Transcript History of Fashion

History of Fashion
- costume through the decades
Why Fashion?
Fashions move ever forward at a dramatic
pace due to several factors:
Change of seasons
Planned obsolescence
Technological advances
Conspicuous consumption …
“a term used to describe the lavish spending
on goods and services acquired mainly for the
purpose of displaying income or wealth.”
1900-1910 – Edwardian Era
British class system was very rigid
However, economic and social changes also created
an environment in which there was more social
mobility than previously
Changes included rising interest in socialism,
attention to the plight of the poor and the status of
women
Together with increased economic opportunities as a
result of rapid industrialization.
These changes were to be hastened in the aftermath
of the first World War.
Sport
1908 summer
Olympics held in
London
Sport becoming
more popular
More flexible
clothing styles were
needed
Corset modified
Silhouettes – early 1900s
Lots of
undergarments
Voluptuous shape
Low waist
Late 1900s
Paul Poiret points the
way to a new
silhouette, with a high
waist and narrow,
ankle-length skirts,
1908
Beginnings of the
‘Hobble skirt’
Exotica and travel
influenced these
changes
1910 – 1920
First half of decade full with riches and opulence
World War 1 had a huge impact on dress in the
second half of the decade (1914-1918)
Unstable money market
New fabrics and technologies developed
Women began working as there were fewer men at
home
Women began to wear trousers or breeches to work
on the land or in factories
Fabrics and clothing became more practical based
Silhouette -
first half of the century
Column-like
Higher waists
Masculine influences
beginning to appear
Silhouette -
second half of the century
Fuller Skirts
Hems rising – ankle
visible for the first
time!
Hair beginning to be
cut short into bobs
1920-1930
Fashion entered the modern era.
The 1920s were characterized by two distinct
periods of fashion
The early 1920s were relatively conservative
in nature and change progressed slowly as
many were reluctant to adopt the new styles
From 1925, the styles that have been
associated with the Roaring Twenties were
passionately embraced by the public
The public spirit was light-hearted, young and
hedonistic but also very forward thinking
America
America entered a
prosperous era
Women were
allowed to vote
And joined the
workforce
Sport was again
very important and
had a huge
influence on clothing
Silhouette
The straight-line chemise worn
with a close-fitting cloche hat
became the uniform for daywear
Boyish and sporty looks were
made popular by Jean Patou
Women "bobbed," or cut, their
hair short to fit under the
popular hats
Low-waist dresses with fullness
at the hemline allowed women
dance the Charleston.
1930-1940 (pre-WW2)
The light hearted forward-looking attitude and
fashions of the late 1920s lingered through most
of 1930
But by the end of 1931 the effects of the Great
Depression began to affect the public and a more
conservative approach to fashion returned
For women, skirts became longer and the waistline was returned up to its normal position in an
attempt to bring back a more feminine look
Technological Advances
This period saw the
first widespread use of
synthetic fibres
Viscose was used for
linings and lingerie
Nylon stockings and
plastic zips became
widely used
Foreign Travel
With the advances in technology and increasing
availability of commercial flights foreign travel
became more popular
It was now fashionable for the first time to
have a sun-tan
New styles influenced by beachwear became
popular
The Influence of American film was becoming
increasingly important
Along with Health and fitness
1930 – 1940 Silhouette
Elsa Schiaparelli introduced a more
structured look for women’s clothing
Shoulder pads and sleeve details
very important
By the late '30s, emphasis was
moving to the back, with halter
necklines and high-necked but
backless evening gowns with
sleeves
1930 – 1940 Silhouette
Skirts remained at mid-calf
length for day
Towards the end of the
1930s skirts were reaching
just below the knee
This was a practical length
and would remain in style
for day dresses through
the war years.
1940 – 1950:
War Time restrictions
Wartime led to restrictions on
the amount of new clothing
people could buy
Money saving was very
important
Dresses became shorter and
were made with less fullness to
reduce the amount of fabric
needed
Make-Do-and-Mend became a
national campaign
1940 – 1950:
War Time Restrictions
Rations meant that nylon stocking
were not available
Women would sometimes paint on
stockings instead
Most women wore knee-length skirts
with simply-cut blouses and squareshouldered jackets.
Trousers were becoming increasingly
popular for workwear, but were still
not fully acceptable for leisurewear.
Dior’s New Look
When the French fashion houses reopened
after World War II, Dior introduced the "New
Look" silhouette
1950 – 1960: early years
Early 1950’s was still dominated by
Dior’s New Look and very feminine
styling with nipped in waists and full
skirts
Fashion was nostalgic and looking to
the past for inspiration
Balenciaga, Dior and Chanel were all
very influential in this period
Women were slowly beginning to wear
trousers as an everyday item
The American Look
American films were again
very influential
Stars such as grace Kelly
and Marylyn Monroe were
widely copied
Off-the-Peg clothing was
much more available than
ever before and of a higher
quality
Late 1950’s
Rising teenage market
with more freedoms than
ever before
And with a higher
disposable income
Influenced by music
Beginnings of short-lived
trends and throw-away
society
‘Teddy-Boys’ and
‘Greasers’ first appeared.
1960 – 1970
Early 1960’s women still fairly
conservatively dressed
Focus of fashion beginning to change
from Paris to London
Fashion starting to be led by people on
the street rather than by a few elite
Parisian designers
1960’s
Culottes very popular in
early 1960s
Bikini became
fashionable
Mini-skirt invented…
But it was not adopted
by the general public
until the late 1960’s
Carnaby Street in
London was the coolest
area to shop for fashion
conscious teenagers
1960’s Design Influences
Technology once
again had a huge
impact on fashion
Space travel and
man first landing on
the moon (1969)
Futuristic films and
fashions followed
1970-1980: Early Style Influences
Garment shapes became a lot more
fluid and floaty
Started with the Hippy look that
originated in the late 1960’s
Jeans were a now a wardrobe staple for
both women and men
Tie-dye was popular
Very strong music influence
1970-1990: Early Style Influences
Tunics and Indian
styles popular in
early 1960s
Skirt lengths varied
between Mini, Midi
and Maxi
Platform shoes were
worn by both men
and women
Late 1970’s
Disco music and
styles became
popular
Increasing
availability of manmade fibres
More colours and
shiny fabrics
available than ever
before.
1980 – 1990
Punk began as an underground
movement in the late 1970’s and
became an important part of
1980’s fashion
Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne
Westwood brought the punk
look into mainstream fashion
1980 – 1990
The 80’s had an wide mix of fashions
and styles influenced by many different
factors:
Power Dressing
New Romantic Look
Rap Music
Dynasty and Dallas
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