LONDON AND PARIS FASHIONS.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XI, Issue 46, 18 November 1893, Page 429

LONDON AND PARIS FASHIONS.

SUMMER SUGGESTIONS.

SFORE beginning on the important subject of feminine headgear, let me call your attention to Mr Clement Scott’s latest word picture of a Japanese belle’s head adornment,from observation in the land of the Japs. It is not too fascinating. ‘ Her head (he tells us) is a marvellous structure. It was done up a week or so ago, and there it has remained intact ever since.’ Into ‘lnk-black rolls of welloiled tresses, pile upon pile, roll upon roll, are stuck sprays of artificial flowers, skeins of silk, pins and combs of every imaginable device and colour; and this smart, dust catching, oily headgear will rest contentedly on a wooden pillow on the mat for the next ten days.’ Nor are Mr Scott’s impressions of the little ‘ Misumi’s ’ personal attractions any more alluring ; but my lady readers should secure his ‘ Japanese Curios ’ and read for themselves, as they will certainly find subject matter to interest them.

BOWS. Bows are still worn on summer hate. Here is a good suggestion for those girls who are clever enough to make them at home. When making a bow, never skimp your ribbon. Three yards should be allowed if you wish to trim a fair sized hat. Never cut the ribbon until the bow is finished. To make a nice full bow of six or eight loops, take the end of the ribbon in your right hand, the wrong side uppermost, holding it towards you. Then pleat it, keeping the pleats as straight as possible. Change the ribbon into the left hand while—with the right—you join the pleats by winding them tightly round with thick (No. 16) cotton. Change it back to the right hand, and make a loop, as long or as short as you desire, by bringing the ribbon over to where the first pleats are fixed. Pleat this loop and join again. Turn the loop and hold it towards you, make another loop, and proceed in this manner until your bow is as large as you require—to keep velvet, etc., the right side outwards, before pleating give it a half-twist. Pass the remaining end round the centre of the bow, being careful to hide the cotton, and slip it through, drawing it tight. If using one of the popular buckles, pass the end through the buckle, and, in either case, cut it sharply off, or secure it at the back. In making velvet bows, be careful not to crush the velvet when passing it through the buckle or in knotting it. The tighter your ribbon is tied the better your bow will stand up. The length of the loops can be varied according to fancy or requirements, sometimes cutting some of the loops to make sharp ends. In piece velvet such ends must be neatly hemmed. For the straight bows, now so much worn on hats and bonnets, the loops on each tie bow should exactly correspond in length, though you may have two short loops and two long ones, a long and a short on either side. For practising bow-making get some long stiips of coloured glazed calico, and make as many differentshap’d bows as you can devise. When a bow is once made, and firmly tied, it can be pulled into any position. In narrow ribbon it is not necessary to join each loop ; turn the loop each time, holding it firmly, as in the broader bows, and when as large as required, form the bow by passing the end through and drawing it tight.

The first illustration is a young lady’s bat infancy Tuscan, with frilled edge, and small crown with twist of apple-greer

the edge. Small toque with gold jewelled crown ; jetted osprey in front, and heliotrope osprey at the back, rising from a cluster of mauve polyanthus, black velvet rosette in front.

The black dresses are chiefly seen in transparent materials, lace, gauze, grenadine, chiffon, or silk muslin, this last

fabric having been taken largely into favour again as possessing a firmness of substance that chiffon has not. As an instance of the elaboration of the present styles, we illustrate a gown to which this trimming was applied. It was a rich white satin, and on the skirt were five flounces made of black silk muslin, each edged top and bottom with black satin. The sleeves were composed of three frills of black silk muslin. It is trying even to think of the millions of stitches that go to the making of one such gown, and of the poor girls who sit crowded together in sultry workrooms during this torpid weather. Fashion just at present is having a very good innings, for it is many seasons since so many pretty gown were donned. The truth is that the styles adopted this season are remarkably becoming.

Owing to the tremendous and unexpected popularity of the cross over blouse with ends tied behind, heaps of the ordinary shaped blouses have been left on the shopkeepers’ hands, and are being sold off at a tremendous reduction, pretty and fashionable though they are. This is always the result of a run upon any one particular article, and wiser people profit by it, knowing that the fad of the moment will wear itself out all the sooner for being so much run after. And this is particularly so with regard to these handkerchief blouses. Owing to their having got so much over-worn this summer no well-dressed woman will be seen in one next summer, and so the more orthodox ones will come in for a greater share of attention than ever by then.

By the way a capital way of freshening up a rather plain dark gown, and making it look quite smart and dressy, is to make yourself some fichus to wear with it. One might be made of pale pink crepon with a frill of the same all round, and another of black fine net with a deep frill of coffeecoloured lace. Both of these look very effective on a plain black gown. The centre of the fichu ought to be a yard square, then the corners are just rounded as the frill is put on, and the fronts are drawn together and fastened, or loosely knotted, just on the chest, the ends hanging below the waist. They give a peculiar old-fashioned grace and charm to a gown.

A rather quaint old fashion is just beginning to come in again, in the wearing of a narrow band of black velvet round the throat, the collar of the dress being cut rather low to allow of this. A similar band is often worn on the wrists at the same time.

BLOUSES, AND HOW TO CUT THEM. Blouses, which are in reality only slightly loose bodices, are made with or without a sack back as you may decide and are designed to be worn beneath the popular jacket. But unless the material is very costly, or for some reason you are limited as to quantity, it is far better to use silk for the whole, as the false backs are extremely likely to make themselves seen and are also of no use whatever without a figaro or a zouave. Unlike the bodices, the blouses have no fitted linings, but are made either entirely without, or over cambric of the same cut as the outside. If you have no pattern, lay that of your fitted bodice, upon the cloth. Cut each front and under arm piece in one, allowing down the front edge extra width for fulness, and cutting the side seam about midway of the side form, with little or no curve. The darts are not taken up. Fold one length of your cloth double and lay the back of your back pattern on the fold, ignoring entirely the curve of the waist, preserving the straight line down the middle of the back. Then fit into it, and pin in place the side forms, and then cut beyond the line of the seam on the curve of the arm-hole, then down to the loose edge. Baste the shoulder and under-arm seams ; gather the fulness at the front of the neck, also that at the waist line slightly below it; baste on to neck band and belt. Try it on, make any slight alterations that may be necessary, and stitch the seams. The extra length between the waistline and the belt will ensure the true blouse effect; and if you have followed all the directions there should be no question as to success. The jabot blouse shows one of the most popular of all that have been seen and makes a really excellent model for silk

of any sort. The pleated collar is straight across the back, but falls in long points in the front, and both the collar and the belt are full and soft. For a young girl it is peculiarly good in plaid silk of any soft make, as the bright colours seem to belong exclusively to youth. But in changeable silk or in any quiet colour it is suited to matrons and to maids alike, for so prevalent is the fashion of wealing bodices of all softs that differ from the skirts, that distinction as to age and rank is very neat ly swept away.