A Bygone Era: A Look Into The Past, Pt. 2

Annnnnnndddddd we're back, going live from the commentator's booth where we're checking in on the fashions and history of the twentieth century to the present. In this post, we're going to wrap up our series on clothes, (noo!), and dive deeper into our fashions and standards today and why they matter (yay!!). Get yourself some popcorn and settle in, cause we're about to hit play and there won't be a rewind button!

(Welcome back, reader. Was that intro totally cringe? Don't worry, I know it was. Too bad. It's been a long day, and I'm too excited to get to the actual content of this post, so deal with it.)

The Roaring Twenties:

The "roaring" twenties covers the years 1920-1929, and it's named such because after World War One, everything changed and shifted all at once. From what genre of music was popular to the way women cut their hair, everything charged full steam ahead and the party was roaring on (anyone hear Jay Gatsby?).

Well, the women of this era had had enough of corsets and long skirts. While not all of them adopted the famous "flapper" persona and look, many of the dresses and styles were shaped by this evolving look at fashion. Hemlines were at the knee (shocking!), drop waists were popular, and short and loose sleeves for easy movement became common. Lots of embroidery, sequins and velvet were tossed around.

This was also the era of the rise of sports' clothes and athletic wear. Basically, anything that allowed for mobility and comfort was a go.

The Great Depression:

In the 1930s, waistlines returned to their normal place and would remain there for the rest of the decade. Unlike the twenties, which emphasized youth in all their fashions, the thirties pushed for a womanlier silhouette, with fabric that hugged the body and emphasized curves.

This was also the era that gave rise to the bias cut. As a seamstress myself, I think this is beyond clever, and I'm blown away by how someone figured it out, but it's complicated to explain in just words, so I'll give you the simplified version: when you cut out fabric for a sewing pattern, you're instructed most of the time to cut it along the grain line. The grain line is essentially the direction the threads are woven in, and it's extremely important to follow this line in order to achieve the proper look as far as how your fabric lays.

The bias cut is not cut on the grain line, instead it's cut on a 45-degree angle from the grain line. This made the fabric stretch more and be more drapey, creating flowing evening dresses that bring to mind the iconic thirties' ballgown.

Fabric prints were also common, with fabric coming in geometric designs, florals, lettering, and even picture prints. Also, gloves and hats hit a peak in this era. They're so dainty and feminine- like literally the only reason I would ever want to live in the thirties would be for the hats.

World War Two:

In case you haven't noticed yet, the twentieth century was the century for major historical events. World War Two broke in Europe, and America joined shortly afterwards. The wartime rations and need for frugality meant less fabric, which forced skirts tighter and shorter. This is where the pencil silhouette and padded shoulders come from too. Boxy and straight hemlines were in style too, inspired by military uniforms- because every girl wanted to look like her dirty, unhygienic boyfriend who was busy battling rats in the trenches of France.

Minimal jewelry was worn, and clunky heels were popular again.

This is also when women's pants became popular, as women who took over men's factory jobs needed to be able to have full mobility and not be limited in their clothes.

The 1950's:

AH!!! WE'VE MADE IT TO MY FAVORITE ERA!

The 50s was the decade of the baby boom, peak Hollywood, and industry. After World War Two, people were desperate to make America bigger and brighter, which is why this era is the rise of the American dream. America became prosperous, the men came home from the war, married their sweethearts, and started having babies, Hollywood was on a rise, and anything that glittered was considered worth having.

But anyways, we only care about the dresses here.

I'm like, 95% sure that these ladies had PTSD from the war days of slim skirts and not having enough fabric. If dresses in the 40s were about frugality, dresses in the fifties were like hey-let's-use-as-much-fabric-as-humanly-possible-in-one-skirt. Circle skirts were born in this decade, which is basically where you cut the skirt in one giant circle, creating a lot of excess fabric and a swooshy, full skirt.

Gloves and hats were back, jewelry returned, and everything was about helping women look and feel as feminine as possible.

Today:

I could literally lament the loss of the fifties fashions for days. All that I want is to wear big skirts and red lipstick and have an excuse to twirl around all the time.

Obviously, that's not the world we live in. Instead, we live in a world where girls are allowed to wear basically whatever they want, whether that's skin-tight jeans or cropped sweatshirts that show just a little too much. I don't have time to get into modesty (although we will have a post all about modesty soon!) and that's a whole separate issue, but I do think that there really is something to the standards women had about what they wore back then.

Dresses and skirts were designed to make women feel feminine. They helped protect that which is most sacred to a woman- her femininity.

We live in a world and a culture that says that women have to look like men and be like men to be successful. We think that we need to look like big, bad and tough girlbosses to be taken seriously.

But girls: that is so not true. What makes us special and unique is the fact that we are feminine, and that we have something precious and sweet that God designed us with. I think that we've forgotten how to display that.

Which is why that I will always be in love with any soft, flowy dresses I manage to dig up. ;)

Until next time, stay undistracted, and keep a ready bible.

-Mira ♥