1921-08-03 — Page 8

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MODES OF THE MOMENT.

THE HONGKONG TELEGRAPH.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 3. 1991.

Įruns s'ulose second to black. The into two points where it'swoops same fabrics are shown in both the ground, Painted draperies colours. Silver tissus plays a fall from the waist in many case, larga role in the making of gray and V decolletes mark many of Many are inclined, but few are

A gown which is built with forening gowns. There are ad- them. Backs are often baro, bat chosen to wear black with success, silver brocade trousered skirt has mirable ones built of silver lace the best taste will avoid an exoces but that sharply evident fact does tight fitting black velvet bodies, and grey tulla, the latter being of bareness. It is amazing that not keep women from running black slippers with silver stock-used to accentuate the sides of the sny woman should consent, to full til into danger. It's the ings and a black tulle and satin skirt to give it the bouffant affect the deep waist-belt decollete after fashion. There you are. Men maile. That's a new treatment that the Spanish fashions has seeing others in that unbecoming

brought into power.

style. many call it foolishness, but it is af black

It is well to put tulle next to Dance dresses short, but not a foolishness that has ruled the Another gown of black rire) world.

satin worn in the afternoon has the skin whenever silver lace or as short as they were. They are exts long sleeves and an irreauy other kind of metal is pro-wide enough to make movement There may have grown up a

The gular skirt with all the edges cannot stand she coarse strands trimmed with floating tulle hand- fusely used la a gown. The skin graceful, and they are often kind of coquetry in it. French look wall in black. Aby kid. Surely that is a startling

nzished with perforated white of bullion without losing in texture kerchief points among which are woman does who possesses and unusual combination, white and fragility.

halfhidden flowers in wreaths, pallid, healthy skin, expressive

The long, trained evening dressļjawalled girdles, gleaming stringa dark eyes and a slender figure.kid and black satin, but it is:

is growing in favour. It gives of beads Buccessful.

or loosely flowing Any woman who knows the art of make-up-sod would that all hats, also, with upright stands of the aide, others have a full wide look of a ballroom, or an after- There are perforated white kid the stately air necessary for ribbons. Gay colours are much ceremony. Some show trains at in favour for dancing, and the that woman is assured that she black lacquered ribbon, which go

knew it, now that it is so universal

can use back as a foundation for to show that the designers are rain at the back which is split noon party should be brilliant. the rest of her appearance; if she not done with kid as an acces!

has tine pearls, so much the batter.ry to the costume, although the

public has shown slight en thusiasm for

But black is the colour fo: the artist, not for the amateur. Women have been mistaken through centuries regarding its difficulties. Those who have been in mourning know its devastating habit of destroying whatever charm one has. They are aware, also, of the ease in which one gets into careless rut through wear- ing black; they know the steinal vigilance required. Economy in materials is impossible. The whist broom must be one's con stant companion. Ope mus! dress in a piercing light. The least discrepancy in the costume is plainly visible for criticism.

These are facts that must be! borne in mind by those who are bent on following the new fash ion. That we may be in danger of appearing like a procession of

mutes at an ancient funeral is beside the question. The thing

is done.

The sallow woman must lesro to put colour touches where they will do the

good, the

brilliant woman must learn to

tone herself down in order ner to present too violent a contrast to her costumery.

The question among the dress. makers is..what will they do with these all-black costumes. What will they demand to go with them? Will they ask for colored bats as

advances the season because the deadness of the gowns depresses them, will they soon tire of fashion that is not suited to the majority of them or will they learn to master it as they bare so many other Paris fashions that were unfitted to our figures, climate and activities?

There is no doubt that arisians are going in quite strongly for a primitive red and it is having its innings bere. It is surely the most violent contrast to black that could be accepted. It takes

a daringly successful woman to combine & frock of lostreless black, Canton crepe with a red ha', that). red without a hint of purple or grey or brown in it.

The French women have gone through certain odd piasea ip. dress since the war that is! uplike them. They have in sisted upor. 2 standardized costome, for instance. and they have not seemed to object to being dressed alike by thousands, which is the very thing to which they have shown strong opposition. Here has been the standardized costume: black frock without sheen, several strings of small pearls, "th- bare arms covered with alender jewelled bracelets: the hat black, the shape of a

There is comfort in the fact

small turban or one with elongate that the back frocks are of thin

ed sides with a long fantasie of fabrics.

some kind of plumage swooping

down over one shoulder.

Her sleeve have grown lon

with the spring, her skirt

In hats, black straw is used us

a foundation for whatever one

wishes to put upon it, but if one chooses the new type of jersey or

dropped a little, the string girloft felt headgear, again black is has become a most complica ed taboo.

sash and her one-time skirts ar The fabrice chosen for the accentuated at the sides, not a street frocks of black are the ways by bulges, but by flat ple- various weaves of crepe : Canton. ings or handkerchief points with Morocco, Chinese. For the even- picot edges. The one thing in the ing gowns the fashion calls for costume that is not black is the tulle, black lace thin crepe, cire stocking. It is beige or grey. natin. or satin used on the wrong While there is small doubt of side to avoid luster. In other the popularity of this kind of words, with consistent inconsis costume we are too unwieldy tency, fashion either accentuates masa to present a solid front in the dullness or gives an artificial one exact type of frock and hat brilliancy to black fabrics. Sufficient Dambers will break Whichever way one chooses there Sway from the most discussed is no middle ground. fashion to give variety, which is Those who dislike fringe use the spice of dressing. Every ribbon. The French have shown woman may possess one dead us the way to do it with success. black costume in her wardrobe, Dull silk ribbon with a picot edge but she will not keep to it as a ia chosen. Loops of it lap each steady diet. She will incorporate other in close profusion. Taese black in msay of her coloured loops run in straight lines up e costumas, no doubt, but that can skirt, not extending more than be done in a manner that will five or six inches, beginning not suggest a funeral

sad eading abruptly. They Nor will all women accept the are spaced about their length verdict for black without luster. apart. Such loops trim the edges They will wear jet, for instance, of sleeves, sometimes running up also the satin that is lacquered, the back to the shoulder. cire estir, it is called, and white touches will enliven the surface

If one judges by the gowns shown by the shops and dress-

or colored crystals will shine out makers as having the earmarks

on evening gowns,

'or the season's Succees, then grey |

Silber luce frock at right, trim-- med with grey tulle ut each side. Abote, a gown sketched at a restaurant, made with a dull silver brocade trouser skirt and a light- Alting black teltet bodice. With it

is worn a black velvet cape lined- with silver.

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Rarely, in Paris, now do your see a bare neck. The frock may be cut down in decollete effect but always there is something about the throat. Jewelled dog- collars are coming in with evening gowns and open blouses

are tied together at the throat with ribbon Cravats. Bands of tolle are tied about the neck with a baw at one side. And ift there is nothing else, the border

of the veil is draped around the throat and pinned at back with an attractive brooch.

"Black cire zotin is uost în the

aking of this gown, which jak amed with bandu” cf white parforated kid.

FANS ESSENTIAL FOR EVENING DRESS.

ARE YOU FOND OF OPALS?

Are you one of the people who are afraid of opals, believing that the beautiful things are unlucky? 10: are you able to rise above this superstition and to love the opal because of its wonderful loveliness? Undoubtedly the mysterious fires in the opal have something to do with the dark auspicious against the jewel. The flame and gold and rose and green fires of the opal are really uncanny as they come and go— but after all they are but the sun- set buas caught and held in marvelous beauty. If a dewdrop which catches the sunbeams like a diamond could be held in- definitely and set as & jewel would it be regarded as unlucky as is the opal which holds the sunset colours? Who knows?

Sir Walter Scott was respon- sible for the superstition about the

opal and Queen Victoria tried very hard to over- come the prejudice about the beautiful jewel, giving opals as wedding gifts to maids of her

court..

There are two kinds of opals, the fire opal from Mexico and the black opal from Australia--the latter kind now very rare. Opals are fragile and perishable stones. Hundreds of them are cracked and spoiled in the bandling though most delicate instruments are The most fashionable feather used. Never subject your opsl to fans this season are the long, extreme heat and never let it get slender ones. These long plumes wet. The stones may be polished are carried over the shoulder as occasionally with a bit of chamois one dances, or bangs from the and ordinary tooth powder. wrist on a bracelet. Ose magni-¡

TRIMMINGS.

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of

ficent plume, just curling over at The principal novelties at the the tip, is considered more elegant moment are embroideries than three or four small plumes finely done as to give the impres- mounted one abore the other and sion of printed designs, and there the handle, or stick, is likely to are also straw embroideries which" be of tortoise shell. Turquoise is are a novelty, tassels of ratian a favored color and coral ranks and silk, or woollen fringes, and next but there are many superb many coloured braids. shades: Brilliant orange, jade. | Embroideries this season are, peacock, Gobelin blue. fame, indeed, masterpieces. For every cerise and so on. The fans that sort of gown there is a different open and close this season are of sort of embroidery, often irregu- lace, and feather fans are in the lar, placed like a decoration and single-stick sceptre effect. but not in the ordinary banal fashion. women who own superb ostrich Fp example. as the Japanese

B little motif fans of the open-and-close type place are carrying them--and wonder-embroidery on a kimono, so the ful backgrounds for beautiful Paris couturiere places on a frocks they make when one ac-simple frock of foulard one touch quires the trick of languidly open-of embroidery, of squares, of white ing the big fan and laying it back rat-tail, or fringe, in the most along the arm so that it forms a effective spot, sometimes on one: background for the shoulders and bip. sometimes in the back, bodice. And speaking of acquir leaving the rest of the gown plain ing the trick, it pays to spend a land without ornament. few hours before your mirror Sometimes coloured stitching practicing how to use one of these forms the only trimming on a big fans whether of lace or feath-foulard frock, which is, of course, ers. Sometimes

long, figured or checked. On a simple ... these beautiful ostrich fans are held cat ZOWE 10 find a motif.

in like ramrods with & wooden wrist embroidered

& pattern reeds, and ed grip, when a fan should alof

placed 23 ways be manipulated with a re-it would be by a painting in a laxed wrist. But then, almost water-colour sketch. everything should be done with a Sometimes violent colours aro relaxed wrist-in a drawing room combined; for example, violet or a ball room-if one would be and green on a red ground, em. graceful.

broidered in metal threads; or Just at the moment there is a worn with a skirt of the blue of

a blouse, the "colour of a jouquil craze for transparent fane and the French flag. On another the handsomest new models are frock of black tulle and lace we of lace. Some of these lace fans find in the front and in the brok are frightfully expensive, when

real lace is used and the stick are sort of apron of green straw in of real shell But there are very recall the grass skirt of a savage.

several abades, which really* attractive fans of pailetted mons-

These odd fancies should choose

reline mounted on slender sticks their wearers carefully.

of imitation shelf, and not all the

lace fans of distinctive style are

made of genuine thread or chan-]-

tilly lace. The daintiest fan of all pearl sticks. This canning little is the little." afternoon fan," a fan folds up and slips into a hand- tiny affair of black lace or black bag and makes a pretty plaything Fostrich mounted on mother of to carry to an afternoon reception