A Glimpse of Stocking (Montgomery Ward, Fall & Winter 1929-20)

 Victorian and Edwardian women's stockings could be surprisingly decorative, but they were not for public display.   In the 1920s, however, skirts became very much shorter, and legs (and the stockings covering them) became a focal point.  How did this change things?  I'm going to take a look at the stockings advertised in a Montgomery Ward catalogue from 1929 to find out. 

The first thing I noticed was that the stockings on offer were plainer and less colourful than their 19th century counterparts.  Victorian women could wear stripes, checks and embroidery under their petticoats.  The modern woman of 1929 was offered a subdued palette including black, "tansan" (dark tan), nude (light tan), pearl blush, gunmetal and medium gray.  Clearly the wearer's legs were the focus, rather than her stockings!

Still lower prices for the Golden Crest full fashioned stockings that were such a sensation last season!  Choice of clear, sheer chiffon or service weight  silk—both in the new narrow French heels or slender pointed heels that make ankles so chic—so charming.  The chiffon are dainty, sheer silk from top to toe with cleverly reinforced silk covered foot to give extra wear and elasticity; fine lisle strengthens the inner surface at points of wear.  The service weight is strong, highly elastic silk well over the knee to the serviceable hem of fine-knit mercerized lisle.  Slipper soles, toes and heels are same fine lisle.

Styles of '65: Blouses and Overblouses (Spiegal & National Bellas Hess catalogs, Spring-Summer 1965)

It's the first of the month, so I'm heading back to 1965 again to look at blouses as advertised in two American mail-order catalogues.

Firstly, Spiegel offers blouses with Bermuda collars, and blouses with ruffles.

Spiegel, Spring-Summer 1965

Left side, top to bottom

GINGHAM WOVEN CHECK; all combed cotton.
PASTELS WITH DACRON*; lustrous, easy-care broadcloth of 65% Dacron polyester, 35% prime cotton.
'SHAKESPEARE' PRINT... sure to be a lively conversation piece!

Right side, top to bottom:

TINY WOVEN CHECKS... they're delightfully dainty in fine all combed cotton.
PASTELS WITH DACRON*, silky-smooth broadcloth of 65% Dacron polyester, 35% combed cotton.
INTRIGUING PAISLEY PRINT; lustrous Avril® rayon and cotton broadcloth.

Though National Bellas Hess was selling its blouses for rather less than Spiegel, the look was very similar.

National Bellas Hess, Spring-Summer 1965

(AA)  Tab and Button Trim overblouse of fine cotton broadcloth
(BB) Embroidery and Ruffled Lace on a fine cotton Broadcloth overblouse
(CC) Bold-Check Sailor Blouse of woven cotton gingham
(DD) Lacy Ascot Tie, lace-ruffled sleeves on a lovely cotton broadcloth blouse
(EE) Zip-Front Overblouse with button-down collar, roll cuffs.
(FF) Lace-lavished Jabot Ruffle, piped neckline, tiny bow
(GG) Big, Bold Checked long-sleeve overblouse of woven cotton gingham

Short, straight overblouses made of cotton or cotton/synthetic blends appear to have been on trend in 1965.  It's a youthful look for a youthful decade.

"Correct Clothing and How it Should Be Made" (Girl's Own Paper, March 31, 1883)

Let's venture back to the early 1880s.  As you can see, the "second bustle" era is getting under way, though at this stage the Girl's Own Paper is only talking about skirts being "fuller" at the back and not about the adoption of "bustles" or "dress improvers". 

 All skirts are decidedly fuller in the back-breadths, and short skirts are worn on all occasions, save very state ones; elderly ladies should wear them touching the ground indoors, and just clearing the ground when walking...

The other thing to note about this era in fashion are the "short" skirts.  From the late 1860s all through the 1870s, fashionable skirts trailed on the ground.  Even the shortest walk out of doors must have left wearers with filthy hems! In the 1880s, skirts would either just touch the ground or just clear it.  The 1890s and 1900s would see long trained skirts return, only to disappear forever in the 1910s.

Waistcoats are used with every style of dress, both for morning and evening. 

In the young girl's walking-dress for the spring the most useful and sensible form is given that I have seen.  It is a kilted skirt, finishing in a flounce, and where the flounce begins there is a gathered puffing.  The overskirt is quite plain, and gathered like a shawl from the left side.  The Breton vest and jacket are intended for walking in, and are so simply braided and made, that it is within the power of any of our girls who have tried to make their own dresses to manage it...

The child's coat is made of a broché cloth... edged with velvet, and the hat is of felt with two silk tassels and a silk cord for its sole trimming.

"Paris Smiles" (Woman's Journal, July 1938)

Here is the first in a series about high fashion in the months leading up to World War II.  

Recently I got hold of a bundle of issues of Woman's Journal from the late 1930s.  Each issue of this British magazine, marketed to a well-off, middle-class readership, contained several pages of colour fashion illustrations.  Some depicted clothes that you could buy, some that you could sew.  But always a few were dedicated to showing the latest designs from the couturiers of Paris.  

As to styles, they are very youthful.  You can have your skirt for the morning tight and short, or short and pleated, with your coat cut to suit your figure—that is very important.  Some girls look right with a hint of a waist-line, others don't.

Paquin

Woman's Journal described these as: "For romantic evenings when we dine out of doors by the light of the dipping sun."

Adorable dress and bolero in bluebell-coloured shirred chiffon with big hat to match, or full skirted white chiffon with fascinating trimmings of tiny jet sequins.  More loveliness in a dress and jacket of yellow organdie—the yellow of sun-ripened corn.

Madame Paquin founded the House of Paquin with her husband in 1891.  She was known for her "rich, glamorous, romantic" clothes during the Belle Epoque and her "tango dresses" during the 1910s.  However, by 1938 she was no longer in charge of the business having retired in 1920.

Australian Home Journal, March 1940

 Let's take a look at another issue of Australian Home Journal—this time from the war years.  As usual it's full of advice for women who are both fashion-conscious and budget-aware.

Dearer Materials.
Quite a number of mothers are wondering if the dress materials will be dearer this season.  Yes, they will be dearer, there is no question of that, and they must remain dear for a long time.  Exchange, freights and war risks have added to the cost of all imported goods, and Australian-made materials are also advancing in price.

 World War II is only a few months old, but it's already having an effect on prices.  Things will only get worse in the coming years. 

Styles of '65: Paisley Prints (Vanity Fair, February 1965)

 It's time to take a walk on the wilder side of the fashions of 1965!  Vanity Fair (the version published in London between 1949 and 1972) had always marketed itself to the "younger, smarter woman".  By 1965, with youthful styles in the ascendant and London starting to swing, Vanity Fair had a front row seat to the newest and grooviest in fashion.

Head over heels in love with prints: paisley in pink is a clinging dress in Tricel jersey with headband and stockings to match; paisley in blue is a loose sweater topping a slim skirt, headscarf and stockings to match.  All by Martha Hill.

To a modern eye, these outfits look like tunics worn over leggings.  However the "leggings" are  described as "stockings"—not "tights"—implying that that they are separate garments held up by some kind of garter belt.  The models' skirts, however, fall well above their knees.  This is the dawn of the age of the miniskirt, though at this stage it had yet to percolate out from London and Paris to the wider world.

Martha Hill was a fashion designer and skin care specialist.  Described as having a "kooky manner" she was in fact a generation older than the baby boomers, and started designing in the 1930s.  However, her clothes hit a sweet spot with the young trendsetters in the 1960s and 1970s.  Which goes to show, I suppose, that it's never too late to have one's time in the sun.

Madame Weigel's Journal of Fashion (February 1930)

 I bought this copy of Madame Weigel's Journal of Fashion at the same time I acquired the copy of Cassell's Family Magazine I wrote about last week.  Madame Weigel's Journal was published to promote Weigel's patterns, and this issue celebrated its 50th anniversary under the proprietorship of Johanna Weigel (yes, there really was a Madame Weigel!)

Inside the magazine are pictures and descriptions of fashionable clothing as worn by middle-class Australian women.  At this stage, only a couple of months into the 1930s, styles looked very much as they belonged in the 1920s.  But change was on the horizon, as noted by Madame Weigel's London correspondent: 

It is really extraordinary to see the way in which fashions have changed since last season.  It is very seldom that such a definite change is made in such a short time, and it is very bad for our purses, although most advantageous for the designers.  But last summer's frocks really can't  be persuaded to do duty again this winter; their whole line is wrong.  All the new frocks fit the figure very closely to the hips, and the waist-line and the hip-line are tightly defined, while below the hip-line the skirt flares out into draperies and panels and flounces.  You have to be thin to wear these dresses successfully, and yet you mustn't be too thin, for there must be a suggestion of curves.

But there's a caveat:

Of course I am only talking about evening frocks and very special afternoon dresses.  For morning and street wear and for sports there is not much change to report; skirts are still short and, for the most part, straight hanging.

"Letter From London by an Australian

Now onto the patterns!

First, the free pattern for a "Lady's Coat" (size medium).

"Chit-Chat On Dress" (Cassell's Family Magazine, February 1895)

I managed to pick up another bound volume of Cassell's Family Magazine the other week.  This one is from 1895, but people who have been following this blog for a while might recall I own a similar volume from 1888.  In 1888 the magazine published a monthly "Chit-chat on Dress" column describing the latest fashions from London and Paris for its female readers.  By 1895 its emphasis had changed: it was still interested in fashionable dress, but it also offered dressmaking patterns so its readers could attempt to make their own versions of the garments described.  (Given the complexity of some of the garments, I suspect many readers enlisted the help of a local dressmaker.)

The February 1895 column begins with the following pronouncement:

SELDOM has Fashion so favoured the contour of a figure that has lost its youthful slimness as at the present moment. 

But let's take a look at a couple of the featured patterns. 

Lounge-Gown for Invalid
Our design... is made in old-rose pink velveteen and Irish point lace, with over-dress of cashmere in either light maize or grey.  The whole of the upper portion, that is, the yoke and sleeves, is made separate and mounted on a short-waisted lining reaching just below the armholes, and the over-dress, cut square back and front, is slipped over the head and fastened on each shoulder beneath the ribbons.

"These Patterns..." (Australian Home Journal, February 1949)

 Fashion can sometimes offer a window onto social and technological change.  For example, the February 1949 issue of the Australian Home Journal advises readers on what to pack for one of those exciting new aeroplane flights. 

Don't Overload
If you are flying—and this is a popular form of travel to-day—you have to whittle your luggage down to essentials because you are only allowed 44 lbs. of luggage—and excess luggage becomes an expensive proposition.
If you plan interchangeable clothes, you'll have less luggage to carry and the right things for the time and the place.

The perennial problem of keeping within one's luggage allowance has arrived!  There are still a few years before our intrepid travellers have to worry about flying "cattle class" or airport security scans, however.  

Styles of 65: "Carefree in Arnel" (Spiegel, Spring-Summer 1965)

 The outfits below are at once relaxed and stylish—and this is why the 1960s is one of my favourite fashion eras!  The coordinating skirts and tops were available in different colours, shown as thumbnails on the same catalogue page as the main photograph.

The garments are all made of "triacetate", a "semi-synthetic" material made of chemically treated wood pulp.  Like fully synthetic materials, triacetate was easy to care for, and like natural fibres it was breathable.  In other words, "carefree"!

"Once More Unto the Beach, Dear Friends" (Rockmans, Summer 1947)

 If in 1929 some people were scandalised by backless bathers, by 1947 some female beachgoers had progressed to two-piece ensembles.  As yet they only revealed a small sliver of midriff, and a matching skirt is provided if the wearer has to preserve her modesty off the beach.

THESE GARMENTS ARE ALL "FRANCIS BOURKE" PRINTS

R1140.  The latest in cotton bathers.  Laced at both sides and gathered in front.  Pants lined with heavy linen.  One-piece back.  In assorted florals and nautical prints.

R1141.  A snappy cotton pinafore with a wide band, fitted waistline, tied at back or buttoned.  In assorted florals.

R1143.  A youthful cotton skirt with wide-fitted waistband.  Cut on cross and very full.  6 Buttons down back.  Assorted floral designs.

"Francis Bourke" was probably Frances Burke, a modernist fabric designer who went into business in Melbourne in 1942.  Among other commissions she designed the fabrics for the Australian embassy in Washington.

"These Patterns Enclosed" (Australian Home Journal, January 1952)

 The Australian Home Journal's free patterns for January were for three summer "frocks".  The magazine gives instructions for making them up, but no suggestions for materials—and come to think of it, no sizes, either.  However, most of the patterns given away in other issues of the Australian Home Journal were sized for a 36 inch bust, and the cover illustration would indicate that printed cottons would be the most likely fabric to be used.

Cool Cottons.
Summer cottons, streamlined for sports, cool for casual wear and becomingly attractive when you feel like dressing up, lend themselves to unlimited variety of designs.  With florals, stripes or plain grounds, they are equally attractive for all ages...

"Bright, Good-Fitting Bathers" (Myer, Spring & Xmas, 1929

Though modest by today's standards, these colourful bathing suits from the Myer catalogue are streamlined and practical.  However, since the lady on the left is wearing a suit made of cashmere, I suspect she wasn't likely to dip it in the sea.

0991—Fine Cashmere.  All-wool BATHING SUIT with plain top and fancy striped skirt.  In assorted colours... Fancy Rubber BATHING CAP.

0992—Gilr's United Style.  All-wool BATHING GOWN: in black, navy and many bright colours.... CAP in smart designs and colours, to tone with gown... COOLIE COATS, in crepe, in floral designs, in bright tonings for maids and children...

Styles of '65: "Fun-In-the-Sun-Clothes" (Flair, January 1965)

1965, and fashion faced in two directions.

On the one hand, Paris was producing some very avant-garde stuff: Saint Laurent designed his "Mondrian" dress, Courreges his "space age" suits and Paco Rabanne his first plastic dress.  Across the Channel in London (yet to be dubbed Swinging London, though it was already swinging) Mary Quant was well established, Biba had opened her first boutique, and John Bates was designing clothes for Diana Rigg in The Avengers.

Meanwhile, in other parts of the world, a more conservative aesthetic prevailed.  Catalogues were filled with pictures of models sporting Chanel-style suits and bouffant dresses, cocktail dresses and beehive hairstyles.  These fashions don't often make the history books, but the majority of women wore them.  Ideas from the cutting edge of fashion (miniskirts!) gradually filtered into the mainstream.

Confusing?  Don't worry.  Contemporaries found it all equally confusing! 

What is happening to Fashion? 

Well may you ask... because lots of exciting things are happening right now, especially in Paris!  Take the trouser-suit for instance... whether you're for or against it, it's going to cause a strong ripple in the local fashion scene this winter... and so will bonnets, crochet sweaters, feather boas, black velvet, jungle-print stockings and nanny-type alligator shoes!  

COVER: The fresh look of mid-summer fashion is eloquently stated by an overblouse of printed Arnel sharkskin, teamed with plain canary bermudas of the same fabric...

Perfect clothes to wear on a beach... as shown here.  Or at a picnic, a barbeque or any other casual outdoor entertainment.