Essay about Fashion In The 20th Century

“In any era, fashion is a reflection of the time and what is going on in the culture politically, socially and economically.”1 The 1920’s witnessed a variety of dramatic changes for women; these changes, such as shorter dresses and stronger attitudes occurred primarily after World War I in spite of the prolonged development of women 's’ rights through 1914 and 1920. With their new hair, fashion styles, and attitudes, women had started what became known as the “Flapper Era”.

Women’s fashion was a social controversy in the 1920’s. This controversy was influenced by women’s clothing, swimwear, hairstyles, makeup, and attitude alone. This attire and new found character traits added a certain attitude and confidence to these women, starting what would eventually be remembered as a revolution.

People may say that the true years of fashion began in the late nineteen forties and went on through the early nineteen sixties. If you look at fashion today, its almost repeated the look from sixty years ago. In each generation fashion trends become based on history and/or important events. in the nineteen forties fashion was being modeled by the military wear. World War II caused a drastic change in the way clothes were being made and worn. In the nineteen fifties Americans admired the fashion of movie stars and music artists. Media had a strong influence on the wordly trend. The people of the sixties expressed there personalities and emotions through

The 1920’s fashion was a period of liberation, change, and even more importantly a movement towards the modern era. Fashion in the 1920’s varied throughout the decade but one could see the noticeable change from the previous fashion statements and eras. At the start of the decade, women began emancipating themselves from the constricting fashions by wearing more comfortable apparel. As women gained more rights and World War I forced them to become more independent, flappers came to be, mass-produced garments became available, and artistic movements increased in popularity, one can see how the fashions from the roaring twenties characterized the time and redefined womanhood. (1920s clothing 1)

How adolescence behaved during the 1920’s altered the future generations to come in many different ways. One of these ways includes how they dressed themselves. Before the 1920’s girls wore dresses normally past their knees, but during this era they began to wear shorter clothing items above their knees. Very similar nowadays, girls are wearing

Throughout the 1920s through the 1950s Women’s clothing in America was affected by World War II, which lead to the exploration of different styles, the encounter of new trends and the exchange of ideas and new styles.

Before the Roaring Twenties, women were still wearing floor-length dresses with corsets, and crinolines, arms and legs were covered, hair was long. This Gibson girl look was set the standard for beauty, fashion and manner. And the Victorian attitudes toward dress and etiquette created a strict moral climate.

Fashion is very important in modern day society, and can be seen all around. Most of what people know about fashion today came from the fashion during the renaissance. From the vibrant fabrics to the spectacular jewels, renaissance fashion has been thoroughly threaded in the fashion of modern society. Modern day women often wear shorty, fun gowns, tightly fitting jeans, and lower cut tops. Popular fashion trends for men in modern society include saggy jeans, V-neck shirts, and stylish watches. “A fashion is merely a form of ugliness so unbearable that we are compelled to alter it every six months” (Oscar Wilde). Fashion in modern day society is ever changing, but most changes do not stray too far from the original product.

After the War Chanel returned to Paris in 1953 to find that Parisian women were obsessed with Christian Dior and the “New Look”, which is a very feminine

As more American ladies entered the military or took regular citizen employments in industry to bear on the work of men who had gone off to war; ladies needed designs that were less frilly and more suitable for work. They likewise needed apparel styles like the outfits worn by their men. When all is said in done ladies ' apparel got to be uninteresting and viable and limited however most importantly; utilitarian. There was little frill on the first things in light of the fact that beautification obliged extra fabric and materials. However ladies as often as possible connected their frill: like bows and periphery; to emerge in a swarm. Ladies ' shirts and coats embraced the square shaped - square carried look of the military uniform by sewing modest shoulder braces into the

Fast forward to Chanel’s young adult life, and you can see it wasn’t long off that she would set up shop in Paris, France in 1910, eventually expanding out to Deauville, and then Biarritz. She had started off with designing, and marketing hats which became a very successful hit amongst the fashionistas of that day. Chanel’s empire was growing exponentially, and in 1920 she expanded into the realms of couture now working in jersey which at the time was unheard of in the French fashion circle. Soon she was blurring the lines of what was acceptable, setting fashion trends instead of adhering to the routine, and was giving way to entire style genres such as the “chemise” and the “little boy” look. Her fashion statements were a gigantic contrast to what was socially acceptable, and of course Chanel fell under scrutiny over it, but she went on to create more casual, shorter, and idyllically “liberating” clothing for the day’s modern woman. In essence she was liberating women from the stuffy, confining fashions that they were used to, and giving way to a loose more relaxed style all together while maintaining it’s inherent feminine charm. Chanel was creating more than just a design, or an article of clothing, she was creating a movement that would change the way society viewed fashion in it’s entirety. (Lewis)

Women’s fashion was a social controversy in the 1920’s. This controversy was influenced by women’s clothing, swimwear, hairstyles, makeup, and attitude alone. This attire and new found character traits added a certain attitude and confidence to these women, starting what would eventually be remembered as a revolution.

The 1920’s, also called the roaring 20’s, was a time of change. During this time period the fashion for both men and women was changing immensely. The aftermath of WWI caused America to enter a vigorous era. As a result of the role of women during the war, many customs and morals were changing. The Stock Market started booming, many new dances and music came about, and women got the right to vote and enter the workforce. There was an uprise in almost every activity, and fashion was definitely one (Tirocchi, Anna and Laura). Although fashion varied throughout the decade, one could notice a drastic change from the prior fashion.

The Years between the 1950’s and 1960’s was an explosive time in fashion. The 50’s represented an out coming of the new generation. People began to gain their own personal style and appearance, influenced by films and singers (“Vintage Fashion”). Their styles incorporated leather, jeans, corduroy, and the ballet shoes for the girls. Men’s wear began to drastically change. Men would wear a leather jacket, with jeans that narrowed at the bottom, and a simple t-shirt (Peacock 210-211). This was the first time in history that jeans were not just worn by the working class but by all men (“Brief History”). The man’s lust for flesh grew during this time, so women’s skirts began to get shorter and the bikini was invented. Clothes were made to glorify the female body and emphasize every curve. It wasn’t until the Barbie doll was created in the late 50’s that young girls began to have a separate fashion from their mothers. Young girls would wear sweaters with full skirts or pants

A lot has changed and evolved in the history of fashion since the 1900s. As the century dawned, fashion was an exclusive enterprise, the pursuit of wealth. The average person in society settled for garments that were usually stitched at home. With time, however, networks of neighborhood tailors began to evolve into a retail history and the boom was followed by boutique selling.