Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-10-22
STYLES IN MEMS WEAR
AUTUMN DAYS AND THEIR RELA-
TON TO FORMAL DRESS.
Is the Tailor the True Arbiter of Mems
Observation-Disclosures Sense
and Nonsense.
From the Haberdasher.

From the Haberdasher.
October days still hint of the field rather
than of the drawing room, and it will be
well into November before we will put on
formal clothes. The American of wealth
and social position either builds or leases a
country estate, and spends there as much
time as he can snatch from his business af-
fairs. Newport Lenox and Bar Harbor
are veritable colonies of the socially smart
and they reach the full flush of their gaycty
during early autumn. Thus, the season in
town is always backward in opening and
the important question of formal clothes is
rarely settled until the air has the sting Of
nettles in it, and whips ones blood to the
surface. 1 attach relatively little weight to
what the tailors say, but prefer to Judge
the mode by personal observation. II has
been my experience that fashions otter
change In the process of their adoption, and
that the clothes worn at the horse show and
at other assemblies of well-dressed men are
different in cut and fabric from those loud
ly trumpeted as correct at the beginning of
the season. The person who really in
1uences the mode is he with independent
notions as to what becomes him and the
ability to drill these notions into his tailor
There is band of extremists in dress COM
posed of very young men with an uncon-
querable yearning to shine in the society
columns of the penny dreadfuls. These
young men pose as fashion arbiters, and
have no end of fun with the newspaper
photographers. They strut and attltudinize
for the benefit of the camera, and indulge
in dress absurdities that the staggered re-
porter promptly chronicles the latest eX-
preston of the mode. OF course, these
youths have no more real influence on fash
ion than fiashy vaudeville performer, to
whom they are kin in more ways than one
They are essentially fad followers.
Evening Dress.
Evening dress brings little change this
season. Crava;s are broad, two inches and
are fashioned of lawns, dimities and pilues
The soft finished stufTs with an indistinct
cord running through are smart. Either
wide or blunt-pointed ends are correct. For
the evening jacket, black baratlieascr peau
de sole, unlined, and cut very full, Is In
dorsed. Both the white tie and the jacket
tie must be large and adjusted bit loosely
rather than drawn into hard knot. The
white waistcoat may be double 1r single
breasted. and white linen, drill or Dique is
the fabric. There are three buttons, pearl
always. Gold and jeweled buttons are bad
FORM as are all attempts to give evening
dress an ornate touch. Its cardinal virtue
Is it's severe simplicity, and when we swerve
from that, then comes chaos. l nave no
patience with the faddists who wouli turn
the mode of dress, hallowed by tradition
and endeared by custom, into harlequin
costume. The evening shirt may be plain
WHITE Ut anu may nave OHC Stou oi
two. The stud question is a matter Of
preference not of propriety. Long-waisted
men should use two studs to break the ex-
panse of white, whereas short-waistad Inea
should favor one stud to gain as long an
effect as possible. The smartest evening
shirt has linen bosom and a body and
sleeves Of white silk making the garment
light and easy. to slip the coat over when
dressing hurriedly.
Studs and Links.
AS hitherto, only pearl studs and links
accompany formal evening dress. Gold is
reserved for the evening jacket. The collar
should be a lap front or a poke; never
wing, with the swallow-tail Straight stand
ing collars give the wearer too funereai an
aspect, besides ciutching the flesh under
the chin most a1noyingly. Wide-stttched
collars look best. The handkerchief should
be of plain white linen, with or without
self-cor1s, and having the owners mono
gram embroidered in white. Silk handker-
chiefs are lot in as good taste. though some
men carry them. The place to keep the
handkerchief is in the left inside picket OF
the coat 1t should never, OF course, be
tucked into the waistcoat bosom or even
up the cuff. Evening socks are always