WELLINGTON.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVI, Issue 9, 30 August 1911, Page 64

WELLINGTON.

August 25. An era of simple entertaining seems to have begun, much to the satisfaction of the young people. Instead of one elaborate ball with a champagne supper, and expensive decorations, some of our leading society hostesses are this year substituting a series of informal little dances at which all the arrangements are simple, and the hours early. Dance at Government House. That this meets with vice-regal approval was shown this week when notes -written by the aides-de-camp arrived at various Imuses bidding the lucky recipients to a dance at Government House, from 8.30 to 11.30. Early as this seemed there was a dinner-party first, the guests including General and Mrs Godlev, Captain and Mrs. Thornton, Captain Gaunt, R.N., and Mrs. Gaunt, Colonel Johnston, Mr. and Mrs. Elgar, Mr. anil Mrs. Lin Dunean, Mrs. Boyle (Christchurch), Colonel Heard, Mr. and Mrs. Dymoek, Mr. Vernon Reed (Auckland). Mr. and Mrs. Abbott. Scarlet ipuinsi'ttlas made most effective decorations in tim ballroom, where the walls are white with red hangings, and on the dais were tall clumps of arums, white nori ssi; freesias, and anemones wore fi'f nlnmt the drawingroom, and on the dinner table were silver bowls of wattle. T ■■ dance was reallv a delightful affair, mil went with a great deal of zest and ► •'•lit. Great improvements had boon !■ ' in to ti e bnllrowni floor, which was fir from s»i isf.i<•torv on its first trial, 1 on Wejnesdav it was in splendid oi lor. an J made dancing to the inspiritin - wv-ie a real joy. Her Excellency 1 T-limjton wore a Beautiful dress of li 1 it, satin in the palest shade of apricot, with a cleverly draped tunic of

black net heavily embroidered in gold, and n dark red rose in her gold cordeliers, her jewels were diamonds; Miss Stapleton Cotton, palest blue embroidered ninon over pale blue charmeuse; Mrs. Ferguson (who is a /uest of their Excellencies) was in white satin, the ninon tunic arranged in panels with heavy crystal embroideries and crystal fringe; Mrs. Guise, pale pink crepe de soie, delicately embroidered, and finished with laee; Mrs. Godley wore pale pink satin mignon, the coisage deftly draped over heavy lace; Mrs. Thornton, white satin, the black net tunic threaded with a sash of cherry red ending in a big bow; Mrs. lan Dunean was in Irish grey mousseline de soie over pale grey satin, with entre deux of laee and dull silver embroideries; Mrs. Boyle, black liberty satin, the overdress encrusted in silver; Mrs. Burnett Stuart, changeant charmeuse, draped in ninon and finished with laee; Mrs. Abbott, a Josephine gown of ivory brocade and laee; Miss Brandon, pale blue satin, veiled in ninon; Miss Pearce, ivory satin with a tunic of mousseline de soie, hemmed with satin; Mrs. Elgar, a beautiful dress of satin lumineaux, embroidered, and veiled in subtle shades of ninon; Miss Miles, hydrangea charmeuse, with an overdress of gauze, and a deep tucker of laee; Miss Tweed, palest blue ninon over rajah satin with delicate embroideries; Mrs. Dymoek, a princess gown of satin, veiled in lace. A Political At Home. As a rule political “At Homes” are many in the month of August, but this year's has been an exiception, probably owing to the absence of Sir Joseph and Lady Ward. On Monday there was a large “At Home” at the Ministerial residence in Tinakori-road, now occupied by the Hon. J. Millar, and the guests were received by himself and his daughter, who as the youngest of our political hostesses. Indeed, she only grew up a couple of years ago, but already she has a good deal of experience in entertaining, although Monday was the first really big affair. The rooms were decorated with a profusion of flowers, daffodils, narcissi and wattle in one place, while elsewhere one was delighted with cyclamen of great size, in a wonderful range of colours from deep ■wine colours and purples, through rosy pinks to the ethereal loveliness of tho pure white blooms. These all came from the Ministerial hot houses, together with other rare plants. On the tea table eyclariien and gloxinias and camellias were lightly arranged with bronze birch foliage as a centre piece, with surrounding vases of freesias. The mantelpiece was banked with rose-coloured rhododendrons, and one table was given up to pots of cineraria. The garden at Mr Millar’s is not a large one, but it is picturesque, and in summer people come a long distance to see the big bank facing the road where, backed by tall dark firs,, is the semi-circle of scarlet geraniums that are a blazing mass of colour. Miss Millar wore palest blue charmeuse, with a high waisted effect, and a round guimpe of fine net; Miss Macandrew, black spotted ninon over ivory silk; Mrs Wilford, black velvet en tailleur, black velvet hat; Mrs Mackenzie, black braided tailor-made, black and white toque; Mrs Wilson, black velvet coat and skirt, black toque; Mrs Buddo, a black crepe de chine dress, and a black hat; Miss Buddo, dark blue tailor-made and blue hat; Mrs Fowlds, black velvet coat and skirt, and black velvet coat; Lady Guinness, reseda crepon de sole with a net guimpe and Oriental trimming, green toque, with tinv flowers in vieux rose shades; Mrs Herdman, dark blue cloth, braided blue hat, with wings; Mrs Fisher, ovster-grey souple bloth, faced with black moire, coronation bine hat, with black brush osnrev: Mrs Field, grey tailor-made, grey hat with green wings: Mrs Arthur Myers (Auckland), sannhire. blue velours en prlncesse. vokc of blue net, black picture haf and black velvet coat; Miss Beatrice Duv. black velvet coat and sk'rt; Miss N'itlian. grev souffle cloth with grey galnn. grey satin hat: Mrs Nnsworthy (Tirnnaki). green fr'eze tailor-made, hraideiL preen hat with flowers; Mrs Biu-k. black coat and skirt. black rAduro bat: Mrs Arnold, blank chiffon tnffetss, will) Orient .1 aalnn. blank tonne: Mrs Lanronoon (T.vtt-dfnn). na-nv fnilor-mado, nod lilaek loan] bat with flowers; Mrs. Wibrlit. somdn ninth costume In burnt rose colour. Link nlnmofl hat: Ms ftll.lov IDnnslln). roval blue and IJank strinnd foulard, with <i not anlmne. lilnck hot with "InniM: Mrs Scott. Id-ink and while ro«11,1>. blink tnone; iMvs Dole, snrlrnf. illnrmnoon. veiled tn moln-eolonC-n-1 n'non. molo-nnloumd W vv’th »-Inmes; Mrs Luke, black foulard tailor made,

blaek and white hat; Mrs Poole, sand grey souple cloth, black hat, with roses; Mrs Mander, powder blue charmeuse with soutache, and a yoke of net, black plumed hat; Mrs Tai Te Tau (Wairarapa), dull petunia frieze, black hat with petunias; Miss Reid, pale blue Shantung and hat with roses; Miss Mackenzie, grey cloth tailor-made, and grey toque; Miss de Castro, a white lingerie robe, and picture hat. Paper Bag Cookery. Paper cooking seems to have come to stay, and there is no falling-off in attendance at the demonstrations. One of the most enthusiastic experts is Mrs. Glennen, the principal of the Domestic Economy College in Melbourne, and she firmly believes —by benefit of her wide experience in culinary matters—that the method is a splendid one, and of inestimable value to women. Mrs. Glennen cooks everything from soup to boiled eggs in paper, and the very things that one is told are to be avoided she serenely does, and her success is undoubted. She is emphatic on saving trouble, and declares making tho bags quite unnecessary, and before the eyes of a class she deftly folds a flat sheet of paper into a bag, clips it here and there, pours in hot water, adds the ingredients, and calmly puts the bag on a grid sheW over a naked flame, from which it (Vreeently emerges, steaming and done Io a turn. Mrs. Glennen smiles at the idea of paper cookery being a passing phase, and predicts that no intelligent woman will ever’ go back to pots and pans. As head of a college in domestic training, which has numbered a thousand students, and has been established for a number of years, her opinion is to be respected. On the Links. This fine week has been delightful for the golf players, who were keenly excited over the local championships. At Trentham the various matches were watched with great interest as the finals drew near, and Miss A. Pearce was much congratulated on winning tltb senior honours. Mrs. Guy Williams—who is an ex-New Zealand champion—was runnerup. Miss Wheeler beat Miss Dean in the junior class. Apart from the glory of winning, the prizes are most attractive, ranging from silver vases to Liberty wear and violet leather handbags. The ladies of the Miramar Club have gone to Nelson to play a scries of matches. Mrs. Freeth and Miss Ward are the new senior and junior champions for the year. The team for Nelson includes Mrs. Firth, Mrs. Holmes and the Misses Gray, Didsbury and Seed. A Dance. A very successful little dance was given lately at the New Century Hall, which was decorated with daffodils and lycopodium. The committee had arranged things very carefully, so there were no wallflowers, and everything went off well. White and yellow flowers adorned the supper table, a touch of black here and there being surprisingly effective. Mrs. J. Fuller wore ivory souple satin, with heavy crystal embroideries and silver fringe edging the ninon draperies; Mrs. Nathan, green charmeuse, veiled in ninon; Mrs. Rylands, black satin and jet; Mrs. Baxter, black laee and net over pale pink satin; Mrs. Nathan, black and white satin, veiled in ninon; Miss Nathan, white satin, with fringe and pearl embroideries; Miss N. Nathan, black velvet, with dull gold embroideries; Miss Macintosh, pale blue satin, with crystal galon and fringe; Miss Sullivan, eau de Nil chiffon taffetas, with touches of silver; Miss Charlesworth, petal pink pailette silk, with crystal passementerie; Miss Cohen, black chiffon velours; Miss Donnellv. white satin, veiled in ninon; Miss Wilson, pale blue ninon over taffetas of the same shade; Miss Chapman, white crepe de chine; Miss Sheldon, shrimp pink charmeuse. Bridge. So many people have been going to Ileretaunga lately that a good deal of entertaining has been done there, mainly in the wav of luncheons and tea parties in the intervals of golf. Mrs. Bateson’s bridge afternoon was very much enjoyed, the prizewinners being Mrs. Wylie (who received a charming vase), Mrs. Rankine Brown (an “At Home” book), and Mrs. Fisher (a bag). The hostess wore pink charmeuse, veiled in ninon of tho same soft hue. Sale of Work. A very successful sale of work in aid of St. Mary’s Home, Kurort, was held in

the Sydney-street Schoolroom last week. Tlie stalls were prettily draped with art muslin and furnished with useful, as well as ornamental, articles. The home made sweets and cakes found a ready sale, and proved a most attractive stall. The stallholders were: Mrs. and Miss Duncan Miss Coates, Mrs. Blackburn, Mrs. Davis, Mrs. Hudson, Mrs. Kemp, Misses L. Mackensie, Shirteliffe (2), and Elder. An attractive musical programme was given during the evening, winding up with Haydn’s “Joy Symphony,” under the leadership of Mr. Lawrence Watkins which was much appreciated by the audience. The Premier's Return. Teh late arrival of the steamer brins. ing Sir Joseph and Lady Ward ami Sir; John and Lady Findlay upset most of the plans for their reception. It had been arranged that they should be welcomed in the Town Hall on Friday afternoon but it was 10 p.m. before the Ruapehu put in an appearance in the harbour, so there was no attempt made to receive them publicly. While Sir Joseph and Lady Ward were away a good deal has been done to improve “Awarua House.” which has been done up and redecorated inside and out. A wide verandah has been addeel all along the Tinakori-road side, and at the south end the buildinw has been considerably enlarged. All this points to entertaining being done, but, perhaps, Miss ffileen Ward’s absence will perhaps, Miss Eileen Ward’s absence will

OPHELIA.