Ladies' Column.

Alexandra Herald and Central Otago Gazette, Issue 506, 31 January 1906, Page 2

Ladies' Column.

LATEST LONDON AND PARIS FASHIONS.

BY MISS ADA MELLEB,

[Am, Sights Resbbved.] A TAFFETAS BLOUSE. EVERY year Beema to bring with it an inoreased respeot for white, and at the seaside and in the country white frooks have been worn by the hundred, and found oharming expression in glossy linen, voile, soft silk and serge. Holiday-makers have olung faithfully to white, and the yaohtswoman has shown her appreciation for the colourless frook by appearing in oharming boating costumes of white serge trimmed with silk braid. White hats, too, have made a brave show; and for their decoration, when the ' pure' soheme has been adbered to, gardenias, white rose 3 and tulle have played an important part, to say nothing of white ostrioh feathers. A large number of white washing frooks have been trimmed with broderie Anglaise, and many have been made entirely of this old-English embroidery. It is many years sinoe broderie Anglaise enjoyed the popularity it boasts to-day, and even when it was fashionable years ago it was used mostly for children's frooks and pelisses, and had not risen to the important plaoe it oooupies to-day in the soheme of woman's dress. There are two kinds of broderie Anglaise—olose and open. The pierced varieties are erhaps the most dainty-looking, and it is

these that are used chiefly foe trimmings, suoh as insertions and flounoings. The background of the embroidery is, for the most part, linen; but soft washing silk worked in the same way has oomposed some exceedingly pretty blouses and dresses. Girls who employ their needles in the decoration of their toilettes have found in the revival of broderie Anglaise a delightful suggestion for needlawork. Taffetas silk so treated is highly effeotive, and now is the time to work blouses of brown and plum-coloured silk for wear with the old-time ' flourishing' stitoh. The silk blouse abounds, and is laoe-trimmed, gathered and tuoked according to fanoy, The blouse sketohed is of tobaooo brown taffetas silk, out square in the neok and trimmed thereabouts with gauging, the yoke being of guipure lace in a deep ivory tone, a strap of the same laoe descending the oentre of the blouse to the waist. The sleeves are full on the shoulders, giving the fashionable breadth to the figure thereabouts, and they oonolude at the elbows with ruffles of laoe or silk, The taffetas blouse is praotioally indispensable, sinoe it fulfils the needs of so many oooasions and, if the silk is a good one, proves an economical purchase in the end. A CROSS-OYER BODICE. Among prevailing modes of the summer, the draped, oross-over bodioa, and the flight of small bows decorating vests and yokes of laoe, or gathering up the folds of the bodioe drapery, havs been largely conspicuous. Ware it not that the oross-over oorsage admits of muoh variety in its aspect, there would be danger of the mode beooming too common. As it is, it remains fresh and charming, the little crossed fronts appearing now on plain, now on draped boleros, on fichus, stoles, and gathered bodies, as well as on tailor-made coats. An example of a bodioe with crossed fronts is ska ohed here. It is suitable lor cloth, and has a crossed band of broderie Anglaise framed in little frills of either silk or ohiffon, the ends of the embroidery attaching themselves to. a high belt of the bodioe material ■ The long sleeves are each finished with a little frill at the wrists, hut are otherwise quite simple, liked draped coat-sleeves. At the neok is a vest of tusked batiste trimmed with a flight of little velvet bows, A pretty little bodioe showing a orosssd fiohu is of dark blue voile, the fiohu, whioh oovers the bodioe, being arranged in small, even folds, and edged with a tiny kilting of voile. The bodioe is out to a V both back and front, and the filling is of tuoked lawn, while the crossed ends of the fiohu vanish into a

high, swathed oeinture of soft taffetas silk, the effect being the same at the baok as in front. As for the sleeves, they are short to the elbows, and are nioelj puffed at the top and draped below, where they fit at the arms, and are finished with double kiltings of a greater width than those on the fiolm. Eomney belts and Romney fichus solve in an easy fashion the question of how to make up blouses quickly and artistically. Some of the prettiest muslin blouses oonsist of a simple, full Blip of plain or flowered material, supplemented by a frilled fiohu en suite and high belt of soft satin ribbon, at the neok being a vest of gathered tulle or tuoked lawn and laoe. Very pretty, too, are the fichus that after passing the shoulders desoend in straight

inea to the waist, the ends vanishing entirely thereabouts, oe, aftes passing beneath the belt, re-appearing to fall on to the skirt as far as the hips. As an accompaniment to Romney fichus and belts a swathe of ohiffon, or very soft ribbon, run through the hair is charming, the ooifiure to fit the oooasion being soft and fluffy, Whenever picture modeß are afieoted it should be borne in mind that the entire etceteras of dress must be in harmony, or nothing but failure to seoure the pioturesoue oan aoorue, To combine the strictly modern with the old masters is a mistake often made, and only results in a disappointing appearance.