The Washington herald., 1911-01-18
A FASHION REVIEW

year, writes Margaret Hubbard-Ayer, IN
the New York World. Except for the
hobble skirt. 1910 had very little new to
offer us. and the new novelties are not
to be with us long.
Before summer comes We shall be free
from the bondage Of the hobble skirt.
For which. blessing let us give thanks.
oh, my sisters!
We shall also be able to raise our
arms above our heads without tearing
our peasant sleeves. for these are to be
altered. not so much in appearance as in
cut by the insertion Of small gusset
under the arm.
1t is Sood-by, too. to the beaver
TAIL" that most ridiculous appendage
which has masqueraded as a train. flop
ping grotesquely from side to side.
The new year brings with it a mes
sage Of JOY to the coifeurs, for hair is
to be worn again. No one has suffered
quite so much from the meager fashions
of yesterday as the purveyor Of hair
and hair ornaments. AS one of them re-
marked:
Madame. what will you? Any lady.
even of the highest breeding and the
greatest fortune. can now do her own
hair up. since none of 1t shows under the
capotes and hats Even in the evening.
what is the coifrure? hand Of ribbon
and three puffs at the back. We shall
go bankrupt il this does not change
Soon"'
Hcarken. my sisters. to the voice of
the merchant wailing through the land
that everything is too skinny: that arti-
fetal hair Is worn no more; that only
hair Of one-third as much material is
used in to-day's dress, as he considers
proper. For the less goods dress needs
the less he can sell Hence these tears.
ShOemnkers Glad.
The only shopkeeper who has really
loved the last years styles is the shoe
maker. for even ladies from Chicago
have displayed their feet with perfect
unconcern, but shod always in velvets
and satins and other expensive and per-
ishable fabrics. The more perishable the
shoes the more shoes We have to buy
Now and then a woman trying to walk
in short hobble skirt will catch
glimpse of herself in a mirror at a shop.
Her expression of horror as she sees the
play Of feet. not like mice, stealing in
and cut. but rather like black gondolas
maneuvering on a narrow path. gives
reason to hope that the fashions in shoes
will soon change.
Hobble Skirt Doomed.
The present styles have been held up
to ridicule all over the world. The hobble
skirt has been censured from the pulpit,
derided on the stage. and made fun OF
in the daily papers. yet it has held its
own in all but the highest circles of
society. Now. the dressmakers tell US,
il is doomed.
The highest class French costume de-
tod ha .1 hnh
bic for minute. While the skirts were
scant TO a degree and slightly narrow
around the hcm, the hobble, as we know
il. is an eNagseration Of what at first
was an artistic arrangement of flowing
drapcries.
In Paris even the narrow skirt has
seen its best days. and some designers
arc already showing walking dresses with
distinct flare at the bottom or skirts
laid in pIea.s from below the hip down.
We may also expect a change in the
general silhouette. Not much because
art and women desire il AS because the
corset makers find It profitable to change
the figure slightly, giving smaller waist
and slightly larger hips. You see, my
sisters. this means more business for
them. as we shall all have to buy new
corsets. This does not say, however.
that the slight figure is no longer the
rule. On the contrary. the reign Of the
slender continues, and the fat woman
has still no place among us.
Every year the chronicler of modes is
more impressed with the liberty that the
individual woman can and sometimes
does take with the fashions. A woman
sufficiently elegant or good-looking to
carry it of can adopt almost any his
toric fashion, altering 1t very slightly to
bring it into the realm Of the present,
and if she is enough of personality
she can make that fashion popular. We
have to thank a bea Itiful singer and
ballet dancer for the vogue of Russian
modes. Sarah Bernhard has set many
a wonderful fashion. the long Bernhardt
sleeve and the Bernhardt collar being
typical
Mary Garden. in "Aphrodite," started
the general vogue for Greek draperies.
a vogue which still lasts. More and
more women of fashion and of the stage
wanting their costumes designed to suit
not only their figures, but their person
alities.
Medici Collar Revived.
Redfern, whose knowledge of historic
costume is profound, has just revived
what may possibly become a popular
style. This is the revival of the Medici
collar or ruff. Women with handsome
necks or noble carriage realize that this
background of lace. muslin. fur or gauze
makes a wonderfully effective frame for
the face, while, in a way, it softens and
hides the ravages of time. 1t is dis
tinctly a fashion for the mature woman.
but it will probably be taken up with
especial enthusiasm by the very young,
as is almost always the case.
In one Of the models showing the
Medeci collar the material of the gown
petticoat of plain velvet. The overdress
has long, square train, and is made in
beautiful and severe lines. The Medici
collar was revived as early as 1906 on
the directoire dresses. and the short
spencer jackets of the time also showed
the high collars. fur-edged and lined,
which formed about the only protection
women Of that time had against the cold.
These quaint little jackets were tight
fitting, coming just below the bust, and
there are one or two models for the
spring which resemble them. being high !
waisted and long-sleeved, with, however. |
a belt around the waist and waist
cape, descending for a few inches only. |
These spencers are brocade or figured
silk, edged for the winter with fur and
marabou. |
Hair VIII Be High.
Should the Medici collar become pop
ular, it must have an immediate effect on |
the dressing of the hair. which will once |
more be piled up high on the head in a |
So 80 ,Sn1 lat