LONDON FASHIONS.

PICTURESQUE HATS TO MEET THE HALF-MOURNING DEMAND.

"WHAT A MODERN BRIDESMAID r WEARS. London, June 20. N«xt month is the outdoor month -bf the year. If July comes in with jainy skies and a hint of chill in the air, it seems, as a rule, the downfall •of all hopes concerning al fresco fetes on velvet lawns, or in shady backwaters, and the ruin of all deep-laid plans concerning picnic baskets and fresh lingerie frocks.

The coming into force of the halfmburning order last Saturday set numbers 01 people thinking out the question of their next step with regard to diess. Half-mourning—in the opinion of most people —is full of possibilities. The average English girl is inclined to introduce too much' colour into her gown. She forgets that her blue eyes and the freeh roses on her cheeks, as ■well as the bright gold or chestnut of her hair, provide by themselves colour •enough and to spare, and are set off far better by the pure white of hat or gown than the rather crude shades of pink or blue, which some girls affect. Of these -all-white schemes there will ,be many as the month advances. Wlrlte frocks of lingerie, charming ""embroidered linens and muslins with a touch of mauve or smoke grey at the waist, and large white hats trimmed with giant clusters of the new crepe flowers in snow-white will be seen ad infiiiitum. These "ghost" flowers, which have the effect of emanating from some dream garden, and which-are of gigantic size, are usually introduced in the form of a big, loose cluster piled in the front of the .hat, with here and there a white velvet blossom interspersed among them. CLOCHE HATS AND BRODERIE ANGLAISE. Sonte of the new hats of the moment are quite cloche in shape, while in many other cases the brims take a downward direction, and require very careful adjustment and the closest atention where the arrangement of the hair is concerned.

Broderie Anglaise is, Besides, so great a favourite -where half-mourn-mg hats are in question that the milliner nan hardly have enough of it just now. In some cases the broderie Anglaise only provides the Brim, the crown being of softly pouted grey or mauve satin, but for the outdoor hat pure and simple the newest idea which has eaptivateH the affections "of the modiste is the big broderie Anglaise model covered with stretched f black or grey net and a roll "o"f net encircling the brim, while a cluster of flowers is introduced on one side. The other popular expedient is represented by the big hat, which relies ior its effect on the htigc bow of broderie Anglaise which trims it. •SUNBONN'ETS FOR NURSERY FOLK. IF Sun-bonnets for any but the littlo people of the nursery are quite out of. the picture this year. For tiny folk, however, the season's models are speoiallY attractive.

The latest of these are made far more like the old-fashioned coal-scut-tle bonnets than the ordinary sunbonnet with gathered brim, and although they form a protection to baby faces they do not so entirely annihilate their small wearers as last year's models undoubtedly did. They are made of perfectly pbain, coloured linen in soft,shades of blue, pink, and mauv*>, the brims being lined with gauffered caps of soft white net edged with lace, -while for trimming there is nothing but a cartwheel rosette fashioned of tiny flat frills of linen, and introduced over each ear. BI7NCHES OF MAUVE AND - WHITE HAREBELLS. Numbers of cloche hats are design,ed for the nursery people, and some •f the»» are carried out in the softest karebell mauve,' with little bunches and white harebells set all round the crown, and a white "cap" under the brim. Even for grown-up headgear -the lace "cap" is coming 'back to fashion with some of the big tagal models, and very pretty and eoft the effect is against the skin, n*or« especially whore the large black or black and white hat is concerned. FLOWER-TRIMMED PARASOLS. - . weddings and wedding fashions are very much in the air just now. The bride, of to-day no longer consents to lfce tied and bound by the Tules concerning her attire "and that of her bridesmaids which our grandmothers held to so rigorously in the laSt century. All manner of pretty schemes are called into requisition to t>r!ng a note of va-riety into the picture. Not very ' long ago a ftride mad© her appearance in quite a short skirt, which in all other respects was of the usual wedding type, and her lead was followed In many instances at successive weddings. In another case the bridesmaids at a smart wedding broke away from the ceßTentional bouquets and fcaskete of lowers, and carried instead rsilver trays or solvers, on which a IiTaRS of Tiink bloseoma was attrnctivelv piled, while in yet another instance

the cortege of filles d'honneur, who followed in the wake of the bride, carried parasols with long Directoire handles, to which were attached bunches of Marechal Niel roses.

It is, besides, by no means uncommon to dispense with flowers altogether except for the artificial blossoms worn in the hats and the big clusters which are tucked into the soft folds of the corsage. Picture schemes are, of course, the first to be considered by the modern bridesmaid, and the trend nowadays where a bridesmaid's frock is concerned is always towards a kind of Arcadian simplicity.