A Decade of Dresses 6 (1970s)

 The 70s—also known as the decade that taste forgot!  Speaking sartorially, it was also the decade that began with "do your own thing" and ended with "dress for success".

Style Pattern Book, Spring 1970

This dress is a miniskirt (as shown by a small black and white photo of the same garment inside the catalogue) but it also has some details that are very characteristic of the early 1970s.  The long pointed collar is one of these, as are the sleeves gathered into deep cuffs.  

David Jones, Spring and Summer 1971

These two dresses take their inspiration from the thirties (though they are very definitely of the seventies).  Hemlines have dropped, colours are more subdued, and they are made up in very retro-looking floral prints.  Nostalgia plays a key role in many fashions in this decade.  However there are still many shorter, brighter dresses sharing the pages of same catalogue 

 

Vogue Patterns International, Spring 1972

These two dresses on the cover of Vogue Patterns International illustrate the classic style that became typical of the mid-seventies.  Everything is moderate: the skirts, at knee length, are neither too short or too long, the silhouette is neither too loose nor too fitted, and the shoulders are (as yet) unpadded.  The look is somewhat reminiscent of the 1940s, except the model on the right is flashing rather more leg than would have been thought appropriate in 1940!

Burda Moden, June 1973

The style is classic, but 1970s influence can be seen in the choice of materials and colours.  While shades of orange, brown and yellow were most popular for interior design they did make their way into clothing as well.  This particular shade is described as "coral", and the material is double (polyester) crepe.

McCall's Carefree Fashion Catalog, Summer 1974

This pattern is designed for "unbonded stretchable knits".  The knits in question were most likely to have been polyester.

David Jones, Spring and Summer 1975

By this stage it should be no surprise that these dresses are made of polyester!  The mitred stripes on the dress on the left suggest that it was cut on the bias.  If you look at the photo closely, there are hints that skirts are becoming fuller and bodices less fitted than in the early seventies.  By the late seventies women's fashionable dresses could be extremely loose and baggy—though contemporary fashion reporters never described them that way!

Simplicity Pattern Book, Summer 1976

High-waisted dresses became a thing in 1976, along with moderately full skirts.  This example is made of "100% cotton!" and is plainly not designed for stretch fabrics or knits.  

Vogue Patterns, Summer 1977

Diane von Furstenberg designed these dresses for Vogue Patterns in 1977.  The shirt-dress at the left has a loose sash belt (in the same material as the dress) at the natural waist.  The pullover dress on the right has no waist at all, and hangs like a shift from the shoulders.

Style Pattern Book, Summer 1978

This romantic dress (made in a polyester-cotton mix) from 1978 has a high waist seam, but hangs loose and unfitted.  Summer dresses in the late seventies took a very soft and feminine turn, mixing pastels and "peasant" styles in a kind of rural fantasy.  These fashions somehow managed to exist alongside of denim jeans, flashy disco wear and "dress for success" separates.

Simplicity Pattern Book, Summer 1979

Lastly, florals, florals, florals!  There are plenty of dresses in solid colours inside this catalogue, but the blouson top and full but not bouffant skirt shown here are typical of the styles on offer.

A final note: This was by far the hardest of the "Decades of dresses" post for me to do, because for the first time since the 1920s one-piece dresses started to play second fiddle to separates.  However, dresses seem to have had a little revival by the end of the decade.  I wonder what the 1980s will hold?