THE NEW SEASON'S HATS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 100, 21 January 1908, Page 3

THE NEW SEASON'S HATS.

It seems early days to be thinking about whiter h'ats, now when the. siih shines with undiminished heat, and shady hats '' are scarcely shade "enough. But in 'the;'world-of dress the'shadows cast by cbmilig cVeiits aro very long indeed, and after hearing for weeks about the winter fashions in England w'o are now to see what New Zealand 'i'S to'-Wear. On Saturday I had a private view, of ."some of the new season's shapos, and very interesting they are. That thev are to be very large goes without saying,';)>u,t they are shot ungainly, for the rich .materials jof'ivhich ■thoy are composed, silk, oriental satin,! and •velvet, and their picturesque style accord Well with their size. One can understand that it will be dangerous for amateur milliners to attempt to make them, -for''the material is put on the shapes so plainly that every misplaced stitch, every .pucker'.would "show, and it takes skill to put on trimming without puckers. In every case the brim is edged with a flat band of tho, same, material 'as tho trimming, in the same 'or a .contrasting shade. Sometimes the, lining is gathered, and that is the prettier style, as the excessive plainness, and severity of . tho Ilat lining is trying to most faces. .'.At .'first .glance tho large shapes, especially the 'exaggerated Gainsborough hats, look as though they, were made for private theatricals, to figure in some play of tho Cavalier Or Georgian periods; they are cheaper in effect than the straws and crinoline plaits we have been accustomed to, and one cannot , quite take them seriously, that is, when they are seen in the hand. Their justification comes when thoy are put on a well-dressed head, and then they at once seem to belong : and look picturesquo. They arc meant for-handsome heads rather than for pretty faces, siiid looking.at them'one instinctively selects cortain hats as being suitable for certain"'wall-known women, and hopes that the appropriate head will discover its appropriate attire. '■ / The huge Gainsborough, made in all colours" with great coloured plumes, is the most beautiful

shape, and then comes our old friend,'the la'cloche, almost in the old guise, but witlr this difference, that it isvory narrow from back to front and comes to a point at the sides. 1 Flowers are to bo-worn as much as ever: Giant flowers, roses, convolvuli, irises, and clematis will all bo seen ill various gorgeous shades of -brilliancy, and sometimes crudenoss of colouring will bo a feature of the new fashion.: The; ornithologist. who attends nil afternoon party in :tho winter will'have his work before him if ho sets^himself to .classify the birds ho sees' disporting themselves on the various heads. lie. may havo set out with the conviction that given one'feather of a bird hd can deduce the bird's whole, plumage, . but lie must ' rearrange his ideas when lie . finds a humming bird, with a bird of Paradiso tail, a; seagull-with, ospreys disposed'about its. person,- and : ; a thrush'fromwhich.. sprouts a'.cluster' of (rooster's tail feathers.. The' mania, for. ostrich' plumes; of unnatural- length has. apparentlyled' the work') of .fashion- on to think-it can' create for itjelf birds -much more artistic ..than: wero ever .hatched, ,aud ,tho ; result is monstrous and inartistic. ' V-ultiiro wiiigs—great mot-! tied, wings spreading .'from' a buckle in' the centro towards each sido. of' the crown—are to bo very much Worn,,and there is a certain b? ibaric dignity. ; about these .that: would per-, hi jjs ~those who generally dislikt'i'' tile uso of wings in millinery, condone it herA.new. or/perhaps : the;, revival. of- a long-dead. TOTo;'is'the iise of , fringed silk for nows and ruchings.-. One flat pale blue felt hat shown is trimmed with wide, bows .of frayed pale blue silk,land it was stated that .It had taken a whole day to fray , the si Ik, iki carefully had-it ,to-be done. . A much prettier, shapo was of white trimmed with a soft ruching of white, silk with frayed edges. Huge silk arid -velvet buckles, are often, with a''plume and twist of tulip, the only trimming of one of these large ' Jis, and they are distinguished by a richne.., and variety of colouring. The bandeau, which was vanishing last season, has vanished this, for thp hat must lio quite close to tho hair. Thore aro women who look better in toques than in any hat ever invented, and for them, tho now floraltoques will be most becoming. They can provide themselves with toques of ribbon, feathers, flowers; .wings, or autumn borries; bu' :;he floral ones are tho prettiost. '• ' -