London Fashion Notes.

Evening Post, Volume LXVII, Issue LXVII, 30 January 1904, Page 11

London Fashion Notes.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON, 19th December. " Just now everybody is intent on buying Chrlstnlus presents, nnd ns a rule tho shops look very bright nud attractive, though in M.me of them there is rather moie tawdry jewellery than ono cares to kc;>, oven the drapers making special displays* of charms und trinkets nmdo of paste nnd other imitation gems — indeed, 1 belicvo they nre the greatest .sinners in this respect — nnd of this class of oruuuient 0110 speedily scos enough. There is far too much sparkling imitation jewellery about now to bo pleasing, and it i« ustonishiug to sco how great it is in demand uinong certain clhsswj of peoplo. ltoal lace is one, of tho most nt tractive items nt pro&cnt, und there is a marked imvul in the demand for Maltese luce, which can bo bought cither by tho y.ird or in tho form of dainty collars, uuffo, nock finishes, us bordering to handkoichiof.>, etc., whilo Maltese insertion is ii good deal v.sod for trimming silk blouses, on which also Tenerifl'o work figures to a lnrgo extent. Laces of all descriptions arc, of courso, (roincndously vu«d iv blouse tiiuuninKs, und the entire blouse of lnco it> not by any means out of <Ute, though it is not exactly new. Somo of the mobt charming blouses of suit silk or Liberty satin htuve deep transparent yokes and cull's of handmade laco ; these blouses win bo worn either with or without un under slip. 1 hear that braid is coining in for blouse-trimming — preferably tho Mlk variety of tho straight military order — nnd it is said to bo both pretty and otl'eetive. Ilancl-puintcd nnd embroidered chilTons, brocaded nilks possessing much substance of their own, and i' rune do chine me among tho materials brought into u^o for awell blouses, on which nn euormiui.s amount of hnnd-work is usually expanded, in tho form of open Mitehery, gauging:*, tuckiiigs, or smotlcings — which, by the way, nre beginning to llourif'h once again. There are qmto a number of now silks introduced (or blou.sc-s, nnd those usually havo some elaborate fancy name ; suflir-e- it to say that the most noteworthy fcaluic of each mako is its soft uuppto quality ; a very lluo quality of Ltbeity satin is much worn, and blouses of net over silk look dainty. White i.i still tremendously liked, whether in silk, or satin, or flannel, or delaine, though it must be admitted that emerald ureeu still ninkca its vresence

101 lto a largo extent, and %o does bright i id. On niL-'nnij, bliitihcs of flannel pipings me coii.su,' iM.ibly ussed ; indetd, the cluiracleri'-liu of the usr-lul type of lilou.se 13 now itfl !H'\oie plainues*, especially if made of cloth, ns quite a number now are; there w a fancy for. piping or otherwise trimming a lipht bloiu-c with the same colour us the ricut with which it is to bo woin, though, of course, nnt necessarily with the wimo nmternl as the ••kirl, although the application of cloth bauds to pioduco a harmonious effect in blouse and skiit is one of the latest idem. Deep collars and culls of the wknt material, handsomely embroidered, are ustd on somo of the bfouc.es to hung about the same result. As a mle the slcevo.-i of morning blou.ses aio much Mnallor than those for dressy occasions ; they aie annply cut, nijd usually the fulnc'hs is held in wilh pliiith or tucks for il few inches below the shoulders, and the wm-t Jf» gathered into a deep-filling culf, so thnt what fulness there is is coi.fiucd to the region of the elbow. Many of Ihc lailorm.'ido conts and .vkirls now ha\e a blouse or bodice of cloth to coriespond, and this is much more economical than •« caring light blouses, which soon get soiled when worn under n, coat, especially if the lining of tho loiter be'ijt all dark in colour. The tailor-made iypo of blon«e is useful and ■waim, 'and when of faced cioth has tho additional merit; of being almost endless wear, So that it is just the thing for those who have to think of economy. The make is very simple, and often there is a plastron front which gives n certain cachet lo the appearance of the bloust'. For the morning blouse now, lace is not considered good taste, unless it is of noollen tjpe, and the woollen makes can now be had in uny dcsiicd width untl in every imaginable colouring, both light and 'dark, .some being a mixtuic of several eludes. So many of tho simple blouses now depend for their binait appearance upon tho addition of a prelty cravat and Kimrfc belt • the hcht worn ciavat is in daik silk or satin, over which is worn a white or coloured lawn turnover collar, and is finished with n butterlly bow in front j but the tie may bK varied to almost nny extent nnd its ends are sometimes Uueadcd in nnd out of flits specially provided in the front of the blouse. Among the smartest belts for morning wear aie those of soft kid or .suede which go into folds as thoy please when put round the- wnist ; Iho varieties which huve a \ory deep buckle in fiont are rccoin- \ mt-nded, while theie ure others which have three or four Jnickles with a &epnlato tongue to each, and these keep tho belt up belter. One of tho novelties of | the season is a solid silver pliable belt, ' wli.cli i.s mndc to follow the now universal fashion in bodices, nnd comu to a deep point below the- wai.st in fiont. At the baik nil tho pliable lines are fitted inlo a deep Kmpire-.shaped piece oi pit-iced silver ; in front it fastens with a *>haped buuklo taking the reqniipd deep point. There are bells of dull leather in art shades, nnd. they are all tremendously deop, and therefore not becoming ; they aie much adrnrtfecd, anil the shops make ; a great display of thuin, but few peoplo ! nro rat.li ciiouvth to put one on. Belts of black velvet always look neat, but some j of these are entathcicri with poms, and ! (hen they nro anything but pleasing As tho pouch is now almost out of fashion. I the fold* of tho fiont of tho blouse nre t held in with deep buckles, from which I thiec bands of gold or silver tissue .vprend, eventually sloping into a 2in bolt j the g.ilon of which iliw are made ia often jewolfcd or embroidered, but the | plain galon is in much belter ta<sto. News com«i to London from Paris of the introduction them of what is known j us tho " parure," otherwise a ret of cmt liroidorrd trimmii)i;f winch can bo easily (ixed on to nny plain bloutc, and which generally consists of four separate: pie^e* — a, coliar, two cuffe, and long necktie, oudiug in fancy-shaped tabs or lappet o, and not infrequently there is a waistband lo coricspond. It is expected that i this " parure ' will appeal to thoso 'who posscw only limited income, as tho items aro detachable, nnd so can bo used j with any blouse or bodice ; the collnr which is mndd shaped to the neck, nnd has an olortffntcd point or .square or j rounded tab in tho front, generally fastens at the back on to tho neckhaud of the 1 blouse with which it is worn ; the lie i& about n yard in, lrunth, and is made so as to bo kcl flat agninst the back of the neck nnd hic'o the fastening of the collar, tho ends pn*s round to the* front, whoro they are crossed nnd fastened with fancy pins, and a further development of arrangements is that after the end" have been crossed in front and scoured they may be turned up.ngnin toward tho ahuuldor or close to the collnr, nnd ?o form a sort of pointed yoke. Tho •' paiaircs " are made of different materials, wool or silk or canvas, and then embroidered with washing silks, and cm broidery is quite the fad of the hour, nnd mast appear somewhere about one's person. The»o adjustable arrangements aro ; meeting w ith a large sale in Pnrife, ana some people prefer to buy them unwoiked uiid embroider their 'own designs, thun all kinds of stitches nro used, and tho results are, of course, wonderfully divergent. In tho way of jewellery, I may note | that tourmalines nre coming into fashion ; these stones arc handsome nnd are of a j particularly soft shade of deep green. The j colour is something between an emerald ; and an olivine, and is more effectivo in tho daytime than at night, whon it looks almost bl.iuk. Tho tourmaline is as a rule het with diamonds, Ihough it looks well combined with penrls. Many pretty i poudantd are mado of one largo tour- | mallne wiTfi a new ait design in dia- | monds woiki-d lound it. There is a new item of jewellery, nnd that is a stone of opaline tendency, whose colours nre blue and green, just like a peacock's foathor ; it is used in buckles, brooches, and other ornaments, in tho ease of buckle* being Ket into dull silver, which is shaped after tho manner of a peacock's tail, and the i green-and-bluo stones aro dotted about nt reqiliied intervals. Rubies occupy v. very prominent place in the fashionable gems of the day ; irideed, I was told by an authority tho other day that lubies aro i the most expensive stones in tho murkot, J penrls occupying second place, and diamonds ranking only third. Coral and tur- i quoi.se are the latest and most popular j choices in the neck bcad.s stil! so much worn ; the striugs aro of a size to fit closely round tho collar, and they add a pleasing touch of colour to a white cos-- j tumc. A West End firm is bringing out i scarf-pins, pendants, and other kiuds of j jewellery, which are exact copies of cer- j lain typos of orchids, and in tho con- j structiou of these diamonds and enamel are used, and it is expected that Iho fiscal reform enthusiasts will take to wearing orchid jewellery — in compliment, of course, to Mr. Ohuinbcrlnin. Neck chains now are exceedingly filmy ami dolicatc in construction ; they are made cither of gold or platinum, and hnve a rococo ornament depending from them, or olse aro set nt intervals with small clear-set rubies, emeralds, sapphires, or other stones. Tlusc jewelled chums, whether with or without a jewelled pcndtuil attached, mo costly things if good, and unless they nro good (hey uru jiot toleuilcd. Those not fortunate enough to possess one of these coveted ornaments aro. resorting to a piece of watered hflk ribbon, which is studded with jewelled clasps or buckles and finished with nn old-fashioned rococo pendant '; if the gown be black tho ribbon should be light, und with anything light a biillinnt green or cerise or bluu or mauvo it* chosen. I hear that the old '• fobs " of watered silk ribbon are being revhed for attachment to watch or chnlelniue, the ribbon itself being mounted in an nntiquc clasp nnd ornamented with a , cold or silver mouotraru. •