Wakes, Winter 1942

Japan entered the war in 1942, and for the first time Australia had the enemy on their doorstep.  However, Australian manufacturers were still capable of turning out stylish outfits like the coat and muff (with matching hat) illustrated on the cover of the catalogue below.

COAT AND MUFF, 5 GNS.

A three piece ensemble (the hat sells separately) with furrier-made tawny luxurious leopard-dyed coney fur, mounted on a brilliant Loyal Blue English all wool coating.  Seven panel, slim as a whistle princess with new lines in every inch from moulded, semi-extended, immaculate shoulders to flared full hem.  British rayon lined throughout.  Matched skins and material in the zip closing muff purse.

The Australian winter officially runs from June to August, though Wake's would have issued this catalogue a little bit earlier.  Clothes rationng begun in Australia in the middle of June, but no "coupon" prices are listed for the clothes advertised here.  (Even if they had been aware that rationing was planned while they prepared the catalogue, they couldn't have known the exact coupon value placed on each garment.)  One wonders how Wake's dealt with orders given after rationing was introduced.

Another difficulty facing clothing manufacturers in 1942 was the fact that many materials were going to the military.

Why Your New Coat is Dearer

As all Australian weaving mills are working on war orders, full weight Australian-made coatings are practically unprocurable.  WAKE'S steadfastly refuse to buy, however disguised "Shoddy", which is coating re-made from rags.  Therefore WAKE'S coats are now all tailored from fine expensive ENGLISH woollens specially imported.

Australia was a wool-producing country, but a lot of (most of?) its crop was exported in the form of raw wool.  It looks like Wake's was importing the manufactured article which would have to be transported halfway around the war-torn world.

The other way of dealing with shortages of natural fibres was to use imitation substitutes.

"Likawool" is not real wool, even though we, like you, were deceived at first.  "Likawool" is absolutely new, developed by English technicians to temporarily take the place of wool, which is now almost unprocurable, being diverted to military use.  "Likawool" is just as revolutionary as art-silk was when compared to real silk.

It is a light weight alpaca weave, some of our staff call it feather-weight covert, made of 100% vicose and acetate yarns cleverly cross dyed to simulate the fluffy surface of real wool and with the warmth of wool without the unnecessary bulk.  It drapes like a dream, presses into the sharpest stay-in creases ever pleats divinely, and wears to outlive the popularity of any dress!  You can't fail to love "Likawool" for the way it wears and looks!

CREASE-RESISTING "Likaworsted"

Elder sister of "Likawool", "Likaworsted" is a bigger and even better edition—a cloth with similar yarn construction.  It contains no real worsted yarn, although our best experts could not tell the difference.  "Likeaworsted" is crease resisting.  It is not cross dyed and therefore the woolly surface is not so apparent, which is a characteristic of tighter woven worsted yarn.  Pick "Likaworsted" for your best dresses and dressmaker suits.  Yarn content 100% vicose.

Both vicose and acetate are forms of rayon.   Rayon is known as a "semi-synthetic" material as it is derived from chemically processed wood pulp, and is famous for its ability to mimic other fabrics.  First introduced to the public as "artificial silk" or "art. silk" some decades before, it really came into its own during World War II as a substitute for... practically everything.  It is made to imitate wool by cutting fibres short so they resemble natural animal hair.