LADIES' COLUMN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XL, Issue 12401, 24 October 1903, Page 6 (Supplement)

LADIES' COLUMN.

LONDON FASHION NOTES,: [written socially you THE new ZEALAND HERALD.] ';;'"', ,'; London, September 11. Bktond a doubt t>he. tinns has now arrived when we must thjnk oil autumn clothes. The summer is quite oyer apparently, and fin shops are, by degrees now bringing out ((ark materials and jack*t3 and furs and millinery composed of more substantial materials than we have lately been wearing.

In the range of dress stuffs there is no end of choice. Plain surfaced materials find a place among myriads of fancy stuffs, seine of which are very hairy, being thickly covered with a white hairy tuft which .stands out like a goat's beard. Some of the new face cloths combine two shades in the ground work. Speckled effects are very usual, some being contained by an intermixture either of black or white with the dominant colour, and some of them assume a marbled appearance. In some materials which are spotted, the spots are arranged to form stripes wlhjch are broken somewhat by splashes between, A white curled thread is to be seen on title surface of some cloths, and astraehun weaving, particularly in black, gives plenty of .substance to many Of the new cloths. "This year the astrachan is very closely curled. Aibelines in a long range fire agin in vogue and some of them are woven diagonally iwid dashed wilfo colour, in addition to being ilecked with white. In plain stuffs thu-e are serges, hopsacks, canvasses, and various makes of cloth, all in a wide range of colours. Some of the reds have a dash of rose colour running through. Many of the diress fabrics are extremely harsh to feel. With the most expensive fancy materials the Makings are very delicate and' when made up look very well. There is expected ,to be a,- great demand for hopsack in black and brown. . All the new skirts are cut so as to stand out well from, the waist. Fulness is one of their characteristics, and this is obtained either by means of pleats direct from the waist or by gathers or fidlings. 'Ae hip yoke will, 'it is {bought,, be not so much seen as of late. In sbnm of the skirts the front and sides are to be plain with all the fulness thrown to the back, but the general effect must be for the skirt to stand out well from the waist. Flouncing* and box-pleat-jngß and frills will still b« largely relied on, and there are some skirls which are boxpleated from waist to hem. gome dressmakers are inserting wlmlebone underneath the flounces, so as. to make the skirt stand away from the figure, and in order to enhance the rotundity which will be one of the characteristic features of the autumn skirts. In regard to length, it seems pretty certain that trained skirts for day wear have had their turn, and that now a moder-ate-lengthed skirt will be most seen just escaping the ground nil round, but cut in such a way that it shall have the appearance of a fair length without in any way suggesting a train. ISien the trobteuv skirls are still to be worn, but they aro not really becoming to everyone. The skirt made just to clear the ground all round not the one to clear it by about six inches — is likely to be most worn. It seems to be expected that dressmakers will call to their aid the fashions which were worn in the late 'sixties and early 'seventies, which included til full skirt, the dolman-like mantle, etc., There, is a -..reaction setting in in favour of a more severe style of. dress than that which has lately been current, but the period upon which we arc to draw for styles is certainly not the most'pleasing one that could have been selected. -

There seems still to be a liking for the collarle.s3 coat, of whatever shape, whether a bolero or a site or a -fitting jacket. There is hardly ever a collar. As a rule jackets are of the military type, and have deep capes over the shoulders falling nearly to the waist, or else there is a slight shoulder cape and ail embroidered stole falling ill front. The Russian blouse coat is not likely yet to go out, but this, with a long pleated basque reaching almost to the knees, has an unfinished look without a collar. Many of the long coats which we are to wear are cut so as to follow the lines of thus figure without being exactly close-fitting, and the narrow backs'oil' some are held in with a strap, like the Guards' coat, at the back of the waist. In front some of them are pleated from a yoke, or else are merely allowed to fall in fuU folds and gathers from under a deep turned collar. Cloth will generally be the material used in their formation, but the word "cloth" includes a great variety in the character of the material, and what would be suited to one cut of coat would'not be suitable for another. Both for indoor and outdoor wear long, full-skirted, basques will be a feature of autumn fashions. ' The pouchy effect,has nob departed,- but it is us«l with judgment. Tmrnendously baggy pouches have quite disappeared, both for dresses and Russian blouses. Indeed, there is «. likelihood that the tight-fitting bodice will be the model for the coming season, though after the loose and pouchy effects some people will< not like to be so plain. If bodices are loose, the fulness must not come near the waist, for that part of the figure at any rate must be kept neat, and is usually encircled with a deep draped waistband.

TWO SEASONABLE FROCKS. Onx of our sketches suggests a very picturesque pelerine, which may be carried out in cloth or velvet, with lines of fur. A