The World of Fashion.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLIII, Issue 6, 11 August 1909, Page 68

The World of Fashion.

By

MARGUERITE.

Characteristics of the New Sleeves. MODIFIED PUFFS INTRODUCED BELOW THE SHOULDER. DECLINE OF THE NECK RUFFLE. W \ O one is content with last year’s I ■ models nowadays. During the I 1 past few years —three at most—• / there has been a subtle and almost indefinable change taking place. (One sees it in the London streets in the increasing number of well-dressed women lone meets among those who have obviously only a moderate amount of money to spend on their clothes. The sleeves of their coats are not the sleeves of a twelve-month ago, the cut -if the skirt is usually an enlightened and modern cut, and the shape of the collars is “right.” The great London emporiums •re in such close touch with Paris arid throw off their stock at Such frequent intervals by means of bargain sales, that dresses and hats have no time to allow themselves to become back-numbers, and the Englishwoman who pays'a rare visit to Paris no longer feels like Rip Van Winkle among his descendants.

VANITIES IN CUT AND STYLE. Even elderly ladies have ceased of late to have their bonnets and dresses and mantles built on the same plan. Time was when it was the usual thing for those who had reached the shady side of fifty to give up all their little vanities in the matter of cut and style. Our great aunts kept a standing order with some conservative and old-estab-lished firm to supply them with so many dresses or so many bonnets a year. “Miss knows just how I like my bonnets trimmed” was an oft-repeated observation, and Miss grew grey in the knowledge, and instructed generations bf apprentices in the perennial adjustment of flowers and feathers, and the slight Changes demanded in weight with the change of the seasons. TORTURE CAUSED BY ILL-BONED . COLLARS. One of the alterations which has, however, come too quickly upon us is the decline of the neck ruffle. The new dresses are being made witliout this becoming adjunct, although the less voluminous species of frilling is still permitted. The high collar has, however, by no means lost its popularity in spite of the fact that, where young girls’ frocks are concerned, the wide Cromwell collar tied with a tiny bow of gold lace or ribbon will be adopted con

The novelty that is taking the place of the fish tail train is one of much greater width, that slopes gracefully away from the sides of the skirt. Even- the trains made for the Courts that were held at Buckingham Palace recently showed a tendency towards rounded corners, and in the latest trousseaux I have seen the idea distinctly developed. A noticeably pretty evening gown forms the subject of this sketch, and provides me with a text upon which to enlarge respecting the use of shawl draperies, for which there is certainly a future. A bright rose is the chosen colour of the crepe de chine that forms the frock, left plain as regards the underskirt, but embroidered with tiny silver wheatears upon the shawl drapery. Fringe that is partly silver and partly satin is the salient feature of the said drapery, and is of a particularly hand-, some effect. I like, too, the little fine cream lace modestie, with its sprinkling of silver beads that is a feature of the bodice and the twists of pink satin that stimulate a waist belt. The pink het sleeves are latticed with satin fastened by silver buttons, and in the hair silver wheatears are worn, attached to twists of silver satin ribbon. amore for the summer. A well-boned collar, no matter how high it is, has nothing to condemn it, but the “little dressmaker” who has adjusted her whalebone as carelessly and unscientifically as an amateur gardener pegs up her rose trees has caused her victims an amount of torture during the past months, which will drive them to adopt the more recent innovation with a thankfulness which cannot be measured by words. TRANSPARENT BANDS OF TULLE OR CHIFFON. Modified bishop sleeves are high in favour where some of the new gowns are concerned. The latest and one of the most successful manches, however, consists of a little tight sleeve over the

upper part of the arm fashioned of th* same material as that which comprises the gown, and which gives place to a rather full but very soft and limp pouf of ninon or chiffen, a little cuff of the material being introduced below it. Many of the sleeves are still slit up the middle, but instead of being joined together again with a row of buttons there is a narrow inserted and tucked transparent band of tulle or chiffon running down the centre, which is no longer bridged over with a lattice-work of straps hung with quivering boules or tiny tassels, but is left quite plain as though the material of the sleeve was not sufficient to meet in the centre. This is adopted in the case of the gowns which are fashioned of cloth or serge as ■well as those of a more ephemeral description. The closely clinging evening toilette is certainly all-victorious at present for receptions. Upon a recent evening a very splendid full dress toilette of smoke-blue satin charmeuse was worn by a lady, with a long dalmattc over it of chiffon of a darker shade of smoke, a shade in which the grey predominated instead of the blue. It was so heavily embroidered with burnished gold and smoked tubes and beads that the back ground was scarcely visible, though that it was made of finest chiffon one could easily perceive. The bodice fitted the figure closely in front and was covered with embroidery to match that upon the dalmatic, but the hard line of the deeolletage was softened by a drapery of smoked tulle and the sleeves veiled the arms nearly as far down as the elbows, where the gauze was

Bought into bands of embroidery wrought upon cMfifoo. Serpent goalee and bugle hung froeks, and dresses that are a glittering trellis* work of sparkling tubes and beads, are being worn, in black and white, green and a wonderful moonlight blue. They do most certainly ding and look very handsome on the elegant figure. New Hats and How to Wear Them. How to wear the new hat is agitating the minds of many women nowadays. Our difficulties have by no means come to an abrupt conclusion when we have parted reluctantly and yet hopefully with far more than we intended originally to invest. It has been said that the Englishwoman presses her hat too low down on her head, covering her eyes with the voluminous brim and more or less eclipsing herself in it. The Frenchwoman, on the contrary, has invariably an all-round bandeau cunningly concealed to give it the correct poise, and she places it lightly on the crown instead of the front of her head, tilting it a little upwards on one side —dressing the hair in such a manner as to support and keep it in the right place. A LESSON FROM THE MILLINER. Many a woman nowadays takes a regular lesson in the right adjustment of her hat before she leaves, the milliner’s showrooms. The attempt should be made on one’s own head over and over again under the careful aegis of its creator, who, to do her justice, is as anxious to see her hat worn at the proper angle as she is to sell them. The ordinary hatpin is, besides, of little or

no use with colossal headgear, and nowadays the new hatpins, whieh measure eleven and twelve inches in length instead of the seven and a half to eight inches which suffice for ordinary headgear, are a great assistance to modem adjustment, and resemble an instrument of warfare which might well strike terror into the heart of a housebreaker, and render any traffic with the fireirons wholly unnecessary. Another important item is the double-width veil which is likewise easily procurable nowadays, and is the only means of covering the large hat adequately. NEW ARRANGEMENT OF FEATHERS. Feathers are more popular than ever On the new hats, and the new and very pale greenish ostrich plumes which are worn on the Paris models have the merit of according with almost any colour. Three long and very full examples are not considered too much for the great erections of Tagal or crinoline, the present idea being that the feathers shall start from the centre of the front, sweeping away to the back. The ends of the stems are carefully cut down so as to show nothing but the soft, curling fronds, while they radiate en masse from this point, the two at the sides curling oyer the brim, while the centre one covers the middle of the crown. No additional adornment in the matter of trimming, except, perhaps, the long velvet streamers, is required for a hat of this kind. There is, besides, the lining of the crown to be taken into consideration. This is one of the most important points, the coloured doublures having been revived again with great enthusiasm this season. In some eases straw of a different make and colour is employed for the lining, but in the majority of cases the softest of silk is used instead. Pale rose-pink casts a lovely glow over the face and can always be used with advantage where a dark woman is concerned, while it is invariably kind to those who have passed the barrier of youth. Coral is a very trying shade, which only the perfect complexion can stand, and pure white requires a young face to carry it off successfully. As a matter of fact, most women know their own colour and any incursions into the realm of untried shades should be made nery warily in such a case as this, when

the colour is worn in such close pro aim tty to the face and forms a species of halo all round it.