WELLINGTON'S SUMMER BATS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 29, 29 October 1907, Page 3

WELLINGTON'S SUMMER BATS.

! NE)V STYLES IN, MILLINERY- ■ '.' ■ ; , '"■■■ : .-.": ; pE>JiiißEp..'.-;";"■;'■.'• ''"' ■'. '■'~''' '.' '(By ", "Dominica. , ') . : V N ■'A visit-to Sydney at a time when the big shops were '-holding their: spring-.shows ■gave' me an opportunity Vof .seeing .some.,of tho 'pi'ottiqst .millinery, imaginable. There, woru hats, arid hats', and it vas evident '.that the new fashions lent , themselves.-to extravagance and 'eccentricity as much ..as..those: 6frthe' previous:season had- done,-hut for the most T, art the .-■,< hate- .displayed were , far prettier and/more artistic tnan'anything thathad beeirseen boforo/ Simplicity of outline, and' harnionipusness of .colouring were tho characteristics; and though there was.a curious •blending ;of flo\v ; ers, especially in : the way of mixing insignificant field-flowers with exquisite garden blooms, the blending -was done! with great taste, and \yith'very'happy effect. - Ostrich .feathers' were very much in evidence/'- groat . beautiful things: wre'aifiirig' the hats,'; and ' curling' far away' down •'■ tho back.' Eoses rivere everywhere, and': convolvulus: and giant'.clover bloom, arid splendid fuchsias,:-; flowers; so beautiful that 'the'.hatsN had to-be .simple'to "show them off to advantage. The'milliners' shops aVid the shop winclows were delight, and- it was with the most .hopeful expectation that I .watched : .for the:opening of ithe season's display'in tho, Wellington, shops.;.' But speaking, generally,' the Wellington' shops hare hot risen to the occasion. A'l'liey. have , riot succeeded in securing -.the.effect';of artistic simplicity, arid probably they have not.,aimed ; at it.. Here too .often "the hats , -' have' been twisted. into; fantastic - shapes;, where there- should have' been ' long • graceful. ciityes, there have'., liden, crinkles; .convolutions, and flowers of jovery: or any sort and colour have' been heaped together inartistically.- '■■■Never has .there .beeri such a variety of beautiful flowers ■to• chqoso from, and ■never has there been less oxciise.' for choosing ineffectively.. It .quite true that.in the best millinery;flowers' are mixed, but the blending is a dangerous matter;,"', anil,.' unless Uono'' ■ with .great; !caro : and v tasto,. the, effect is anything but happy. : ' '"• ■■■ ■•■;■ ■.; '' ' ' ■■■ '.;- •- ■ '••' '

: -Ur ; course-very often a hat that looks-6x-.ceeedirigly common-place ill a shop becomes, gifted, with a sort of individuality, when perched' on ' a pretty head', and it would be idle to, deny tho Wellington girls look ■well'in their now-seasons hats.• But speaking of them as seen in the shops ,the mil:linery: lias, not; the beauty and grace' , it' might-possess,- arid it-was therefore with- nil tho .more .that ■ I happened upon a •collection lot hats that did full justice .to the opportunities afforded. '.. ' .'. ■ ' A.grqat niimber'of these were designed. frir ■the,races,; arid while they were all-simplicity, ■and, grace-of. outline, .there was about them :a sujnptuoiisnessthat put them, out of the thought of. tho everyday world.'" But tlioy were very good to look at. They wero trim-'' !mcd with fox-brush feathers,, great curly frothy plumes,, of a colour and fiuffiness. that would indeed have astonished 'Father Ostrich'.' ".' '■" ' .i' ' '' ' ' , ~

: One of rosoda green straw had a .sweeping plume most delicately shaded in heliotropo and. green,, not beginning ,as a green feather anVi acrobating into heliotrope at tho' tip, but: green with'hore and .there .a single filament of heliotropo; a jewelled buckle of pressed leather, fastened the plume in front and tho crown and bandoa'.i. were swathed with tulle in the two colours. '

■Another hat of wedgowood bhio with a fox-brush feather of gobelin blue would make ! an ideal hat for a.dark-oyed brunette. A llnmney shapo in black crinoline straw with crown swathed ; in, white tulle had a magnificent white plume fnstoned in front by a jewelled leather, buckle. . •, Another plumed hat that was a triumph of carefully contrived simplicity was dono in autumn tints) ' pretty coloured straw, lined with a narrow flat band of shot moiro si|k in heliotrope .and. pink, with plumo of dull carnation green,' with more than a hint, of orange hero and thoro. ' ' '.The floral hats, were no. less beautiful.. Jn each case simplicity of effect 1 , had, been, achieved, but the flowers were exquisite and exquisitely- combined. One of chip was trimmed with , masses of flame-coloured anemones veiled in green'tulle with a tuft of slonde.r green feathers at tho side. A shape of hemp straw, pink shot was trimmed with beautiful single dahlias of carnation red

and a deep red purple. Nothing could havo been simpler or moro effective. ' • ' ■ /Then there was a Tuscan straw with wide bows of black--ribbon, and in front a .mass of-'glowing flame-coloured roses. A very charming wliito chip hat was trimmed with whito tulle and a great tuft of what I hoy call , •'drenched feathers." Those arc prettier in'wliito than in colour, and the for thorn is said to hayo originated in a smart English society outing "n is year, when rain came'oh nnd clroncliod the feathers that had neon: fluffy in the morning. By tho same token an actress who went on the stage witli her hat hastily put on is credited with the now; Fashion of wearing tte hat almost on the'back of the head. The reasons seem mvolous but the results ore not without charm.'