What was the fashion of the post-war years, or what women wore when the country was starving

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Post-war fashion is unique in that it was created on two mutually exclusive factors. The first is the desire of women to start living a normal life as soon as possible, the second is the lack of any resource for this. Women, perhaps, were saved only by the fact that during the war years they managed to get used not only to save money and survive in conditions of acute deficit, but also to implement the saying that “the need for invention is cunning”.

Since the 40s, any global fashion trend has been driven solely by war and the restrictions that it imposed. Even after the end of World War II, women were forced to continue to wear what they had, and fashion trends did not take root in any way. It is not surprising, here, as they say, "not to fat …" Women, for the most part, left without male attention, and did not see much interest in outfits and beauty, no matter how fashionistas exclaim that this is all "for themselves", when there is no one to turn around, you don't even want to wear the outfits you have.

But confirming the fact that the desire for beauty and the desire to please are the very essence of a woman, already in 1947, the new format of female beauty proposed by Christian Dior took root and began to be replicated to the masses, albeit not as confidently as before. Until that moment, fashion remained more military and very scarce, after that it became exponentially feminine, because the ladies were so tired of military uniforms, male silhouettes and hard fabrics.

The main fashion trends 1940-1945

The war tried on a masculine image on women, the silhouette became more masculine, with emphasized shoulders and narrow hips. It was in this era that shoulder pads became widespread, which were actively worn until the end of the 50s. Hard fabrics, modeled on military uniforms, kept their shape perfectly and made the figure clear and fit. Many details of women's clothing that came into use at that time, shoulder straps, patch pockets and wide belts with square buckles, are still actively worn, because, as it turned out, they, playing on contrasts, make the figure feminine and graceful.

Skirts became noticeably shorter, if earlier the traditional skirt reached the floor or was at least below the knee, then in the described era, even wedding dresses were sewn above the knee. And the point is not that moral principles have changed, it is obvious that not only much less fabric is used for a short skirt, but it is also much more convenient to work in them than in dresses to the floor. But trousers were also worn more actively than skirts, if earlier there could be questions to ladies dressed in male likeness, then the forced work in production and in the household instead of men gave women the opportunity to completely adopt this detail of the wardrobe.

As for accessories, they also underwent changes during the war years, ladies began to pay more attention to hats. This is probably due to the fact that they had little opportunity to update the outfit completely, so the hats could well refresh the image at no special cost. If a hat is expensive, then a turban on your head can be made from almost any material or thing. It is no wonder that turbans became perhaps the most fashionable and demanded accessory of this time. In addition, they could easily hide hair that was not always properly cared for in wartime. As for footwear, a wooden sole has come into use as a practical and cheap replacement for the usual sole. Leather became too scarce, because boots for the military were massively sewn from it.

How can you stop a woman who needs a new dress? Tablecloths, curtains and even … parachutes were used. For example, in Germany it was forbidden to use strategic materials, so European fashionistas took a serious risk, making outfits for themselves from a fallen parachute. This silk was especially good for wedding and evening dresses.

The modern patchwork also helped out, because the patches, different in color and texture, were so often combined in one thing that, in the end, it became fashionable. At the same time, they came up with the idea of covering the buttons with fabric, simply because finding the same could be too difficult a task, but giving them “uniformity” with the help of shreds was much easier and more practical.

The hairstyles that were held in high esteem in the 30s went out of fashion, and soft waves were too much of a luxury in wartime. Women began to collect their hair in a bun, cover it with a net, besides, many hairdressing salons were closed, the masters did not work, this led to the fact that everyone began to wear long hair, which was easier to collect or pin. As for the make-up, if it did exist, it most often boiled down to brightly painted lips, the eyebrows were subtly plucked. A cigarette, arrows drawn in pencil on non-existent stockings, or white socks under sandals - this is how women of fashion looked in those years.

Post-war era

But the desire to live a familiar life takes up, and the place of a strict and masculine silhouette is taken by the feminine hourglass figure and the styles that emphasize it. And this also has an explanation. If during the war years a woman was required to be tough and strong, to be similar to men, then after the end of the war, a different role falls on her shoulders - procreation. Moreover, in order to compensate for the demographic losses, a woman had to be also fertile. That is why the fashion of the post-war years is so alluring and seductive, emphasizing the femininity of forms.

Dior proposed a new look that emphasized the waist, steep hips and a lush bust, but this image did not immediately take root. Moreover, when the first show took place, the designer was bombarded with accusations of lack of practicality and the imposition of outdated styles. But this was not the most important thing, such styles of dresses implied a large consumption of fabric, which was still in short supply at that time.

But historical facts were clearly on the side of Dior, because women, in the end, realized that seduction is what they need. It is not surprising, there are few men left, there are many women who want their attention. In this "war", a thin waist, neckline and appetizing hips will definitely not be superfluous. The question of underwear became acute, if at the time of T-silhouettes women did not really think about the shape of their breasts, then when they began to wear a neckline, it became clear that a bra, no matter how scarce it was, needed to be obtained.

Black and brown are probably all the colors that were worn, including by women, during the war years. Practical and non-marking, it has become so widely used that it turned out to be more difficult to teach ladies to wear bright clothes than you might imagine. But Dior found a way out here too, offering a luxurious and deep pearl gray shade. It was this color that was transitional, because after five years, women will try on all the splendor of shades, peas and stripes, and their dresses will rather resemble a flower bed full of flowers.

Soviet women, of course, did not threaten Dior's new look, in the 50s they wore clothes that were in use even in wartime, but the "dudes" were already ready to break into the country's fashionable stage and make an aesthetic revolution there. This style finally took root on the Soviet catwalks, when Lyudmila Gurchenko appeared in 1956 in the "Blue Light" in a matching dress. This marked a new era, which was now officially inaugurated.

How the war contributed to the mixing of fashion cultures

During the Finnish war, the Soviet troops had already managed to make sure that the bourgeois world is not at all as terrible as it seemed in the Union. The Finns, retreating, left Vyborg in their usual surroundings. The apartments had furniture and clothing and even refrigerators powered by electricity. Before allowing Soviet troops into the city, the city was carefully stripped of its bourgeois gloss and splendor. But even in this case, the difference was too obvious and, despite all the efforts of the Soviet leadership, it was not possible to completely exclude the European trends. In the USSR, during the Second World War, military fashion was divided into two camps, some territories lived under occupation for 2 years, this is quite a long time to take over the peculiarities of their culture from the Germans. In addition, the soldiers of the Reichstag always willingly showed Soviet residents their films with women dressed in European fashion. The United States also contributed by sending humanitarian aid in the form of used clothes. This was enough for this very culture to burst into the territory of the Union, which so carefully protected the minds of its citizens from the pernicious influence of Western culture. So Soviet citizens saw new styles, crazy colors and fabrics, which in their country were from the word "absolutely".

Soviet fashion magazines began to print models from German and European magazines. After the end of the war, soldiers brought home trophies from all over Europe, which generated another wave of interest in European fashion and culture. In the USSR, these things were most often sold at markets and thrift stores. Sometimes women, not accustomed to bourgeois luxury, mistook nightgowns and peignoirs of European fashion houses for evening dresses and tried to put them on for publication, although this, rather, resembles a legend invented in order to ridicule the fashionable ignorance of Soviet women. At the same time, there is a surge of interest in fur products, because a real "trophy beauty" could not do without a boa or a clutch.

Military and post-war men's fashion

As for clothing for men, the war did not have such a strong influence on it, because almost the entire male population spent most of the time in military uniform. But the post-war period was marked by a noticeable increase in the quality of fabrics and styles. Many Jewish tailors fled from the Nazis and settled in the USSR, it was from them that new styles and a more elegant approach to tailoring men's clothing went. The Soviet leadership ordered costumes from fugitive Jews who migrated from Poland and Lithuania. The trophy on men's fashion almost did not affect in any way, except that it made adjustments to the cut of the jackets, the fabric became softer. From that time on, men began to wear shirts with soft collars that did not involve ties. Fashion and the desire to look attractive, despite the fact that they do not compare with basic needs, are always highly valued by the fair sex. World fashion allows you to look differently at historical facts, because women used every opportunity to make military life at least a little like ordinary. Even if they had to wear military uniforms and, together with men, endure the hardships of front-line everyday life, there was always a place for love and human relations..