MISS COLONIA IN LONDON.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1260, 23 April 1896, Page 15

MISS COLONIA IN LONDON.

CONFIDENCES TO HER COUSINS ACROSS THE SEAS.

A FASHIONABLE WEDDING. London, February 28

The Hon Mabel Duncombe, whose wedding was the social event of last week, comes of a fumily renowned for beauty, and nobly maintains its traditions. If not a 3 yet on such an opulent scale as her late aunt, the Duchess of Leinster, she is very charming, and good as she is good-looking. The bridal trousseau was made entirely in Paris. The wedding-gown is of white satin flounced with old Brussels lace caught up with orange-blossoms. The train of rich brocade falls from the •shoulders in folds that show the lining, •and allow the silver cords that edge it to /fall into pretty zigzag lines. The silver <cord twine 3 itself at each corner of the train into a true-lover’s knot. The bodice is high, with collar and yoke of drawn chiffon. A flounco of lace goos round the shoulders and fasten fichu-wise in front. Trails of orange-blossoms cross tho yoke and form shoulder straps. Tho sleeves are very pretty, have satin epaulettes above, and from elbow to wrist consist of drawn chiffon, whilst a trail of the orangeblossom wanders up the back of the arm. Tho going-away gown is of moss-green cloth, made in a coat and skirt style, excellently cut and with a delightful waistcoat. This is of pink satin veiled in point d'esprit, with a cravat at the neck and bands of narrow black ribbon arranged about tho waist like a Swiss belt, and fastening under a paste buckle at either aide. Tho coat ha 3 large velvet rovers, but instead of standing off stiffly, those are allowed to drape themselves softly on either sido of tho ve3t. With tho gown is worn a widish toque, consisting of loops of green velvet, malmaison carnations, and gardenias. Tho bridesmaids’ gowns are of white satin trimmed with green velvet, and with these they wear hats of drawn white silk lined with drawn green .silk. A band of light mink outlines the brim, and a large bow of green silk veiled in lisse, white plumes, agold-spanglod osprey and green velvet roses trim them outside. Amongst the many beautiful gowns in the trousseau is an evening one of white satin, which has two bodices. Ono bodice is covered with folds of chiffon. Loops of turquoise velvet come from breast to waist, and both breast and waist of the gown are outlined by a row of goldspangled black laco butterflies. Butterfly eqaulcttes and folded chiffon form tho sleeves, and at the back of the bodice narrow black velvet ribbon converges in j a point at tho top of it, and fastens under a little pasto buckle at ono side. The other bodice is all embroidored in silks and spangles in a small floral device of tho time of Louis XV. A ruche of white ost rich finishes if off at the top, and the satin is gathered in at the waist. Verj lovely also is another gown of sea-green satin. Tho bodice has an exquisite stomacher, embroidered pearls and gold and crystal beads. The pattern consists of little trails and blossoms, and the flowers are worked in raised gold thread. A tucker of point d'esprit edges the body and continues down each side of the embroidery, and medallions of gold and pearls finish off the embroidery at the top. The full sleeves aro of satin, with butterfly bows of point d’esprit catching them in the centre. A pretty tea gown, also in tins ttoussean, is of rose satin, j veiled in mho chiffon. There is lace j insertion down tho seams, a flounce of point d’AloiiCon about the tuck, the sleeev.es are finished with frills of chiffon ! and lace, and the waistband is of pink chine ribbon.

BUSTLE VERSUS BICYCLI

An exciting encounter took place in the Brompton road last Thursday between a bustle and a bicycle. Tho former was worn by a lady of amplo proportions, who happened to bo crossing the street when a bicyclist came swinging along and blew liia horn. He ought to havo turned aside, but he evidently thought that he’d done all that was necessary and kept straight on. Everybody recognised that a collision was inevitable. So did the lady, who braced herself for the ordeal anil resolved on offensive tactics. Giving her body—not by any means that of a pigmy —a rapid swing, she brought what the Telegraph, in describing the incident, calls the “ strongest and most padded part of her figure " into contact with the front wheel of tho machine and the bicyclist himself,

and sent them both sprawling into the roadway. Then giving her skirts another swing, just to prove they had suffered no damage, she finished her journey across the road, and turned round and laughed with others at the unhappy cyclist as he picked up himself and the disject'd vicoihra of his once perfect machine. He made his way to the curbstone, where he set down to contemplate the damage, and finally lie put the thing on Ip shoulder and carried it away.

FASHION NOTES. The efforts being made to revolutionise tho sleeves are distinctly vigorous. On all the new Paris gowns, except the evening ones, the sleeves are, says tho St. James’s Gazette, avowedly flat. Absolutely tight ones are not yet attempted, but the material, instead of being distended by fibre, chamois, or any similar article, is allowed to bang in natural limp folds about the arm. The new skirts, however, are as wide as ever, and tho newest device of making them stand out is to line the silk flounce inside with alpaca, and to stitch into this alpaca several rows of stiff cord. A pretty daygown is tnado of a a pretty fawn coloured cloth with a design resembling teazleheads stamped on it in a lighter shade. It has waist and neck bands of leaf-green velvet, a tiny vest of green velvet, a lace cravat bow, and four small turquoise buttons to finish it off near tho neck. A unique and brilliant cape is made of chine velvet, in which purple, orange and green blend themselves daringly but effectively together. It, consists of three capes, each lined with willow-green silk, and the topmost is cut into Vandykes. All three capes are with frills of crinkled black chiffon and the collar is as original as the rest of it; it consists of double ruffles of the velvet and black lisse, and resembles the top of a lamp-shade more than anything else. Dainty and spring like is a gown of beige-coloured crepe do Chine trimmed with pink silk and yellow Valenciennes lace. Tite bodice is full in front and gathered into a pink silk neckband. The sleeves droop modisltly from the shoulder and ruffle themselves tight to the arm below. Over them fall epaulettes of cream guipure spangled with silk and frilled about the edge with tho yellow Valenciennes. A corselet of pink silk covered with steel-spangled guipure, a pink silk waistband, and a charming incongruous knot of scented violets give grace and distinction to the waist which this gown is privileged to adorn. A pretty evening gown of white satin is draped in satin-flecked lisse. An abundant frillingof Valenciennes lace gives ; fulness to the hem of tho skirt, and the low bodice is edged with satin tabs whose linear austerity is softened by delightful killings of wlrte lace. The sieeves, very ample and brief, terminate innocently, but abruptly, in a row of Valenciennes insertion, whilst a waistband of chine silk, in brilliant lines, relieves tho colourless \ irginity of the gown. Exquisitely line and dainty “ short coating " gowns are being made in London for tho tiny daughter of a very groat potentate in the East. One of these in white satin, with ~n overdr-.-ss emu iming nf Jui'-sL muslin ami finest iaeo in .-dienuMo rows, is so wondi rfuilv line as to seem til onlv for fairyland. Very simple, and inli is a bird-: gown mad*-, i>r the Cuiiiit' s: Oaiodun to wear during her appi ouditiig vbh t. > Lady Oadegan in Dublin. Tins skin is wide and plain, but of dignified cut, and is lined all through with white satin. The bodice is draped and the sleeves are very quaint, being draped from the back of the bodice. Across the shoulders are epaulettes of gold and pearl embroidery in open work that permits the warmer tints of the skin to show between.

A very pretty evening bodice is made of primrose broche, and its full, short, puffed sleeves aro significantly flattened down in the very centre by a rnbbit’s-ear bow. The low bodice is trimmed with a flounce of blush-rose chiffon, sprayed over and edged with primrose applique. This flounce crosses the shoulders, comes in a point to the waist, back and front, and is set into a narrow-pointed vest of primrose guipure headed in lront by soft pullings of pink chiffon. On one shoulder is set a large bunch of pink and yellow roses and foliage, and a waistband of wide black satin ribbon terminating in a full bow (and no ends) at one side, finishes it off. One of the new transition sleeves, as die-

played in aneau de-nil satin gown, consists of full killings of peach coloured lisse at shoulder and wrist, with a tight sleevo rutiled and drawn close to the arm of eau-de-nil satin in between. A corselet of silver spangles set with amethysts and yellow topazes completes the charmsof this very quaint and charming dress. Another gown with a curious and original sleeve is of cinnamon cloth. r i he bodice has a vest of black astrachan fastened in on either side with pretty little black and gold filagree buttons. The front of the eoUar is of black astrachan, and the rest of .russet brown, and messgreen velvet forming a bow behind. Tho top part of the sleeve consists of a drapery of the cloth, and tho under part is long, plain and tight, and of the shot velvet. This under part buttons over the loose cloth between the elbow and tho wrist, and the cloth emerging again above the wrist, falls in a fan-like expansion over tho hand. There is a panel of shot velvet in the skirt, and the bodice has short full basques edged with narrow black braid and headed with astrachan. Dainty little white satin waistcoats are being prepared to brighten up winter gov/ns for the spring, and the newest of these have a floral design sewn on them in natural shades with narrow ribbon. Even a plain black serge coat and skirt gains grace by tho addition of a white satin vest with a device of lover’s-knots sewn on it in narrow

yellow velvet ribbon and a pretty neck band of broad velvet ribbon of the same cheerful shade.

Very exquisite and original in its details is a gown of rose-pink silk. Tito skirt is quite plain, but the bodice of coppery green shot velvet has basques of rose point laco flecked with diamonds. The lace forms rather long points in front and is headed by a band of white satin covered with the jewelled lace. At tho back the basques are triangular, and the laco is attached to the seams and headed at tho waist by paste buttons. The bodice is cut low, has a vest of the jewelled laco, and is connected across tho shoulders by straps of pink silk fastened on to tho velvet bodice by paste buttons. AVired rovers of tho pink silk grace the front, and flat epaulettes of the velvet and silk finish off tho sleeves on tho shoulder. The sleeves are of velvet, gathered flat to ihe arm in front, and hox-pleated behind to the elbow, from whence bug velvet points lined with white satin continue and fall over the hand. Ingenuity in trimming and experiments in sleeves are, in fact, the only novelties at present. A pretty trimming on a black satin bodice consists of crescents of shot orange velvet cut out and appliqued on the fronts of the bodice, so that the points curve up at either side and unito under a handsome jet ornament. The velvet is shaded from pale chamois tint to deep orange. Similar crescents appear on tho neck and cuffs of gowns, and they all of them aro prettily embroidered in jet.