Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. 3, No. 15, August, 1851 Chapter 30

Fig. 1.—Promenade and Young Lady Fig. 1.—Promenade and Young Lady's Morning Costume.

We have very little change to note in the forms of dress, since our last; and while "the dog-star rages," materials suitable for the heat of July will be appropriate. For out-of-door costume, silks of light texture, and hues accordant with those of surrounding nature, such as peach, lilac, violet, buff, green, pink, &c., are in vogue. Mantelets are much worn, and are of two different forms—the scarf mantelet, and the little round shawl mantelet. These, particularly the shawl mantelet, are beautifully embroidered and deeply fringed, giving them an exceedingly rich appearance. They have mostly a double collar attached.

Promenade Costume.—The figure on the right, in our first illustration, represents a beautiful style of walking costume. The dress is of light-textured silk. Body high, open in front, and having at the edge, as a lapel, two vandyked and goffered trimmings, with very little fullness. The under one meets the upper about two-thirds down the front. The body has a rounded point in front, and the trimming goes to the bottom. The sleeves are almost tight for about two-thirds of the arm, and end in a frill, on which are set two smaller frills, vandyked and goffered at the edges. The skirt has three flounces; the first, six inches below the waist, is ten inches deep; the second is twelve, and the third fourteen inches. Each of these flounces, already a little 432 drawn, is trimmed at bottom with two vandyked frills of two inches in width. They are held in, when sewed on, so as to be full on the large ones. The habit shirt is composed of two valenciennes at the collar, and of muslin puffs; the under-sleeve, trimmed with a narrow valenciennes, is formed of muslin bouillonnés, diminishing toward the bottom.

The bonnet is an elegant style. It is drawn, of net, blond, and silk; the edge of the poke has a roll of silk; above and below there is a transparent width of net, about two inches deep, and two blond frills drawn shell-shape. All the inside of the poke and crown is composed of a kind of carapace made of silk, with small folds lapping over each other. On one side there are two large moss-roses with buds and leaves. A blond, about an inch and a half wide, goes over the roses, and is continued in waves all along the piping. On the other side there are no flowers, but instead of them are a net bouillonné and three blond frills. The curtain is of puffed net, with blonds and no frills.

Young Lady's Morning Costume.—The figure on the left represents an elegant morning costume for a young lady. Hair in bandeaux, forming a puff which spreads well at the bottom. The points are carried back to meet under the knot. The back hair is done up in a torsade with black velvet ribbons, the two ends of which float behind. Frock of plaid silk, skirt very full. Canezou, or jacket, of embroidered muslin, trimmed with embroidered and festooned bands. It is open and square in front, with five bands for trimming. The sleeves are demi-length, and trimmed in a similar manner. The under-chemisette is of plaited net, with a narrow lace at the edge.

Jackets. Fig. 2.—Jackets.

Jackets are now much worn, not only as a part of a morning costume, but as an elegant addition to a visiting dress. Figure 2 represents two of these. The first, held in the hand, is of light blue silk, and intended as an accompaniment to a visiting dress of the same material. It is trimmed round the lower part, as well as the sleeves and lapels or facings, with a narrow frilling of the same, fastened down the front with three large rosettes of silk, the corsage being sufficiently open to show the habit-shirt, decorated with a frilling of white lace. The large white under-sleeves are decorated with a double fall of white lace. On the half-length figure is represented the jacket of a morning costume. It is of white jaconet muslin, trimmed with lace and rows of pink ribbon of different widths. Long sleeves made rather loose, and encircled with lace and ribbon, finished with a nœud of the latter, on the top of the wrist. Under close sleeve trimmed with rows of lace placed close together. This figure also shows a pretty style of cap, made of white lace, trimmed round the back part with four rows of narrow white lace, finished on each side with a bow and ends of pink ribbon, with loops on each side of the face.

A beautiful style of Evening Dress is a robe of white cachmere, trimmed with very deep flounces, each finished with stripes of silk woven in the material. The body open, square in the front; made very high and open, across the chest, terminating below the waist with basquines, which give it some what the appearance of a little vest, or jacket.

Boy Fig. 3.—Boy's Dress.

Figure 3 represents a pleasing style of dress for a little boy. A Charles-the-Ninth cap of black velvet, with a well-rolled feather on one side, and proceeding from a cabbage-rose of black satin ribbon. Coat of black velvet, without any seam at the waist. It is hollowed out at the side and back seams, like a lady's paletot, tight over the breast, and fastened with little jet buttons. Sleeves half short, also with buttons. Under the coat is a tunic of plaid poplin, black and red. This tunic is full of gathers like a Scotch kilt. Plaid stockings, stripes sloping; small black gaiters with jet buttons. Collar sewed on to a band; the trimmings of the under-sleeves and trowsers are of the older style of English embroidery.

The taste for flowers, those gems which give exquisite beauty to nature's pictures, is becoming more and more prevalent. Nearly every bonnet is decorated with flowers, particularly those of rice straw. Heaths, lilies, violets, roses, &c., with straw, oats, asparagus, butter-cups, and fancy trifles are used in giving grace and beauty to bonnets.

END Changes Made To The Text
Transcriber's note: A table of contents has been added. Blank pages have
been deleted. The publisher's inadvertent omissions of important
punctuation have been corrected. Other detected publisher's errors were
corrected as follows:

 p. 385: on which they conduc[conduct] their whaling
 p. 289: with an ancient piece of tapesty[tapestry]
 p. 291: thousand little conveniencies[conveniences]
 p. 299: rancorous recollection of the occurence[occurrence],
 p. 301: By the brillance[brilliance] of her conversational
 p. 304: when folks spok[spoke] of Andrè and his wife
 p. 310: revelations of the sybil[sibyl] concerned
 p. 334: how can this [be] part of myself?
 p. 335: to literary socities[societies]
 p. 337: country disstricts[districts]
 p. 352: and gay boddice[bodice]
 p. 365: The general fully corrobarated[corroborated]
 p. 366: and rolling lazily adown[down] the
 p. 368: round, and [in] one fearful lesson teach these same whitecoats
 p. 368: drive a brave enemy to depair[despair]
 p. 370: two unfurnished rooms; the lagest[largest] contained her
 p. 374: they anticipate inuendoes[innuendoes], and meet
 p. 384: accordingly went, accompaniod[accompanied] by
 p. 399: but my husband is harder nor[than] I, and he said
 p. 408: why should be[he] put himself

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