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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (March 15, 1903)
28 THE SUNDAY OXtEGONIAN, PORTLAND, ,MARGH 15, 1$03. SHIRTWAIST SUITS AGAIN I7N VOGUE THREAT THAT THEY WOULD NOT BE . REVIVED THIS YEAR FAILS. T3 PONGEE PIPED WITH CARDIXAIi. POXGEE "VVTTH JAPANESE EMBROIDERY. XRACKXED BLUE AND WniTK FOUL ARD. BLACIC AND WHITE CHECKED SILK. .ESPITE- the efforts of modistes to fibrous and tough and that will wear throttle It and the walling of faddists practically forever. It Is rougher In finish that it lacks elegance of line, the than the -domestic pongees, but more shirtwaist suit returns to the fashion field i striking; more characteristic and more for the Summer season. Since It Is de- j individual. creed that the independent skirt and the shirtwaist aro not good form, the shirt waist suit is a distinct compromise. It shows the same material for both skirt and waist, yet "has all the advantages of the individual waist Certain it is that the shirtwaist has epolled the average American woman, and for comfort, free dom and Jauntlness it holds a permanent place in her affections and her wardrobe. The shirtwaist, suit Is no respector of persons. It appeals to all classes of dress ers. The woman whose wardrobe Is lim ited only by her desires finds use tor it, and the woman whose means are limited finds it Invaluable for what she calls "sec ond best" wear. Last Summer the shirtwaist suit was considered Quite smart for the early morning drive at Newport and other fash- The Oriental finish lends itself to the odd embroidery which Is so popular this year. A striking gown recently finished for a brunette shows a skirt with a pro nounced flare, the front embroidered in roses in Japanese colorings. Only in the Japanese mind do blue roses exist, hut these are embroidered In heavy, lustrous silks, cunningly combined with olive greens. The yoke of the bloufce Is em broidered in the same way. The effect on tho dull, natural colored pongee is decid edly Oriental, and not in any way to be confounded with the American beauty or old-fashioned cabbage roses which remind one of pincushions and screens. Another waist shows a plait embroid ered in Chinese letters. The smooth-finished pongees and Indian silks In natural colors are piped quite generally with a contrasting color, partic ularly in a rich, regal cardinal. A pretty pattern showed a shaped flounce joined to the skirt by a piped CO I FPU-RES WONDEHFULLy M ADE THEY BORROW THEIR INSPIRATIONS FROM THE ANCIENTS jr EXPERTS NEEDED THE coiffure of the modish maid of the hour presents a picture almost as complicated and wonderful as those Shown by the wigs of the long ago. In this matter. Indeed, fashion has gone to ancient styles for inspiration. In mod quickly ill-kempt heads will respond to this simple treatment. The negligees In which fair woman sits for the work of the coiffeur are not the least part of the hairdressing hour. Some thing loose and washable Is generally uiojjuouuu. Tx-nr-n thnnn-Vi imflw the envelnnlnir towels ifled forms one sees the pompadour of the . ot halrdressers the most elegdnt gar Antoinette, tho curl of Reynolds, and j ments are sometimes discovered. A negligee seen In the boudoir of a mem ber of the "smart set" was shaped some thing like a man's smoking Jacket. Made of Chinese silk of a rich color, gold em broideries on a purple background sup plied a gorgeous trimming. This splendid handwork, for the human hand had ac complished it, covered- the rolling collar and turn-back cuffs, -with the exception of many arrangements which plainly spring from the queue of the old-time gallant whose famous "rats" are once more employed. The style which shows the front hair In ' n. lonna miff und th hack srathered close lonable resorts where cottagers gather. , tQ tt0 neafl and eaclrcled by an aimost In fact, the truly fashionable plainly de- round Is the coiffure roost in favor cried fancy apparel for morning wear, j wItlJ street attire. Coiffures for evening j end even at the casino morning concerts j display aro .miracles in construction, and ' trimly made shirtwaist suits were seen. lt no surTiriSa to hear that the hair- 1 a border band of the yellow Bilk. The wide, doubler-breasted fronts were held to gether by looping frogs of purple silk cord. More and more picturesque, grows the negligees for dressier purposes until lt looks as If every country in the world were ransacked for Ideas. A late affair from Paris is a house' gown which is a cross between a wrapper and a frock. The outer tunic ls of pale bronze panne with a border trimming of maize chiffon, in a close ruche. This, with the sides of the bodice portion open and a rolling cape collar finishing the neck. slipsr Greek-robo fashion, over a complete gown., of maize chiffon. A yoke band of dead white lace outlines the square cut ot the baby bodice, and the long sleeves, which Lflt the arm like a glove, are of the same material, unllned. The tunic is detached from the gown, with the full skirt portion slightly looped up at the sides. A large emerald and gold button, placed at the waist line, secures this effect, and the big oval buckle, fastening the wide panne belt of the underdress, also shows emeralds and gold. It looks as If the coming season will bring lace and embroideries more than ever to the fore, for never were these luxuries seen in greater quantities. Some of the lacea, too, are of an indescribable coarseness,- the meshes of the antique sort being as open as curtain borders. Wide bands in these laces, introducing They were pronounced just the thing for wear when making one's morning round of the shops, while at the ocean resorts where board walks exist, they were most popular for the morning constitutional. In the city they are exceedingly good for shopping wear, as the Spring merges into Summer, and the girls who aim at simplicity in dress for church-going wear them to vesper services, particularly in the suburbs. The success of a shirtwaist suit depends upon its simplicity, its lines and its fit. dresser is often called in to build them. The quantity of hair one must have to j attain these hairdressing feats need not ! necessary be lavish. The woman of sufft- i clent thatch may be as splendid as the 1 most luxuriantly blessed, for the maker j of artificial hair supplies all deficiencies i the curl which will He so softly against ' the throat, narrow wisps attached to side combs to be slipped In anywhere, and even 1 the braided coll for the nape of the neck. These fragments, which are cleaned and brushed like the natural hair, are put to- The ready-made suits have an admirable fh nr. to the formation of the face. ; finish, but they must .be selected with care and adjusted perfectly to the figure. Too much fullness at the waist line; the puckering, however slight, of a side seam; the variation of so much as a quarter of an inch around the bottom of the skirt, will kill the trig, tailored effect which is the chief bca'uty" of the suit. The very absence of trimming makes the set of the gown all important. There is absolutely nothing to distract the attention from the lines. Because of their simplicity, the shirt waist suits appeal to the home dress maker, but if she is wise, she will attack the work with the utmost care, giving particular attention to the hang of the skirt and the finishing touches on waist and aklrt, such a3 piping, straps, buttons, etc The eklrt should flare slightly, but never train. Skirt and waist should be care fully nttached by a generous use of hooks and eyes, and the "belt matching the suit rhould be narrow and shapely pointed in the front She who would wear a belt of Here, after all. is the gist of the whole thing. The lines of the face, the slope of - the neck, and tho proportion of the figure J should all be taken into consideration be- ! fore it is decided how the top-knot shall 1 be molded. For of what avail ls the most magnificent coiffure If lt is on the wrong woman? The Gainsborough curl may suit soft types, but severer ones must take to something more stately. In short, Phyllis of the mllk-pail needs one thing j and the Venus of Mllo another. J In the coiffure arrangements designed j for debutantes many sorts of ornaments : are used flowers, beaded- bandeaux, be- i gemmed combs and bows. These may be 1 of whlto ribbon, or of gold or silver tls- i sue, but the bow and the flower ornament . are rarely combined. The flowers are ex quisitely small and generally In garlanded forms, a half wreath outlining the back hair in some way. Crimping tongs are needed for the wav- ; lng pompadour unless heaven has blessed j the girl with a crimp of her own and the , pompadour Itself, mounting highest at the i middle of the forehead, must roll with a J feathery looseness. To keep it in shape, i the "rat" is almost an Invariable neces- I sity. and these convenient pads -are not infrequently made ot the wearer's own combings. contrasting color and finish should bear j piLTrw tte correct In mind that this sharp contrast will tend to shorten her figure and detract from the general effect in the back, where a gown ehould sweep from the nape of the neck to the hem of the skirt In "one long graceful Una, For the Spring- of 1X8, pongee leads all materials for shirtwaist suits and comes In myriad weights, qualities and prices. effect, one needs to see the master of the ! comb himself at work to learn them. j But remember that daily care of the j hair is -an absolute essential for a pleas- I ing coiffure. Ixcks which have a faded J or "moth-eaten look" (a well-known coif- feur is quoted) can never hope to shine, j these being the days of excessive dainti- j ness. A weekly shampoo ls required for j the hair exposed to the dusts of city ' life, and, when it ls partially dried, a good tonic should be applied and a half hour EVESIXG COIFFURES FOR THE DEBUTANTE. The Oriental shops carry a line tit is ?nt la bruxbinf. It is astonishing how J the heaviest patterns, with cobweb-.Uke. threads, are already appearing upon ba tiste frocks, and a favorite disposition is to put the band straight down the front of the frock. Running from stock-to skirt border, such a piece, if it comes anywhere near the required width, is often the sole trimming of an elegant costume. "Whole bodices are made by hipping togather the narrow antique laces. These are mounted upon silk without the chiffon interlinings which accompany more deli cate webs. And now that we have reached the sub ject of bodices, I beg of you to take your last ?10 and buy one of the new pongee bodices with Aztec embroideries. Pongees always seemed games not worth the can dle when self-trimmed, as their neutral tones were anything but glorifying. But now the richly-tinted needlework used on them supplies Just the touch needed, and nothing could be more effective than the present designs. The colors are magnifi cent, all the hues of Aztec and Egyptian pottery being reproduced. The needlework also takes the shapes of these clumsy de signs of the ancients. However, not too much of the needle work is used upon these pongee waists. Generally there is merely a- band of it at the front of the bodfee, with the repetition of color on the cuffs and neckband. If the stock ls supplied with a little turn-over collar, the embroidery is on this alone, and frequently there is only a single ec centric figure at the front. Color is rampant with the new mate rials, and band borders In brilliant tints are to appear even upon black gowns. These are rarely over three Inches wide, and one accompanying a box dress of black veiling was less than a half Inch in width. The painted models which go with these gown patterns show how the bands are to be used. New challies and muslins are self-bordered, which seems a dainty solving of a knotty problem, as these flowered and spotted textures were always difficult to trlnr. J.iie borders Imitate, with their detached bouquets and garlands of small flowers, the designs of .the Louis ribbons, and some are so nearly like them in silky finish as to deceive the eye. Since flounces are fashionable and with such edges to border them a muslin frock, is no longer a 1 problem. j Spring hats in many instances reveal an increase ot flatness, some of the shapes topping the head without a sign of crown. 1 A. novel material employed oy milliners i tn-r mttAo hats combines a straw web with lace. One bewildering chapeau was of white lace with the straw portion in the cool greonish-grays of lichen. Green and white berries filled out the huge turban at the sides, and the whole look of the structure was cool and sylvan. Many large summer nats are seen wiia transparent lace or tulle brims and crowns ' of closely massed flowera or leaves, ior . the ornaments of the wood nymph arestill much employed. A garden party or car rfage hat of simple loveliness was ot j pearl-white tulle,, gathered meagerly over a large wire frame. White velvet grapes. I with green satin leaves, composed the ! trimmings, the fruit and foliage lying all over the shape with a fetching careless neas. MARY BEAN. band finished with rings of cardinal silk. The waist was of simple shirtwaist de sign, with two box plaits down the front, each piped with cardinal. The sleeve had a puff piped with red. and a narrow cuff finished after the same fashion. Collar, shoulder straps and belt were also piped, and small cardinal buttons were used on the plaits and the collar. The shoulder straps were finished with cardinal rings. Foulard comes next to pongee in desir ability. It ls fully as dressy, If less fad dish for this year. Dark blue with a white figure, cream ground with a royal blue figure, and black, and white in hun dreds of combinations are the favored de signs for shirtwaist suits. The lighter colors lend themselves to more elaborate costume designs. The fad for green, which had bo heavy a run last year, seems on the wane- Many beautiful com binations or red and cream are shown. These are excellent for Spring wear, but look too warm.for hot weather. None of the best shops show lace on. the foulard shirtwaist suits. Straps and buttons with piping form the trimming, which is rather Bevere. A most satisfy ing foulard, In blue and white of a pe culiar wavy pattern, is made with a. plain skirt, except for horizontal straps. The first is about five inches from the waist line, and the second an Inch or more be low. The points ot these straps rest on the seams, and give the effect of. a skirt yoke.. The blouse is laid in two-inch tucks running across the front, and the open ing ls hidden by a stole-shaped collar. The piping is in white, and the buttons are of blue silk, finished with fine white allk braid. With this was a turn-over collar, which deserves particular mention. It was of white nainsook in an open pattern, the front a single medallion, which complete ly covered the silk collar beneath, and showed an embroidered Cupid waving Iove-knot3 of ribbon. These long, narrow, single medallions are much used to finish off the new turn-over collars, which gain daily in size and elaboration. Black and white checked silks come third on the list. They were exceedingly smart last Summer, which fact will militate somewhat against their popular ity this year. They are being turned out in large numbers by the manufacturers of ready-to-wear garments, and it i3 therefore necessary to save them from commonness by a distinction in-cut, hang and trimming. A checked suit, unless made with infinite care, will be poorly matched and show defective lines; hence, its fate hangs on the care exercised in the first cutting and fitting. For piping, black is most stylish and brilliant plaids the most fad dish. In fact, plaid pipings have an ele gance which color cannot give. Red is also used for piping the checked suits. The drop skirt is most Important to the hang,of a shirt-waist suit, and for Sum mer wear lawn ls being used, with a deep accordion-plaited ruffle. No lace is employed In trimming this drop skirt, which 13 as severe as the one worn above It Modified sailor hats- are worn with the shirt-waist salt, and the combination of natural colored straw with black ribbon and straw ornaments seems especially suited far pongee and checked silk.