The San Francisco call. [volume], December 04, 1910, Page 20, Image 20

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
A Holly Cushion for Brother
Guestroom Towels
SO BEAUTIFULLY do we now pro
vide for "the stranger within our
gates' that a special brand of tow
els has even been invented for bis— or
her— special use and dignified by the
na:rse of guestroom towels.
These are smaller than the usual va
riety. Intended only for face and hands
and to be supplied fresti every day. A
man guest may consider them "fingle
fangles," as one man puts it, but the
woman guest will appreciate their dain
tiness and utility.
The special point about them, how
ever, ia the embroidery which decks
their en:J. Sometimes, to begin with,
they 'are fringed; but more frequently
they are scalloped with large, deep
Etallops and buttonholed. Above this
edging, whichever it may be — and even
crochet lace is not unknown— appears
the Initial of the mistress of the house,
or perhaps her monogram.
Owing to the heavy fabric of which
the towel is made— damask, usually— the
embroidery, too. It itself solid and
rather heavy. Long, slender letters, or
squat, fat ones, are best — what are
known technically as Venetian or Cni
FINISH OF THE CORSET COVER
THAT does not at all mean that w©
have dispensed with corset covers!
Far from It; it Is only a word as
to the proper edging and general finish
to be given to that useful garment.
I am not speaking here of scallops or
plain edges, walls-of-troy or points;
they are always very largely a matter
cf personal choice. What I do mean
is the cut of the corset cover itself, the
way in which it fits over the corset.
It goes without saying that it will be
low necked; the high-necked, tight-fit
ting corset cover has gone entirely out
of fashion. Those women who prefer
tight-fitting garments— and many or us
•who have reason to fear embonpoint do
prefer them— use the brassiere, which,
for loose blouses, is a garment no wom
en should be without. But. in general,
the corset cover proper Is rather loose,
and gathered on & band at the waist.
A very simple pattern Is made all in
»"ie the cecfc cut out rov^d, with a long,
-rertical slit In the front, so that the
Ihead can get In more easily; all this, of
course, is buttonholed. This button
holed vertical slit is frequently seen,
«yen where the corset cover is not cut
in one, but is more on the regulation
cut
The plain, round line around the neck
may be modified by a wavy line, which
is infinitely more becoming to the aver
age woman; that is to say, the straps
over the shoulders are rather narrow.
. and there is then a deep scallop on
either side, which conies to a point in
the middle.
The square neck and the V-shape both
FOR THE INDUSTRIOUS NEEDLEWOMAN
SOME PINCUSHIONS
DAIXTY little affairs of scrim, with two lovely
•wreaths and a circlet of "forget-me-nots, or an
old-fashioned cluster of roses, or a quaint, stiff
row of tulips or scarlet sage. '
Hand-painted cushions, the roses or violets painted
on drawn-work, right across the open stitches, on to the
satin lining below. . i
Chiffon over net, the two held together by a lattice- .
T?ork of baby Tibbon. These !are especially pretty in
three harmonizing shades of the same color. i
Crosswork and beading on canvas, perhaps a flower
basket of crosswork in gold thread and then little rib
bon flowers, each with a gold bead at its center, or the
flowers worked out in crosswork in the natural colors
and a square of gold' beads all around the cushion.
Dyed lace over white silk, the lace held down by tiny
beads of white. Sometimes there is a light-colored laca
over black and the beads are of jet.
Odd little cushions, the under part of stuffed silk, the
U pp er _no pins, please!— a circle of little figures in
outline under glass, and a round wooden frame fitting
tightly over the real cushion beneath.
nese lettering. Solid over-and-ovcr stitch
Is In order, outline being rather out of
place, unless, as is sometimes done,
color Is employed, in which case the
initial looks rather well in a double
outline of Ted or blue. Where the guest
room shows in general some character
istic color the towel embroidery should
fee in the same shade.
Often these initials are inclosed in a
wreath or inclosure of some sort; noth
ing very delicate, of course, so lhat it
would be out of harmony with the let
tering. The simple square or oblong or
the outlined maltese cross Is best. One
very pretty towel is edged with a wall
of-troy or Greek key design In heavy
have their adherents; personally, of the
two I very much prefer th© square, as
there Is then not co much danger of
your corset cover's showing through a
transparent yoke. However, this again
is a matter of choice.
There is another pattern for a one
piece corset cover, by the way; one
taken on the horizontal instead of the
vertical, so to speak. This necessarily
has the square yoke, since the only
opening is the straight line in front It
is tighter fitting than the over-the-head
variety. The shoulder straps may be
sewed together or may be fastened ;by
buttons and buttonholes— a better meth
od when the laundry is taken, into con
sideration.
You must decide for yourself how: low
cut you wish your corset ; cover to - be ;
it depends on the sort of undervests you
wear in winter and on the number of
net and tulle and lace yokes you ~ own.
Nothingis uglier than underwear that
shows through the outer garments, and
yet people with delicate - lungs may
catch cold from insufficient covering.
The happy medium is always with us;
In the matter of sleeves, however, the
shorter the better, the shoulder straps
t ? infinitely . to be preferred to the
obsolete shoulder caps. And for, the,
same reason, of course; nowadays w©
are fll veiled ladles, and bare such,
quantities of transparent sleeves that wd
nave to bo careful here also. r£s
in ract, the order of the day is the
suppression undergarments, in effect
not in actuality, and the corset cover
Sal\£nd. S °° d Care W follow .^ e sen-
ADELAIDE BYRD
NOW that December Is bringing
thoughts of..gifts—and let me
suggest that the holidays are
not many weeks off—here is a
suggestion for a cushion for brother. I
did not say-whose brother, but you may
bo sure that he will appreciate it In
Its graceful, conventional design end Its
lack of "girly frills." The idea can be :
applied to a square or circular cushion,
and in finishing it I would suggest .a/
green and red cord as the most sensible;..
trimming. - The holly will give much of .
the season's spirit with the gift, and ;
the colors on tan linen are just what a
young man likes for his den.
Do you like the wreath form? It is a :
little different, I think, from the usual
holly cushion, but? It is convincingly,
pretty.
When working it a very effective way
is to give the leaves a double treatment
using solid green stitches on one half
and outlining the rest of the leaf. Pad
the leaf first with darning cotton and
work with even stitches slanting in to
ward the middle vein. ,
Brown for the slender stems and here
and there on the sharp points of the
leaves will give a depth of color to the
design. The berries you will work solid
with bright red thread. Some embroider
ers place one or two stitches of white
or yellow on the red disks to give the
"high light" that suggests a sphere.
If your time be less limited, work the
leaves entirely in solid stitches, al
though for this, type of work I should
not attempt any shading. The flat work
Is quite as effective.
This will give much joy to the. man
who wishes a serviceable pillow with the /
suggestion of work done "just for him." \
Men and boys like it just as much as
their sisters. I know, for I have made
them! ' ,
Mending-Rug Fringe
IF YOUR rug has a torn fringe, do not
put it In the attic, but mend the
fringe. It Is very easy, "to do and
well worth your, pains.
Out o£C all the fringe, get a piece of
pasteboard four inches square and wind
around it yarn of a color to .match the
rug. "Wind tSie yarn one way around
the pasteboard five or six times and slip
It off. Then put one end of the yarn
through the end of the rug and pull the
other end through and clinch It. Keep
this up until you get all the way across
the end of the rug. If only a little is
torn, and you can match t2i& fringe ex
actly, you do not need to cut off all that
is there. This method, of course, ia
equally good for any fabric fringe.
AVERT pretty idea for trimming a
blouse or frock of small checked
goods is to "work- the alternate
squares in solid stitch, using either
-white, the color of the check or some
other color, as desired. Wall-of-troy
border patterns can be worked in this
way, simply using th« squares as guid
ing lines. With a featherstitched Pier
rot collar of white lawn, a pretty blue-
v and-white or pink-and-white check chal-
ILs, for instance, would then be com
plete. _
buttonholing, and in the center there is
an extra row for a block or two, which
contains the hostess* two initials.
These guestroom towels should be kept
in the room, In a drawer or on a shelf
Two
Pretty
Sew
inq
Baqs
I is no season like that just
'%% ?v> l « before Christmas for the making
v<J|~j of dainty sewing bags— those' p'ret-
s | j tiest of holiday remembrances. For if
; ,';birds of a. feather flock ; together,"
i^iiiKhat more natural than that ; the dev
j o tee of fancy work should have among
\ her. friends t many, {who will make /good
Checked Goods
consecrated to them alone, so that the
family cannot make general use of them,
as families will. A sufficient , supply
should always be kept ready for the ex
pected guest and, as I have said, re
use of . the receptacles it pleases her \u25a0to
fashion^ :-V' .".- \u25a0\u25a0-\u25a0-. . \u25a0 - >\ • _ .. "; : ; \u25a0 *- :
.To expr,» 3 good .will 'there comes the
heart-&har.ed bag offloweVed moire silk,
t with its tllaln colored" ribbon : drawing-*
strings. The cardboard-stiffened needle
book in ; the^middl© is : fastened ijayHhe ;
tiny ribbon rosette, and each side ' of th»
RIBBON FLOWERS \u25a0
THE very tiniest ribbon flowers, bits of coiled rose
buds usually, not so large as a 10 -cent piece, are
adorning' jabots and shirtwaist frills.
Perhaps the jabot itself will be of; tubular ribbon
caught by beads, • and then each intersection of the
latticework will be marked by one of these tiny flowers,
by no means necessarily in the same, color.
Or else a regular pleated jabot— white; lawn above
and Persian silk below— will have a cluster of rosebuds
at the top, with their ribbon stems, each tipped by a
gilt bead, hanging down from above. {
A fucked- lawn side frill again may be held down by
folds of black satin, over which fall clusters of these
flowers, two or three in a bunch and arranged like a.
shower bouquet. .- •
Often in a cluster of three there will be as many*
different shades in the flowers themselves. Pink and old
rose, reseda and peacock green, apricot and bronze are
colors that sound impossible -but look very well.
So hunt up the scraps of silk you own, and do not
hesitate, no matter how small the pieces or incongruous
the colors— for this is the fashion.
newed daily.
\u25a0It is one of the little things that make
a visit very pleasant and leave a feel
ing of grateful appreciation in the
heart of the parting guest.
cover is fastened to ~a : >. side „\u25a0 of the bag
itself.; Within- there is^a* stout muslin
lining, with pockets for, all the neces
sary implements "of sewing and embroid
ery. - The i \u25a0heart-shaped effect -is gained
by,: puffing oiit the -stiff silk" under the
gathers abbuf the needlebook.
The square bag," as will be seen by* its
photograph, when open consists simply
of a square of silk-lined cretonne, with
cardboard slipped in between the fabric
and Its lining and stitched down, the
middle so as to form a stiff bottom, and
a receptacle for pins and - needles. The
gathered baj: is then sewed on and the
ribbon drjit-string run through little
Ivory rings' so-., that j ; the bag can bo
- \u25a0 ". \u25a0 \u25a0
The San Francisco Sunday Call
TRIMMING
THE NIGHT
GOWN YOKE
TIME was when, in winter especially.
a nightgown was a horrible con
traption of. plain linen— cr, worse,
flannelette— with a. severe tuck down
the middle and a few gathers over th»
shoulderg. Now all of us wear lingerie
French in design as well as in name;
which mean 3 that, above ail, it must b«
prettily embroidered.
In these days of summer underwear
all the year round, practically all night
gowns are low necked and short
sleeved, or without any sleeves at all.
The principal office of embroidery, then.
Is to ornament the yoke of this low
necked nightgown, and for this purpose
dainty flower designs in eyelet or ia
French embroidery are in order.
\u25a0• Forget-me-not 3 are always a favorite;
lilies-of-the-valley are odd, but on th»
came order and therefore appropriate;
tha same may be said of buttercups.
The character of the flower will suggest
the style of embroidery; but nothing so
heavy as to look cumbersome should
be allowed. Such blossoms as wild,
roses, popple 3, etc., are out of place,
unles3 they are handled very delicately,
with an outline stitch, for instance, ami
the inside filled up with seed stitch or
French knot 3. Dwarf wild carrot or
epirea would look very well with thi»
French-knot treatment.
Of course, flowers are not the only
choice. I have seen an exquisit*
nightgown embroidered with dainty
white silk butterflies scattered over
the yoke, with one or two fugitive onea
further down. To be pure, it was
Chinese work, but it could be duplicated
easily by the clever American em
broiderer. Reeds, grasses, tiny hum
ming-birds, maple leaves— anything that
Is dainty and delicate In workmanship
would be appropriate. Conventional de
signs too, of course; Venetian ladder
work and French embroidery are es
pecially indicated here. If you will
remember that you are working ' witn
auch fin© materials as thin linen,
cross-bar dimity and nainsook, you will
realize th© Importance of the appro
priate pattern and method of working. ,
Many people like their Initials or mon
ogram embroidered on their underwear.
You must consider, then, tha question off
wreaths. Little heart-shaped wreaths
are pretty; so are round wreaths of tiny ;
star-shaped dalsiea. The squar© Inclos
ure. of close-set dots, with a daisy be
tween each two, ia another dainty idea.
One pretty Inclosur© I have seen was la
& buttercup design. The embroidered
edge was scalloped. The buttercups ia
one cluster came quite up to the edge, so>
that their edges formed the scallop- at ;
this place, and the leaves of thla cluster j
were twisfed so that th© stems formed'
an oval within which the owner's initials
wer© worked. A hundred other ideas
will, of course, at once suggest them
selves. tt»
Naturally, embroidery Is not required
* absolutely as trimming. Thera is the laco •
Insertion, for instance, which ia both
pretty and practical. Then there Is th©>
beading (oval eyelets will do), which
runs, not In a straight line, but so that
th© ribbon, when It Is inserted, runs
into a "true-love knot" at the front.
Or interlaced diamonds may be used
Instead. Ribbon work Itself, if very
carefully and delicately done, is in Its
proper place here.
It you do have embroidery, however,
remember that It 19 not necessary to rua
It in a stiff, straight line across tn»
front of the nightgown. Allow yourself
a little freedom of pattern, unless. In
deed, you are dealing with a conven
tional design. Trailing tendrils, and fall-
Ing petals are often good variations.
Most of this work must be done in
i "white; a daring French touch, however.
is given by the Introduction of th»
merest touch of light color— a glint of
green on a butterfly's wing-, for instance.
or a drop of pink In the cup of a flower.
This, however, you must decide for your
self—and for the other person, it you a*»
doing the work as a gift. It is a good
point to keep in mind that what might
please you very possibly would not
please another, and this must always
be taken into consideration when doing:
embroidery for some one besides your
self.
Th© edging of the nightgown yoke is
another vexed question. Th© usual scal
lop grows monotonous, though there ar»
all sorts of variations in the shape of
points, squares, double and triple scal
lops, etc. Sometimes a plain soft fold
with ribbon run through It makes a wel
come change. If you edge with lac© or
embroidery, b© very sure that its kind
and quality are in accordance with th»
fabric and the embroidery or other trim
ming. Sometimes the Cower edges
themselves, as I have suggested, may
come quite up to the yoke edge, and
form its scallop. Very frequently this
edging has to contain eyelets for th©
ribbon drawstrings, however, and thea
this flower design is not feasible.
If you will remember your thre©
watchwords— daintiness. beauty and
freedom from stiffness — you .will hay©
no trouble with th© nightgown yoke. A
nightgown thus embroidered makes &
charming Christmas present, and a no
less charming gift to yourself when
worked during the long winter ©venin'ss.
Try it. 'Madam Etobroiderer. and se*
how you lik© making your own linger!*
—to order I
"\u25a0:.•-
drawn up like a basket. It is quite ca
pacious and an ornament to any sew
ing room-
These bags are both Inexpensive anA
both easy to make, and now is just th*V
best time to start work on them for '
those of your friends who- are embroid
erers. Try them and see> how simala
and yet effective they are.