Overall, s fashion was glamorous, well-groomed, and put-together, even for more casual stay-at-home looks. He replaced the stiff boxy silhouette of the war era with an hourglass shape that consisted of rounded shoulders, small waists, and full skirts.
One constant of the decade was the roaming waistline. Depending on the look, it was fashionable to have a high waist, natural waist, low waist, or even no waistline. Other early s looks included long skirts with petticoats, tailored tweed dresses, low neckline and ankle-length dresses in gray, green, blue, purple, or pink. Jackets were either single breasted with wide shoulders and a low-waisted button or double breasted with long lapels and three buttons. Instead of a vest that matched the coat, it became increasingly popular to wear vests in complimentary or contrasting colors in materials like corduroy, silk, and velvet.
The silhouette became softer and straighter with a higher hemline and relaxed waistline. Evening dresses were popular in medium lengths and were often made of wool chiffon or jersey fabrics. Matching hats and jackets were still common accessories to formal outfits. Casual wear became increasingly popular, with tailored blouses, striped blazers, and tapered slacks in bright colors and plaid or paisley patterns. Suddenly, whole departments and catalog sections are devoted to mainly female teenagers and young adults.
At this point, teenage culture and clothing also became a larger part of television, movies and music. With greater emphasis placed on one's teenage years, many formal fashions were also marketed to this age group as school dances and proms became an important part of the decade and have since been an integral part of teen life. While many of these formal fashions were available in both junior and adult sizes, judging by the styling and descriptions, these dresses were definitely meant to be worn while dancing in the decorated high school gym accompanied by your beau.
At the end of the 's, we start to see less conservative styles appear. Sexier silhouettes with tighter skirts, shirts and dresses start to show up for women. Rebellious looks for men also emerge with leather motorcycle jackets, studded boots, and bolder patterned shirts and sweaters becoming popular at the latter end of the decade.
Girls and women start to get more clothing options in terms of pants and shorts with pedal pushers, Bermuda shorts, and tapered leggings featuring prominently in style trends. Fashions from the fifties greatly showcased the mood of the decade and emphasized consumerism and conformity. Going into the 's, fashions started to reflect the upcoming diversity and individuality that would become the main focus behind the fashion revolution during the next decade.
Today In History Years and Decades. Conformity in Style During the 's, style was used to set a common standard of look. The Rise of Teenage Culture Around the middle of the decade a separation between child and adult styles began and the gap was filled by teenage clothing.
Performer Pearl Bailey donning a wide-brimmed hat, tennis-style jewelry, and a sweetheart metallic gown. Actress and model Deanna Durbin perfecting a chic sailing look in wide-leg khakis and a striped jacket. Music legend Billie Holiday performing in a strapless powder-blue gown with an embellished bodice and a bright-red lip. Dorothy Dandridge and her sister, Vivian Dandridge, walking the red carpet in evening gowns, opera gloves, and an opulent fur sole. American costume designer Edith Head wearing an all-black belted outfit with white gloves and a string of classic pearls.
Ella Fitzgerald performing in an all-black duchess satin dress with platform patent-leather Mary Janes. Bazaar Bride. United States. Type keyword s to search. Today's Top Stories. Goodbye to All That. Hulton Archive Getty Images. Keystone Getty Images. Models wearing tailored Dior skirt suits. The Balenciaga suit worn by model Suzy Parker Fig. While designers such as Dior, Balenciaga, and Charles James created beautiful couture pieces, the craze for sportswear continued.
Claire McCardell, the American designer who rose to prominence in the s, continued to produce her popular wrap-over dresses and also introduced pedal-pushers with matching tops Laver While overall, fashion in the s prided elegance, young women turned to McCardell and other sportswear and less formal designs, like the sundress and swimsuit in figure They were paired with tight-knitted twinsets and while much more casual than the haute couture coming out of Paris, these skirts still followed the line of the New Look with a defined waist and full skirt as seen in figure 9.
Suit , ca. Gift of Mrs. Stephane Groueff, Ensemble , Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, ; Gift of Mrs. William Randolph Hearst, Jr.
Ladies of Vinyl , ca. Source: Pinterest. The Hakama dress , Shoes , ca. Leather, metal. Gift of Bradford Dillman, Though it became increasingly acceptable for women to wear slacks for some occasions, overall the fashion mood in the fifties leaned towards femininity and formality.
This was especially true in eveningwear as the cocktail dress was introduced to the public. Worn to the new cocktail party, these dresses lay in-between daywear and evening gowns, falling at the length of a day dress but embellished like eveningwear Fig. For formal eveningwear, even as sheaths and form-fitting dresses became popular, the full-skirted dress remained the mode throughout the decade, like the highly embellished evening gown by Dior in figure The relatively new strapless bodice was especially popular as the pared-down bodice balanced out the wide skirts.
No matter what time of day, throughout the decade, it was exceedingly important that a woman be impeccably turned out. This meant perfectly groomed hair, spotless makeup, and sets of matching accessories. This was encouraged through the glamorous fashion photography of the day Fig. Those infamous black-toed Chanel shoes Fig. David Kluger, Platinum-palladium print; Source: Wikimedia.
Trailer screenshot [Public domain]. Starring in only three movies within one year, Dean was killed in a car accident at the age of 24 in Despite his short career in film, the popularity of his Rebel Without a Cause character struck a chord with the new generation of young men. The Encyclopaedia Britannica writes:. Together, Dean and Brando ensured the rise of the white t-shirt, jeans, and greased back hair that was pervasive throughout the s.
Significantly, both of these styles were adopted or inspired by working-class men, rather than coming from the elite. While it was originally elegant, upper-class men who wore these suits with narrow trousers, in the early s, young working-class men began to adopt and adapt the style for their own purposes.
While the style was popular and signified a certain type of rebellious young working-class man, it also signified a shift in the ability of the working-class young to consume. Laver writes:. The Teddy Boys were just one part of a rise in youth culture that was seen across both genders and on both sides of the pond. Carl Guderian. A Streetcar Named Desire , Marlon Brando - The Wild One , Ur Cameras.
Elvis Presley in Jailhouse Rock. The Library of Congress. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. Even as young men in both Europe and the United States began adopting new styles, formal daywear and eveningwear for men continued along the same lines throughout the s. Suits maintained the baggy shape that had started in the forties, while skinny ties, like the one in figure 19, rose to prominence.
Tuxedo accessories such as ties and cummerbunds added a pop of color, while less formal eveningwear such as the smoking jacket might come in a color other than black.
Color began to creep into daywear shirts and sweaters, as well Milford-Cottam The Hawaiian shirt, first seen in the late forties, continued to be a popular option for men throughout the fifties. Published in Quick news weekly magazine, Vol. Young girls wore dresses with full skirts and perfectly matching accessories while young boys saw their clothing options becoming more casual.
In previous decades, young boys had typically worn collared shirts, ties, blazers, and shorts until they were old enough to transition to long trousers.
However, in the s, like teenagers and young men, it became increasingly acceptable for boys to wear jeans for most occasions. It became rare throughout the decade for young boys to wear ties and collared shirts were abandoned in the most casual settings.
Colorful and patterned short-sleeved, collared shirts were popular options for everyday wear Fig. Knitted sweaters and cardigans, popular in the forties, continued to be popular in the fifties as it became less common for young boys to wear jackets or blazers. Girl's Dresses , Gouache, ink; 7. New York: Joseph Love, Inc.. Girl's Skirt Sets and Slacks , Gouache, ink; 5 x 11 in. Dropped waists still with full skirts, like that in figure 25 , smock dresses, pinafores, bold colors, and playful patterns all offered different styles.
For less formal occasions, girls might wear a blouse and full skirt held up with suspenders as seen on the right in figure 24 and covered in a matching jacket or cardigan. Novelty items like the poodle skirt Fig. Stripes, florals, plaids, rickrack Fig. Whether at a party or at school, these looks were almost always accompanied by white ankle socks and shiny black patent leather shoes and carefully styled hair perhaps adorned with a ribbon or two bows, as evidenced in the Sears ad in figure At home, girls might have worn overalls or playsuits in casual settings.
For the Holiday Parties , Playsuit , Cotton, mother-of-pearl, metal. Gift of Janelle and Charles E. Whalen, Jr. Upon becoming a father himself, womenswear designer Charles James designed a line of infant clothes in The cotton playsuits, shorts, and dresses were simple yet finished with beautiful mother-of-pearl buttons and other luxurious touches Fig.
But what made the line significant was its construction, as seen in the multi-piece sunsuit on the left in figure The Met writes of the blue playsuit in Fig. The classic pieces come in reds and blues, show subtle nautical inspiration, and give a glimpse into luxury infant pieces from the decade.
Coat , Wool, cotton.
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