Society and Fashion Gossip.

Otago Witness, Issue 1762, 29 August 1885, Page 26

Society and Fashion Gossip.

— A Parisienne who exchanges Paris for the sea — presumably to restore herself after the fatigues of the 'season — is compelled to make five toilettes a day — before the bath, for the bath, for the walk on the planches or the jetty, for the band in the afternoon, for dinner at the hotel, and for the evening at the casino. The quietest time of all the year is the weeks spent in the ancestral chateau. More than one chatelaine of Violette's acquaintance adopts white at this period — white woollens for walking in her own domains or driving abroad, India muslins for the evening, the neighbourly dinner party, the impromptu dance. If she is a horsewoman, she either follows the simple English fashion, introduced into Paris by Redf ern, or she clings to the old traditions of French veneri, and rides to the meet in a dark-blue habit braided with silver, and a three-cornered hat, which we should consider highly theatrical. As for the shooting suits donned by a few inveterate female sportswomen, they would often shock our English prejudices in favour of long, albeit, sometimes divided, skirts. — Paris correspondent.

— The old-fashioned curtsey is being revived in Paris. Instead of a formal bow of the head only, young ladies now make a " cheese," to their elders. Perhaps it is the favour in which the cotillon is held which has led to the revival of it. This practising the old-fashioned reverence of the past generation is likely to make quite a social revolution in modern manners. — A new departure in bazaars was held recently in aid of a charity helonging to St. James', Notting Hill The bazaar was advertised as an "Apron Fair," and nothing but aprons were sold. Children's pinafores and ladies' aprons of every description occupied the stalls. • Some of the muslin aprons were in pretty designs, and those of Liberty silk wore much admired. The useful is always appreciated.

— The tailors are doing their best to rival the dressmakers, and their work is so thorough that there is no wonder that they find manj r patrons. They are employing Weeds, homespuns, and plain cloths, and there is hardly a month in the year when a gown of this kind cannot be worn. Many of these dresses have no tunics ; the skirts are simply plaited in front and gathered at the back ; others have the tunic so fastened to the bodice that they indicate a return to the old polonaise, a style which, by-the-bye, is second to none for old ladies. Do you know, as a rule, how you may tell a dressmaker's from a tailor's gown ? The former fastens over on the left side, the latter on the right.

The late Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia, father of the Duchess of Connaught, was buried in the same tomb as his late father, Prince Charles. Frince Frederick Charles, who only completed his 57th year last March, was only son of Prince Charles, brother of the Emperor, and was born in Berlin on March 20, 1828. His mother, Princess Marie of Saxe-Weimar, was si.ster of the Empress Augusta. The Prince married in 1854 the Princess Mary Anne, daughter of the Duke of Anhalt-Dossau, and Reaves a son, Prince Frederic Leopold, and three daughters, of whom the eldest, Princess Mary, married, firstly, Prince Henry of tho Netherlands, who died in 1879; a.nd secondly,

Prince Albert of,Saxe:A^enburg ; ; the, second. Princess Elizabeth, /is married L.to<, Augustus} Hereditary Grand Duke of Oldenburgj ,and ,the youngest, Princess Margaret, is Duchess /of Connaught. Among .the roya.l and distinguished personages who took part in the funeral,. besides the members of the Hohenzollern family,; were the King of Saxony, the Duke of Saxe-Alteur burg, the Duke and Duchess, ,,ofj C/>nnau.ght, Prince William of Baden, the. Grand. D|uk ( e ! pf Hesse-Darmstadt,' the, Grand, Duke .pfTjQ/don-. burg, the. Prince of, the Austrian Field-Marshal Pejacze,yich> &c. ; . t —I suppose you haveyheard, of the -Grand; Fancy Fair, given recently by, the', 'Duchess d'Urzes. Both house and gardens, were Td'epp-, rated in the most fanciful, style.,, and, tne^staljs were presided, over,, .by, the prettiest 5 an^mpsif charming women in.Paris, all dressed a^Pjirisian's only know how tjOjdress. , The .Dyiche^s.jbiOTseTfii surrounded by a bevy of lovely t women, prpsidpd* over the buffet. They .were all dressed as '.sar;, maids, with dainty aprons of ,whjte ,lac,e, such , as the Popes of Rome wear,, when > they serve/tEe, twelve Apostles at supper,on. Holy Thursday., ln, the gardens there, were races run by greyhounds, and after these ra,ces the Cqunjtess'cte Chevigne walked through* the grounds'! leacling^a' ppjendid black horse laden with baskets of flowers,' wliich were bought up at their weight; in gold. ( But perhaps the ( greatest success Qf the t 'day fy'as.the lottery of pictures', drawn by a demoiselle, D'Urzes.' This lottery deserves r a particular { or it had a twofokVch^ritablje, object. '.Firstly^ the proceeds of the lottery went to' th|B charity for which the fete was. organised, and ,'secqndlyj it served to make known unknown paintersjas.qnly unknown painters,' works had been procure'd^for the lottery. Not every young artist nas^ve'n a chance of -having his pictures seen by"cbn-i noisseurs, and thus ,m&\\y i ,die of. starvation before their talents are recognised. Here, how-, ever, was a splendid, chance for the p^o'or^st youngest artist, and the Duchess" D'tJrzes! thought was a providential- .boon .to, many,"a struggling talented fellow. 1 ajn ' glad! to.hear, also, that already' more, than lone great. talent has been discovered , by, this, happy idea, ''M«iy the Duchess D'Urzes'' example be^ followed: py other ladies in other larids.^-Parls, correspondent. ' , „ ' ,'. " '"' f \ f ,'" — Mantles (says The, Queen), seem t,o be les's worn this summer Jhari'ever, ,and no.t at all 'by young ladies; though, with.the dry hot weather, pretty clust-clpaks, or." dusters ",'as 'the Americans call them, 'will, as u^al, make "their''appearance. The shoujder 'papes'^have'Vanish.edi much to most women's relief, v arid', such' liMe visites'as are worn end at the wajstf,"and"are drawn in very close to ,the figure. Silk, gloves are better worn than 'they used' to' be j "though 1 in most cases women, who use. them .would, if questioned in the'' 1 Palace" of Truth'^oiynihat in wearing them theii,' poverty and'not their will consents. „I t is a foolish prejudice ';■ silk .is" in every way a softer,' pleasanter,' healthier, covering for the hands than* kid; but^'as'^we have said before^ .with .most" women "dress, is neither an art nor a science, bui; a' fashion;' and fashion long condemned silk' ,glovesj and onl^ allows them under protest now/ . ''"' '" ') — The beads that are worn' ]'ust', ribw II f wou",cl 1 require a chapter; to themselves. ' .Even pe'arlsj are to_be had in.all colourings.' L'eaiJ \iea'ds are the newest, and are liberally' intermixed w'itt jet. I have seen many applied to manties'.^These are much shorter and smaller, than heretofore; they come "well up to ithebeck in.a straight bah'd without any ruchings ; a style^by far the 'most] becoming to slender 1 throats. Coloured plush' and. velvet' are worn, even this summei?'" time J , almost as much as Sicilienne! ' The beading is' carried down the back seams',' and^.sonietimes covers the back; tw'd or more lines of the same appear in the front, and, the sleev^tfhave'' often horizontal bands of 'beading',- unbecoming as a rule. A novelty is for the silk or 'other iria'ter'ial to open in front, and allow , lace pleats to be visible. Bronze and lead beads are' combined on some of the hew'shapes/'and'electric blue beads of a dark ' tone on electric blue silk. Occasionally the black' gauze much used for mantles is covered all over with bronze and gold beads in conventional' Gothic designsj > Striped velvet and gauze beaded is fashionable, .i 1 ' ' •• \ — The Kensington ladies presented Princess Beatrice, ■ on • -the 4th 1 ' 'July, ' at Buckingham Palace, with the' grand piano made by Messrd Brinsmead to their 1 order. 'Mr.'Johnßrinsmead explained to- her Royal ('Highness its'mod&of construction' which 1 is'of an entirely* novel kind; The piano is in a black- case 'brnamented- with gold. . ,-!..! 'jiKj-jV ■ i,.f >„. • .„!) „„ — Mrs Fowler, lace manufacturer, is exhibit* ing an artistic and handsome piece of lace-which' is to be used to trim one of the dresses of- H{R.H.* Princess Beatrice. ■ The 1 pattern is Honiton lace imitation of Spanish point, fend one of the features of its excellence is the old-fashioned frillings which have been introduced: •'• . .vH — Countess Sydney, wife of* the Lord-lietr» tenant of Kent, wast o 1 present 'the wedding* cake made for the'Prince'ss'BeatricebyvMessrs Buzzard of Oxford "streeti,; to the< order of the ladies of Kent, at Osborhe/on the 21st July. 1 J — The Princess of 1 Wales has kept a memorial of her Irish tour — besides the photograph in the Doctor of Music robes — in the, poplin dresses^ which she still wears with evident preferences. Her dress at the Holloway functien'was agr^en poplin. :i ' .. ." •.. i- r > !.«. i-r <■ ,L, -t — The Dowager Lady Henniker has presented to the Church of Great Thornham a painted [ window "in memory of her husband, the fourth lord, who died 'on Easter-eve, 1&70. ' The'subject of the window is 1 the '^Eve of the Resurrec■hinn " * ■ ' ' „ '„ i f , \ifl i'U •