of black wool
couched down with amber silk or fine
cold thrpad The centres of the flowers