Thursday, August 12, 2021

"Wakes" Catalogue, Winter 1950

 Severe and austere in grey, these clothes from the early fifties look as if they were meant to be worn by serious grown-ups.  The suit is tailored in worsted wool flannel, while the coat (worn belted by the model in the middle, as a swing-back by the model on the right) is made in pure wool gabardine.

What I find intriguing about these garments is the width of their shoulders.  We're told that padded shoulders went out a few years after World War II, but here we are in the early fifties and encountering broad shoulders that wouldn't appear out of place in 1980s power dressing.

On page 3 of the catalogue there is a list of what its compilers thought were the fashionable colours for 1950.  For reference, these were:

  • French grey (as seen on the coat on the right)
  • French beige
  • Bamboo shoot green
  • American beauty red
  • Mint green
  • Junior navy
Apart from the red, not exactly a vibrant palette!

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