picture coat

The Picture Coat Is Dame Fashion’s Latest

Beautiful Little Summer Coats of Silk and Light Cloth, as Worn by Mrs. Longworth, Mrs. W. K. Vanderbilt Jr. and Other Pretty Young Leaders of Fashion— Pointers for the Woman Who Wants to Wear a Separate Jacket With Her Sprint Suit.

No  sooner does the fashionable woman don her spring suit  than some one suggests that the separate coat is fashionable and away she rushes to take off her neat little coat, only to put on one that contrasts with her suit. The separate little coat is now the ultra-fashionable thing, and, as is often the case, the modish woman is outdoing herself to get new little separate coats and a sufficient number of them to fill Dame Fashion’s bill. Picture coats they are called, and very picture-like they are with their wide sleeves and smart trimmings.

They are made of smooth, glossy cloth and they are short, fitting the figure very neatly. Mrs. W. K. Vanderbilt Jr., on her recent arrival in this country, wore a deep granite gray suiting made with circular skirt, with panel effect in the front. There was a suspicion of the tailor-made finish in the seams and around the hem. But the gown was quite spring-like and feminine with its pipings of white. The skirt was unlined, and from beneath it there peeped out a pair of granite gray graiterettes of exactly the same shade as the material of the skirt.

No petticoat was visible, although the skirt was lifted as she came down the gangplank. This matter of wearing no petticoat at all is one that is engaging the attention of women abroad, who are considering the idea at omitting it altogether. The idea is that the effect is better without a petticoat than with. And that is the reason why one sees so very many pretty costumes in Paris, with no petticoat worn underneath, and with the gaiterettes plainly showing when the skirt Is lifted.

Many of the skirts are lined, this being a revival of an old fashion. Of course, the petticoat is still fashionable, and, one sees the most beautiful spring skirts in all the lovely new shades of silk. But on the other hand, there has arisen a Parisian fad for going without the petticoat and women who fall into fads easily have for the moment picked it up, only to suffer, in all probability, a groat reaction later on.

A French gown went up Fifth avenue the other day. It was in deep blue chiffon velvet made princess, the most charming gown one could imagine for a calling tour. It fitted like the paper on the wall without seam or crease without bend or break and almost without a ripple, even at the foot. It was long and had to be held up. But, though it was held high enough to display a very charming pair of  gaiter tops in blue silk, and a neat pair of patent leather boots, there was no sign of a petticoat. The effect was decidedly catchy and Parisian, even though the style is not one that will last more than for the moment. Quite to the contrary was a navy blue velvet suit, made with circular skirt and panel effect, the sides laid in very flat plaits. The skirt, which was full around the foot, and slightly long In the back, was lifted and. from under its edge, there peeped a silk petticoat, which was in no less than six shades of blue, from very light to very dark, and all finished with tiny cording of’ gold thread put on so daintily that the flounces were not weighed down by the braid. The effect was very pretty indeed, and very feminine. The petticoat was of the very fluffy order, while the boots were patent leathers, high In the heel, with tops of navy blue, embroidered in the self -same color.

The Pretty Spring Coats

Mrs. Longworth, who came back from her tour looking very charming, wore the other day a little shopping suit which quite mirrors the new spring style for the contrasting coat and skirt. The skirt was a pavement gray, rather deeper than the usual tone of pavement, and the coat was a pale gray, one of those little separate coats which are so pretty always, and which make the figure so youthful.

This little separate coat can best be described as ‘natty, for it makes the figure look neat around the waist and jaunty, and it has the merit of always suiting the occasion. It can be worn with almost anything. The little spring coats are divided, into three separate styles, all equally smart. The most popular is the little pony coat, which is short and straight in the front. The back is close-fitting, and there are sometimes neat little side pockets, but the pony is generally cut without pockets and is made with the straight front effect, unbroken by cross lines.
The pony coat is, a little English coat and its trimming usually consists of braid put on in English fashion, running straight up and down. Its lines are unbroken and the effect is that of making one taller. The most particular thing about the pony coat, from Dame Fashion’s point of view, is the length, which must be exact. The coat must be Just the right depth over the hips or the effect is spoiled. If too short it looks bobby; if too long, it is dowdy. To get it just right requires the practiced eye of an expert tailor. “Just over the hips” is the rule.

A very popular little coat is the summer blazer. The blazer comes out new this year. This season it is made without a collar and with a flat band applied to the neck, extending down the front in revere fashion. The coat is short, scarcely hip length, and it is cut away in the front so that it has no fastenings at all, being merely a little open front coat with sides flying. Still, in spite of its careless appearance, it is a smart little coat and one that has the respect of those who aim to dress well.

Gertrude Vanderbilt’s Gowns.

Miss Gertrude Vanderbilt, who is the leading debutante of the year, as well as society’s richest girl, wears a little peach colored cloth blazer coat lined with pale pink silk. At the front there is a glimpse of a lingerie shirt waist in the most delicate lawn worn over a pink lining. Her skirt is a dark cloth one. a pretty little English tailored skirt — Just the” thing for trotting and for all street occasions. The material is very smooth as are all cloth models of spring.

The Eton coat is one that must not be forgotten, for it is here to stay another season at least; and; many of the new suits — in fact the majority of them —are cut in Eton fashion with the Eton more or less trimmed and the girdle matching the eton. This suit Is almost necessary to the woman who well, for it fills up a gap in her wardrobe and supplies her with a gown which can be put on when there is nothing else in view.

Three little summer coats must be in every wardrobe and their colors and materials should be about the same. The material should be smooth and the shade should be light. Otherwise the choice Is left to the wearer. And the coats should be In. Eton cut,: or in pony shape, or in the popular blazer effect. The best shades ere peach, butter color, chamois, pearl, Alice gray, tan and biscuit color. And the best material is a soft broadcloth or one of the novelties that approach broadcloth and give the same general effect.

The rough goods seem, for the – time being, to have gone out and everything points toward the smooth materials. Broadcloths, smooth faced serges, cashmeres and Panama  cloth and all the other soft smooth faced goods are here, while the rough goods seem to have stepped aside and invited the smooth ones to take their places.

Smooth Materials of Spring

Serge, that friend of the traveling woman, is very fashionable, but it is a serge that is smooth “and hot the rough, heavy  serge,’ nor yet the coarse kind, but rather a soft stuff which greatly resembles cashmere in its quality, yet which preserves all the durable properties of serge itself.

Checks are also fashionable, and here one comes to the new color schemes. A checked suit was made of blue and pink stripes upon a gray ground, giving a very pretty. tone., The suit, which was an Eton suit, was piped with green and there were, little frillings of Valenciennes lace, upon the Eton coat. The girdle was piped with green and trimmed with. lace.

Checks were never quite. as fashionable as now, and the, fear expressed by the leading dressmakers is that they will be overdone. They come in all grades of material and it is possible to get a check for a few cents, which will make up prettily,-wear well and present a very good appearance all the season through. In the silk taffetas and silk voiles they are very handsome and here they offer a really good investment, for they will clean, make- over and come out as good as new.  

When one comes to the best color for the checked gown, one must fall back upon one’s own taste. ‘Upon Fifth avenue, one sees a great number of black and white checks and blue and white ones with the blue and white in the majority. Again, on a pleasant day, there are the little coral checks and the very, fascinating red and green effects, trimmed with green, and  worn with a green and blue straw sailor hat. It is largely a matter of paying, one’s money and using one’s judgment.

The Fancy, Silk Coats.

In every wardrobe there must be a fancy silk coat. There are lovely coats that come with wide sleeves of  three quarter length, cutoff at just the, right point twixt wrist and elbow. And there are the most adaptable little silk coats with sleeves of wrist length, finished very wide, and terminating in a broad velvet band trimmed with lace. The silk coat, while not a necessity, is very useful, and pretty. It is not strictly a shopping coat, yet its uses are manifold. It is made easy to the figure and as such it is just the thing to wear over the soft frilly dresses which will  not bear  crushing, and it is the very coat to put on over the fluffy waists which are so much the fashion this spring and which are worn regardless of time season or weather.  It is a blessed thing that the summer materials clean well. Otherwise there would be trouble with the finance committee, for gowns are light,coats are lighter, and the separate waists are the lightest of  all. White is worn by the majority of women and the white goods are so easily soiled that they can be worn only a couple of times before they must be put out to the cleaner for renovation.

The summer woman is engaged in a hand  to hand struggle with her neighbors to see who shall wear the whitest and freshest of  the summer shirt waists and it has about reached the point that the best dressed woman of the summer the one who shall wear the handsomest and freshest of lingerie waists. The newest waists are made with trimming running straight across the front side seam to side seam.

Piece needlework is used for this purpose and the waists are made up with the trimming running round and round instead of up and down. The effect is very pretty where there are openwork stripes through which the pretty lining can be seen.

The wearing of the colored slip, or under lining is almost universal. One can buy these slips with elbow sleeves ready made in the stores and in most places one can get them in either lawn or in silk. The favorite colors are flesh colored pink, pale blue, and a pretty shade of corn color. The last makes the lacework look very rich and adds much to the apparent cost to the waist.

Fitting: One’s Self for the Summer.

If you are a society a girl and are fitting yourself out for a pretty summer be, sure to invest in what are called the pretty things of summer and be careful that they match. There is something about a match that is very charming.

There is the fluffy, lingerie waist with its pretty pale gold colored lining. Then comes the skirt of butter colored broadcloth made in plaited, circular or gathered effect. Finally there is the little Eton coat or the pony coat made to match the skirt, and with it all there is a wrist bag,  a parasol and a handkerchief, while the hat, which is a black straw is trimmed with gold colored roses. The effect is light and summery, yet warm enough for any fine weather. The little separate coat fills in many a chink these days, and it is worn for many occasions. One can do so very much with it. Suppose it to be a fashionable little cream broadcloth blazer coat with wide strappings of self-colored braid and stitchings of black. The lining is pale pink and the coat, which has no buttons, is trimmed with tiny little braided loops and fastenings. Such a coat as this  can be worn with seal brown, black, navy blue and dark green. And, if there is a hat of just the shade of the coat then one is pretty well – equipped as to a runabout suit.

Dame Fashion is quite generous this year in that she allows her girls to dress pretty much as they please, providing they are smartly attired. They must be dressed in the new materials cut in the new ways. But when it comes to the smaller matters of dress there is some latitude. Coats can be mixed up a trifle, skirts can be interchanged, and as for waists, there is a wide field in which all handsome lingerie waists are equal favorites. There is a story told of a New York woman in this town who went shopping the other day to buy her summer wardrobe. She needed almost everything that a woman can need at the beginning of the season. Unfortunately or fortunately no one can tell which she entered the store and went first to the shirt waist counter. At the close of the day she was still buying shirt waists, and though her money was all gone, she had not stirred a step away from the waist department. “I can do without other things, said she, “if I can, have all the waists I want.” And  many women feel the same way.

The Intricate French Waists.

The matter of tubbing the waist is one over which woman is shedding many tears. Laundries have for  the most part, gone up in their prices and it is no unusual thing to find a bill of a dollar awaiting you for the washing of one single shirt waist. Nor is the line drawn at that. One handsome French waist was so intricate that it took a fine laundress a whole day to iron  it and after the ironing was done a lace mender went over it repairing any small rents in the lace. But this is one of the situations a woman has to meet  and she must prepare for it early.

Duck green is one of the fashionable colors of spring and this and currant red quite occupy the center of the stage in the summer calculations of many women. They are good tones and they go well with many other shades so well in , fact, that one might base one’s summer trousseau upon them. One of the prettiest suits of this month is built of duck-green Panama cloth made with  a pony jacket effect, the only trimming being many and many a row of  braid. The coat is cut off just at the hips and the back is closely fitted while the front hangs straight. The pony in this case is semi-fitted even in the front and is so snug at the sides that it quite follows the line of the figure. The skirt is one of those plaited affairs of which one sees so many and which, while not novel, shows novel features this spring. The front was finished in panel effect, while, around the hips there  was a wide swirl of black silk braid put on very flat and pressed into the cloth until it seemed a part of it. Many of the new braids are used in this manner, namely by pressing into the cloth until they seem a part of the goods. No attempt is made to make the braid stand out. In fact, the richer and silkier and heavier the braid the more energetically la it pressed into the. goods. It makes the material look like a French pattern dress, and in many respects it is to be admired on this account.

A suit that was quite charming from its novelty was built upon empire lines. A skirt quite plain was worn with a high girdle, while over it was hooked a coat with an exceedingly short waist front and back. Tho coat had full elbow sleeves, while the wide flat belt securely girdled the coat higher up than the waistline originally goes by four inches. The coat, while not within the reach of the fat woman, was delightful upon the slender woman who wore it. Just for the month the little separate coat is both comfortable and fashionable. Its colors are new and it comes in every shade, there being no limit to the hues in which it is built.

This is a season of novelties and the number of these to be found in Dams Fortune’s domain would surprise those who have not followed the trend of the new fashions closely. Something new is continually cropping up and it taxes one’s brain and one’s purse to keep up with them.

The elbow sleeves called for the long glove and gloves of elbow length are as numerous as the gowns of the season. Each frock must have its pair of gloves and with most frocks there must be three pairs. The necessary gloves are the black glaced kid which are worn with street dresses and for all occasions not strictly dress. Then one needs a pair of white gloves, elbow length and to these must be added the gloves just the color of the gown, be the gown Alice blue, violet, heliotrope, coral or green, for kid comes in every shade.

But the end of the novelties is not yet. The gloves are long and require support. Like one’s hose, they must be kept up and here there is presented aa opportunity for a new scheme in dress. A little garter-like attachment comes for slipping over the arm. It is made of elastic, precisely like the garter upon the leg, and over it is shirred a little satin ribbon. The name of the article is a gartlet. Gartlet is a recently coined word. and it means a buckled band of velvet worn with long gloves above the elbow. It is strongly advocated for day as well as evening wear because when the arm is bare, which is cold and dangerous in winter time it keeps the glove so close up to the sleeves that the wearer feels just as warm as if the arm were covered with a long sleeve moreover, the gartlet does away with any fear of a red elbow being visible. It also dresses up the arm. It is, in fact, a glove garter doing the same kindly office for the glove that the garter did for the stocking before the suspender drove it out of the field.

The gartlets are sometimes made of velvet, sometimes of ribbon fulled over an elastic foundation, a little.buckle or rosette hiding the join and giving a finish to them; the buckle, however, permits their being adjusted to any  required size.