Fashion and Things Feminine.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume I, Issue 167, 1 July 1911, Page 4 (Supplement)

Fashion and Things Feminine.

By

IDA MELLER.

(Copyright.

MID-WINTER FASHIONS. Dress fashions have toned down considerably since the newer vogues were introduced, and few of the extreme styles are now exploited. Deep hems remain fashionable, both on walking ■skirts and house skirts, but they are /io longer compressed to a ridiculously small circumference, but, on the contrary, allow perfect freedom of movement to the lower limbs. Mid-winter skirts give frequent expression to velvet hems, the rest of the skirt lieing possibly of cloth or silk, the velvet repeating itself elsew-here on the dress, either as cuffs and yoke, buttons, belt, or strappings.

Here and then- some smart examples may bo seen of cheeked suitings and ctrinod dress cloths made up •'with deep foot-hems of velvet, the medley being well expressed in tho costume illustrated, which is carried out in dark blue and white checked cloth with hem and, trimmings of dark blue velvet. The dnss is slipped on all-in-one, the Russian bodice and skirt being joined together at the waist beneath the velvet belt. The neck, cut square, is bordered with velvet, and the sleeves, cut in one with the bodice, should be finished at. the wrist witli bands of the same, while another band of velvet runs down the left of the dress, where it fastens invisibly, the velvet forming a background to a series of buttons of the cheeked material. To make such a dress as this, 3i yards of doublewidth checked material and yards or double-width velvet or velveteen will be required, ’lie design works out very well, also, in mixed cloth and sil k. A SIMPLE TOILET JACKET. The kimono continues to furnish fashion with a foundation upon which is built much that is chariftfhg in tho way of blouses and bedroom-wrappers, toilet jackets and tea-gowns, the simplicity of tho Japanese robe being one of tho features that appeals most attractively to home-dressmakers, whose name is now legion, for most girls undertake a good deal of their own personal dressmaking. Pretty materials of which wintei wrappers for tho boudoir and bedroom are made are French flannels, plain or fancy, cashmere, delaine, nun’s veiling and matelasse stuffs of silkylooking texture. These may be seen made up into kimono dressing-gowns or loose-fitting bedroom wrappers gathered to yokes that are ultimately covered by deep collars frilled with washing la co The toilet jacket of sac shape, finished with a deep collar, also relies chief-

sary, after it is cut out and hemmed, is to stitch together the two lower corners of the pieces that fall respectively over the right and left arms. Thus, on each side, a ring is formed through which the hand, and forearm may bo slipped, and this little fetter will prevent the wrapper from being of too airy a character without the trouble of making sleeves. On the other hand, if a jacket is preferred to a cajie, stitch up the under-arm seams and those on the under part of the sleeves, and the pattern at once becomes that of a neat little toilet jacket on orthodox lines. The quantity of double-width material required is I.J yards. I may here state that on a miniature scale the pattern suggested applies equally well to babies’ matinee jackets or carpelets, four of which can (with manoeuvring of material) be eked out of J J yards of double-width stuff. Pink nun’s veiling makes sweet iittlc jackets for babies. The toilet jacket illustrated is made of made of pale blue cashmere, trimmed with black and white cheeked braid. A diagram of the pattern is given below the sketch, but cut 'rom this pattern, the sleeves, probably, would not be quite so long as those in tho finished picture, unless the material used for the jacket were exceptionally wide.