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Cerlae velvet, tlrlped with black norst*d, banded with ribbon and veiled
with tulle.
1 urr i.iuic *o
Checked uruj and black taffeta* trith \
4BISQB
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StrlpMf Of course} and they so la *
>rmrj direction. 11 lb bom—-black polka dot on nhlte—li the only trimming of this frock of blue, i
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The Sleeve's the Thing
What is new in the realm of fash
ions?
Never was this question harder to
answer than at the present time. To
be sure there arc many suggestions,
many models presented for autumn
wear that show many new ideas in
designing. But of all the new sug
gestions not one stems to have the
lead. In one direction we hear that
skirts are becoming longer and nar
rower, and in another that they are
even fuller than before with no tend
ency to elongate.
In one quarter we hear that the
waist is becoming more shapely and
that at last the snug bodice is be
coming a reality. In another quar
ter the Venus de Milo figure seems
to be agreed upon. Hats arc big in
one shop and in another they arc
smaller. One designer says that
tailor-mades will not be considered
at all for the coming season—that
suits in fact will give way to long
coats worn with matching frocks.
On one point, however, fashion au
thorities choose to agree, and that
is that the sleeve is the most im
portant consideration of the moment.
For many seasons the sleeve has
been in the back ground. For the
last few seasons the skirt only has
been the most vital consideration.
Sleeves didn't signify. No one everi (
bought a new gown on the merit of 1
the sleeve; in fact, one seldom t
thought anything about that part of 1
a gown, and in evening gowns they <
were non-existent. 1
?ut now sleeves have come to the <
front, and from Paris especially we
are receiving enough inspiration in i
the way of new sleeves to make up i
for the lack of definite decision in t
other directions. I
Next to the line of a well-turned 1
collar worn by a woman with a 1
graceful neck there is no line in
woman's dress that possesses more 1
possibilities than the line of a well
designed sleeve and a graceful wrist.
No one ever knew this better than
Sarah Bernhardt, who has always
spent much thought on the fit of her
sleeves and their arrangement about
the hand. French women usually pay
much more attention to this detail of
dress than do American women, who
spend no end of thought in having
the skirt and neck line of a new
gown fitted to perfection and let the
sleeves go with almost no alterations
at all.
But now the sleeve is coming into
its own, and the sleeves and cuffs on
the new gowns will really command
more consideration than this. For
they are built in such wise that they
must fit to be attractive, and they
must be fitted more carefully than
any other part of the new gowns.
In gowns and waists the sleeve is
usually long with a well-fitted cuff
portion. In coats and many suits
the sleeve, narrow midway below
the elbow, flares at the hand Direc
toire fashion, thus giving a tempting
glimpse of the well-fitfcd waist sleeve
beneath.
At the shoulder many of the
sleeves show a surprising amount of
fullness. Leg o' mutton sleeves arc
even seen in many of the new de
signs, and there are puffs and frills
and ruffles galore. In evening gowns
the sleeve is sometimes merely an
exaggerated puff introduced at the
arm hole, though, of course, the
sleeveless evening gown still has a
certain claim on the attention of the
woman with matchless arms.
Fur Is Everywhere.
Even on blouses made of spider
web textures —voiles and nets and
laces—we shall soon have fur trim
ming. Some times the fur is in the j
guise of a cuff and some times as a <
point or banding above the elbow. |
A good many practically inclined!
and economical women last year re
sisted the temptation of buying suits
or coats with fur trimming, feeling
that fur would be "all out" very soon
and that a fur-trimmed garment
would become extremely out of date
by the time a second season had
come. This was commendable cau
tion, to be sure, for it did seem last
winter that the fur craze was burn
ing itself out. But, as a matter of
fact, fur is even more apparent now
than ever, and it is worn in a dozen
ways that no one dreamed of last
winter.
Fur-trimmed sweaters are decided
ly characteristic of the coming au
tumn and skating costumes made
sweater fashion of wool will show
extensive fur trimming on the collar,
and there will be matching woolen
skirts also banded by fur to go with
them.
Milliners have thought of a dozen
new ways of making fur attracti.ve
on hats and designers of gowns are
using it extensively in trimming event
ing gowns. With silver and pearl
trimming a short gray fur is used
very effectively on some of the most
dazzling of evening gowns.
But the fur of this season is of
better quality than the fur of last
year. Fortunately perhaps for the
back yard cat, whose lot we are told
was so hazardous last winter, women
of fashion arc demanding and pay
ing for better fur than was the case
a year ago.
Accessories to Match.
There will be a tendency this win
ter to wear hats trimmed with the
same kind of fur that the collar and
muff is made of. There never has
been anything very attractive about
combining various sorts of fur in one
get-up —white fox and sealskin or
sable and squirrel, for instance—as
many women did last year in their
enthusiasm over the vogue for fur
trimmings on suits and gowns.
There is a strong tendency this
year toward wearing the various ar
ticles of dress to match. Quite fre-
Ucgricelte rrfpe, rrlch rucbes, frill* and plcot eilKed ribbon to trim.
Three Interesting nfternoon frorks of three Interesting; ■tyles, eh hoTV-
Ing something netv.
Thut tbe bouffant *Mrt still rules us, sHrtorlallr, these frocks ikon,
quently the hat and the handbag
match, the bag being fashioned from
the same rich fabric with which the
hat is trimmed. Some times a piece
of Japanese embroidery is found on
the bag and the same design and
color in embroidery graces the hat.
Many of the most elaborate even
ing gowns are made with evening
capes to match, and it is not at all
unusual for the well-dressed woman
to have special pieces of jewelry for
each costume she possesses. For
evening, hair ornaments are selected
with jems match the gown with
which they are worn.
As Prices Soar.
One might imagine that because
the prices for all sorts of women's
apparel arc soaring there would be a
tendency toward greater economy in
dress purchases. But such does not
seem to be the case. When beef
steaks become more expensive the
housewife has them less frequently,
and she learns how to make stews
and ragouts that tempt the appetite
of her family. When broiling
chickens are prohibitive most folk
acquire a taste for well-cooked fric
assee. But when shoes jump from
$5 a pair to $8.50, it really seems as
if the woman who cares for her ap
pearance buys two pairs where she
used to buy one. Never before did
women of all classes appreciate the
importance of being well-dressed
and never before did they realize
also that to be .well-dressed one
must also select clothes of good
quality.