THE LADIES’ WORLD.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2551, 12 July 1909, Page 3

THE LADIES’ WORLD.

DRESS AND FASHION NOTES. LONDON AND PARISIAN. For evening wear there is nothing new, and most women are wearing black, white, or black' and white together. A good many of the. princess robes are gathered a little at the waist, and .the evening cloaks are gorgeous. No wonder women wear them, e\en though they roast therein! r saw one the other day in pale blue velvet embroidered all over m silver, and bordered with chinchilla. The love of tunics seems to bo permanent, and if they have somewhat disappeared from visiting gowns, they stand pre-eminent in the designs for tea gowns. They nearly all fall-in long lines from the shoulder to the end of the train, fonninor a most graceful line, -which gives height and grace to those whose inches are too few. I have had it in my mind all the week to proffer a hint with regard to short lengths of crepe do Chine, or mousseline do soie, picked up at the sales. By a short length I mean something approximating four to five yards, double width being understood. Given a satin or silk skirt lost to its pristine freshness, there is provided the basis for a tea-gown, the bargain of transparency being utilised to form a tunic. For the form of the latter I advise an affair cut in one from a very moderate round decolletage, the fulness at the top laid in deep flat tucks, these naturally giving out after the waist line has been defined. The position of the latter is immaterial, but whatever it is the same embroidery or fancy galon employed round the decolletege must be requisitioned, a narrow edition ornamenting the hem of the tunic, if such is convenable, together with tassels at the corners. For the tunic, it should be explained, takes something of a handkerchief form at the base., falling a few inches longer at the back than in front. I have in view a mauve scheme carried out on these lines relieved by dull metallesque embroidered hands. Growing, rapidly apace in fashionable approval are heavy cord worked motifs and embroideries, this round braid —for that is what it really amounts to—also being used in lien of its flat prototype in the embroidering of collars. A complete novelty, too, are the monster rings or horseshoes. With the sole exception of the soft woven silk sash, this costume is entirely carried out in a harmony of deep buff, almost verging on tangerine orange. As goes without saying, it is the very latest thing in nuances, and really not so voyant as it reads. For the companion tunic suit a very delicate shade of applo-green cloth is selected, just verging on pastel, trimmed with green and alumnium braid and aluminium buttons, a black hat and black fox furs assisting to temper the scheme to suitable outdoor adoption. . Something more than an ordinary temptation, too, lurks in a Spanish cloak, fashioned of heavy crepe de Chine, in a delicate yet full shade of cafe brown. A heavy cord fringe, knotted and intersected with silk boules, outline all the edges, similar cords, heavier and in great profusion, occurring at the left side, where the folds are caught up beneath a huge caboehon of delicate. bhre* and grey embroidery, a repeat of similar stitchery introduced ori a deep collar of gold filet. Although not universally accepted at tlie beginning, yet all fashions now hear sonic suggestion of the. Empire and Directoire era. If tlie skirt is handed at tlie orthodox waist, the coat is naturally made in the high-waisted style, or if. perchance, both are of the. usual length, the long, tight sleeve and the slieath skirt mark the trend of the present mode. , ~ Skirts fit closer than ever, and qußo the latest device is the sash which draws hack the’ fulness below the knees and forms a huge how just above the train. Tins' I have seen expoited on a dress of soft black satin with long coat arrangement of' guipure cut with two tails, divided down the hack, and the sash passing under the tails fastened to the skirt on either side with handsome, ornaments, the largo how dividing the lace .tails about halfway down the hack. The princess gown in plastron or cuirasse fashion opening each side over a pleated panel is a favored mode] in cloth, 'with the skirt just touching tno. ground, and is usually supplemented by a huge stole and muff and a fur bushy or a wide mushroom hat. There are, however, few figures which hear the severe test of the perfectly flat back and front plastron, which is pitiless to the thin woman, and is apt to have a too nronounced effect on the wellrounded figure.

Despite the vogue of the high transparency for theatre and restaurant gowns,' hall and ..dance dresses are exceedingly decollete, and the sleeves mere wisps of tulle or chiffon, prettily draped, or there is ail abbreviated epaulette, nlmost tisjlit to tiwv <\>X m i Tunics which are almost coats, and overdresses which cover little oi the '"(Towns, are much favored in seepuned and embroidered net, in fine- lace, 01 in applique net.

| Marquisette is especially useful in tunic fashion as a medium for soutache braiding or applique designs in lacc and embroidery. The plastron or panel front is exquisite in sequined and embroidered not, falling straight from neck, to hem, and repeated at the back of the gown. In gold and opal sequins on white net over ivory satin it is an ideal evening toilette when relieved by pink roses and soft green foliage, the. gold repeated in the bandeau for the hair, -with a rose nestling above the ear. Advance models arranged for tlie Riviera and for smart trousseaux all follow the cult of the Directoire, and the combinations are prophetic of summer fashions. Instead of the overdress of lace and the. foundations or gown of satin, we ate to wear lace draped with soft satin or crepe de Chine, tho bodice showing plastrons or chemisettes of lace and long sleeves entirely of this more ornamental fabric.

THE TABLE

Sausage Croquettes.—One pound of cooked sausages, one and one-half cupfuls of mashed potato, three hardboiled eggs, one. and one-half tablespoonful of chopped parsley, and three.quarters of a teaspoonful of swept marjoram or thyme. Chop the egg and cooked sausage quite fine, then mix all tho ingredients thoroughly, _ adding one-half of a teaspoonful of pepper. Shape into croquettes, coat with egg and breadcrumbs and fiy in deep fat, smoking hot. Serve cream sauce as an accompaniment. Shepherd’s Pie. —Scrub, peel, and boil l£lb of potatoes, or any remains of cold potatoes may be used instead of boiling fresh ones. Rub them through a sieve. Melt loz of dripping with one tablespoonful of milk, add the potatoes to it. Cut lib of cold meat in slices, put them in a piedish, with pepper and salt. Put a little well-seasoned gravy in the dish. Cover the piedish with the mashed potato, smooth it neatly with a knife dipped in hot water. Mark it all over with a fork. Bake the pie for three-quarters of an hour. Spice Cakes. —Cream well together one-half cupful of butter and one and one-half cupfuls of sugar. To one cupful of thick, sour cream add one-half teaspoonful of soda dissolved in one teaspoonful of boiling water. To the creamed butter and sugar add one wellbeaten egg and, when mixed well, the cream. Stir in one cupful of seeded raisins, one-quarter cupful of cornstarch, two cupfuls of entire wheat flour, one-quarter teaspoonful of mace, one teaspoonful of cinnamon, and onequarter teaspoonful of cloves. Pour the hatter into gem pans or loaf pan dust over a little powdered sugar, and bake in a moderatetoven.