A Very Succinct Guide of Women’s Clothing Styles From the Beginning to the mid-20th Century
Many radical changes in design and style have occurred over the last 100 years. Styles, the materials available and vastly lowered production costs have all made their impact. Modern womens labels such as G Star womens clothes would have been unthinkable in say 1920.
1900 was the era of long dresses that covered the legs.
The Hobbel Skirt made its appearance in 1910. When looking at the Hobble Skirt it is easy to see why it had that name - it was very difficult to walk in.
A milestone occurred in 1913 when Mary Crosby created a support for breasts. This was made from two handkerchiefs laced with ribbon. It was the world’s first bra.
1915 saw the original turn of the lipstick tube.
During the 1920s the length of women’s knickers shortened. They began below the knee and ended well above the knee by the end of the decade.
The 1920s witnessed a style change from a feminine look in the direction of a more boyish styles during the mid-20s. In 1924 a alternative for leather, vinyl, was introduced.
A more feminine and somewhat conservative look returned in the 1930s.
It was during the 1930s that Nylon was invented by Wallace Carothers. This {brought new design ideas|enabled a whole range of new clothing ideas. Nylon made its appearance in the mid-1930, making fashions more availablebringing new design ideas.
Skirts got shorter all through World War II because, well, material for clothing was not available: everything, including textiles was rationed.
A fresh wave of design occurred during the second half of the 1940s. For example in 1946 the bikini was invented. The hour glass figure was squeezed into our consciousness in 1947.
In 1946 the bikini was revealed to the world. In 1947 the ‘New Look’ from Christian Dior was released bringing long skirts and narrow waists, and giving us the ‘hour glass’ figure. The later 1940s years were a time of fashion invention.
The 1950s saw the introduction of fuller, longer skirts and the celebration of a more feminine style.
Mary Quant invented the mini skirt in the mid 1960s and clothes became even more daring in colour and design.
