ENGLISH LETTER.

Bruce Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 3174, 19 June 1900, Page 2

ENGLISH LETTER.

I feel rather inclined to hesitate in giving my dear friends a little piece of newa which, if I know them well enough to judge, will be aa unwelcoino to them as it is to me. Oh ! nothing very serious, but it is just this : that the blom>e, so dear to all our hearts, is under condemnation in I the fashionable world for day wear. | Mind, I am not including the exquisite creations of lace, silk, and satin with , which we continue to adorn oursolTes for evening and theatre attire, but for the comfortable, friendly blouse which wo like to put on with onr cloth or tweed skirt, and feel beneath the accompanying coat. Now, alas ! the fiat has gone forth, and we, j being steady adherents to the rules of j Fashion, must c'en don fitted bodices of a like material to the rest of our costume. We may trim it much as we please, forsooth ; but it must be a costume bodice, and the contrasting blouse, which has stood us in such good stead, will, during the winter months, be reckoned dowdy and second-rate. No doubt it will assert itself again by the spring-time, when it will arise in fresh and light material and make, j # # # # Well, having made one unwelcome assertion, I may as well go the whole length, and get all my bad news over at once. Those dear little sequined robes which delighted our hearts during the autumn hare proved- their own downfall. Unhappily they were too ' reasonable ' in price, and the result is that Fashion, in high dudgeon at one of her favourite ideas being made quite such public property, has turnod her haughty head away, and will have none of them. It is true that thero are many sequin bodices which are so closely sewn on as to resemble coats of mail, but the pallietted robes are no longer to be in vogue. # * * * There, that is over, and I feel positively Spartan-like in having done my unpleasant duty, and can turn to more congenial information, hoping thus to ingratiate myself once again with my friends. . In he first place, the very daintiest of ooloured pocket handkerchiefs are to be used. Oh ! they are pretty, in very fine cambric, and in the palest shades of pink, blue, heliotrope, and yellow, all edged with deep Valenciennes, and elaborately embroidered. I told you that novelties would be arising with handkerchiefs directly we could arrange a pocket in our skirts, and this has proved correct. # * # # Moreover, with a sort of reaction after her love for fichus, and heavy lace trimmings, Fashion has introduced the dearest little collars and cuffs to our notice once again. They are very prettily cut as to shape, and are made of fine muslin, edged with real lace, and stitched by hand with the finest stitching. Very dainty are they as a finish to a plain cloth gown. There is something exquisitely ladylike in their very simplicity. # # * # As to the colour for February, it is decreed that cedar-brown shall share the honours by day, with 'polar blue' by night; tor these are the two favourite j shades, and I think it is a happy choice. This cedar-brown is capable of so many little changementa and notes of colour, as, for instance, a charming gown I saw this week, with a lace yoke, which terminated quaintly in fichu-like ends, fastened with a brilliant knot of old gold, or another which displayed beneath the halfopen coat and vest of brilliant orange velvet, which entirely dispelled the idea of the costume being at all dull-looking. # # * *. A great deal of silk is mingled with the trimmings of our beloved cloth garments, and the gayer the silk the better for the costume. . A favourite trimming is a small, closely-kilted flounce down the left side of the robe, and extending round the skirt, and sometimes it takes the form of fanlike bowß, which fasten the over-dress; but whatever the method of putting it on, bear in mind that it must be there, and surely some of the remnants purchased at the sales might be utilised in this way. # # # * I hope by this time tkat you have seen the new veils ; but if you haven't, let me tell you that we women have great reason

*o b e thankful to Faahioa in this respeot. l I raid that I hoped you had seen the new veil* ; but really, unleit you are very close to them, it is almost impossible to find out ; whether a Teil ia being worn or not. They are so light and gossamer-like, that they only improve the appearance and keep the hair in place, besides giving the extra warmth which the thinnest veil must, if it is of any use at all. # # * * It is really true that the large picture hats are once again worn with low dresses. It has always seemed to me rather an uncomfortable sort of arrangement when I have looked at the ' Gainsboroughs ' and 'Reynolds/ but people are so striving after effect now, that they are not content with well-dressed hair and pretty, .light ornaments as an accompaniment to evening dress. Whether they will be as successful as is predicted remains to be seen. Not only are the picture .hats in favour for full dreßS, but large toques of tulle and feathers are also to be seen. To be in the fashion, we must not place anything of small dimensions upon our heads.