Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 7, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 March 1894 — DOWN TO THE HEELS. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

DOWN TO THE HEELS.

THE LENGTH OF GOWNS FOR BABIES ANO BUDS. Six - Year - Old*. However. Wear Their Skirt* IZUtlnclly Short—Many Design* of Latest Pattern for Little Maiden* of Tender Years. Gowm for Little Giri*. New York correspondence:

ABIES and buds I 1 may wear down-to-heels gowns, but f> about the sixth *tly ear little Miss Maiden comes into Xjf anew style of dress. WT\ A way go long gowns, not to be tJWi worn again until rjUfl she is a shv debu- / tante. Frills and frivolities in dainty 1 following of mamV ma's own mav adorn her wear now, and -4 the skirls will be ■ita. distinctly short—as short, indeed, as the prettiness of the limbs allows. From a quaint, serious little Gretchen creature, the girl at.s or 6 sud-

denly becomes a light-footed butterfly or a fluffy-skirted fairy. Just now, to look over the children's outfits for maids of about this age. one would fancy that little Miss Maiden did nothing in the world but go to dancing school and to partie-. This is probably because the short dresses lend themselves so deliciously to party effects, and this leads many a mother to keep her daughter in such skirts after most women—especially those who haven’t daughters would insist upon their ankles being hidden. An example of this sort is pictured in the initial—a dress of crepon trimmed liberally with lace insertion and ribbon, and by the maker described as “for a young lady of 12.” For young ladies of from 6to 10— for if a chit of a dozen years is a young lady, why is not a child of 6—muslin, gauze, tulle and chiffon over silk slips seems to be the general thing. Skirt and bodice are all one, the silken slip being usually low-necked and short-

sleeved, with a skirt that flares with the regulation nine gores as often as it is made full in the more simple round skirt way. The muslin affair that goes over this is a mass of frills, it comes high to the throat and down to the wrists usually, and on it is expended a deal of the most exquisite needlework. Real lace of the simpler patterns is used in narrow widths and in insertion, baby ribbon runs through hand-but-tonholed circles in the dainty frills, revers, berthas, and flounces spread over the puffs at the sleeves, bits of bows are everywhere and nothing seems too daintily elaborate. Gowns of very rich goods are also made; satins, for instance, that will stand alone, in very delicate shades, cream, pink and blue. These are made more simply, a couple of tiny frills of silk muslin about the edge of the skirt, and a sufficiently flufly bertha effect of muslin about the shoulders being all that is required. A somewhat less expensive model comes in China silk and is the artist’s second offering here. The skirt has three rows of lace about its foot, and above them are five rows of guipure insertion. Insertion is seen, too, in the sleeves and their epaulettes, and the yoke of shirred silk is outlined by a ruffle of rich lace. Wash silk is used, self-trimmed, and, to tell the truth, makes almost the prettiest rigs of all. The crisp, white silk, or that strewn prettily with tiny flowers, is the sort chosen, and there may be runnings of baby ribbon and insertions of lace galore.* Under these dainty gowns skirts that are almost as fluffy as a ballet-dancer’s are worn. Outside all there is a little cloak, quite like mamma's opera cloak, that is fur lined and made with lots of capes. In the third picture there is to be seen a little girl's coat made of pale gray cloth trimmed with bands of krimmer.

It is loose in front, partly fitted in the back, with the fullness arranged in pleats in the center. The pelerine is thirteen inches long, sixty-five inches wide, and is finished with a box-pleated ruching around the neck. The sleeves consist of wide puffs and plain tight cuffs, and the whole is lined with gray quilted satin. It is worn over a plain loose dress of pale blue woolen stuff, gathered to a yoke four inches deep and fastening behind, while the front is decorated with a jacket effect made of tulle lace. The skirt is garnished

with bands of lace insertion each two inches wide, and comes on the standing collar and rleeves. The pretty costume is competed by a gray felt hat garnished with blue feathers and velvet ribbon loops and ends. Dainty little afternoon gowns are mostly of light chailies, delicate cashmeres and wool stuffs. They are all light in color and are made simply, the waist and skirt all one at first, and the fastening always at the back. Sometimes a little frill is let in along the waist cord. These' little gowns are made to wear with guimpes, and they have lots of bretelles and frills on the sleeves. There are any number of all-over aprons to wear with these, and the aprons are so fresh, dainty and prettily made, often looking almost like a muslin dress only for the opening in the back, that little Miss Maiden looks as if right out of the laundryman’s b3x. These dresses grow a little longer wai ted, a little smaller around, and a bit longer as the

years go by, but the general style stays about the same. The little miss shown* who wouldn’t be sketched unless dolly was included, even though the latter was in alarming neglige, displays a much-liked current fancy in the vandyked pattern of braid on her skirt. The material is brown striped woolen stuff, the skirt is gored, and the waist has a fitted lining. It hooks in back, where the stuff is tucked lengthwise three or four times and hides the opening. The tiny yoke of brown velvet is alike back ana front, and is finished with cream guipure lace that forms epaulettes over the brown stuff puffs. Tne sleeve cuffs are brown velvet. Wee school dresses are made of dark wool, brightened by fancy braiding, brown and led being a favorite combination. A dear little gown for a bit of a blonde was gray serge braided heavily with narrow black. The skirt was prettily full, and was braided in circular rows to the knee. The bodice had a deep bretelle lying over the shoulders outlining a yoke that was braided, and deep braided cuffs reached to the shoulder puffs. All red serge dresses are much worn by little girls from 12 to 13. These school dresses are all simply made, and though they are daintily fresh, all suggestion of elaboration is avoided. Two small home dresses are shown in the last picture. Corn-flower blue flannel is the fabric of the smaller one, and it is cut in one and finished with jacket fronts. The breadths are cut wider toward the bottom, so that the dress shall be full and flowing. The hem of the skirt is ornamented with black silk embroidery, which is repeated at the top in shape of a plastron. The jacket fronts have double revers of watered silk, and the baggy sleeves have an elastic at the wrist. The other dress is for a child several years older and can be made of any seasonable material. The back is made of two pieces, with an opening in the center which fastens with hooks and eyes, and the front is made of one piece and gathered at neck and waist. The skirt

is side pleated and is joined to the bodice, the seam being hidden by a folded surah sash tying in a baby-bow with long ends in back. The skirt is made of straight breadths, unlined, and is trimmed with braid around the bottom. The sleeves are very full and are held up by straps that commence at the collar a? shown. Copyright. 1891. Fashionable Fads. Braids in all shades of trimmings. Surplice waists of glace taffeta. Heavy white satin with a sort of ground-glass effect. Frillings, flutinss, flounces, festoons, fichus and other “f’s.” Infants’ caps of lawn embroidered with insertion effects. Point d'esprit lace for fancy work, trimming, jabots, etc. Aigrettes of heron’s plumes, lacquered Russian spoons. Beetroot velvet or broadc’.oth in combination with pale pink. Flannel wrappers in medium and dark colors, self-trimmed. Many kinds of fancy collars combined with a jabot or bib of lace. Cotton imitations of printed silks for summer-gowns. Yellow gloves of very light shades to wear with white evening toilettes. Large square buttons for street use, big round buttons, plain or decorated. Combinations of. yellow and black, yellow and brown, red and brown, ecru and brown. Candelabra or candlesticks, brass scones and wrought-iron andirons with scroll tops. Very pale-blue note paper with a monogram, one as easily obtained as the other. For ball dresses, flowered silk net, with fur, lace, embroidery or flowers in the trimmings. Overskirts in big. Jong points, in ovals, in spiral effects, in festooned loops at the bottom. Yellow in many shades, blue in a few, browns and reds in an infinity, green scarcely holding its" own, perhaps.

WITH SKIRT FASHIONABLY HANDED.

A NEW PELERINE.

STYLISH SKIRT Z GZAGS.

TWO DRESSY MODELS FOR HOME WEAR.