The 1940’s saw many changes throughout the
decade as far as fashion is concerned. The beginning of the decade brought with
it the times of war and rationing on many items - including fabrics and other textiles - while
with the premier of Dior’s “New Look” towards the tail end of the decade really
paved the way for all things fashionable and led to what fashion styling has
grown into today.
Notably, to recreate the vintage styles of the
1940’s, I recommend looking for monochromatic dresses and 2-piece suits in
fabrics such as wool, tweed, crepe, or cotton.
Popular “cuts” of the clothing
including gathers at the shoulder, tight-fitting bodices or peplum cut jackets
that almost notoriously are paired with an a-line skirts featuring a prominent
accent such as a fan pleat in the back or front, accentuated stitch-trim or
rick-rack, gathers at the shoulders or buttons down the front. If they weren’t
plain, simple patterns such as small florals, polka dots, or plaids carried on.
As shown here, dresses were quite monochromatic with little
added details like this cummerbund style waist, gathers at the shoulders and a simple but eye catching print:
Here's another 1940's lovely with timeless polka dots and those simple details I have mentioned. Here notice this one's ties at the shoulder tops and scalloped waist trim. Gah.
Notice how they used belts to show off their natural waists:
Peplum was prominent! Here's some more great examples:
By selecting dresses that mirror these, you will be sure to pull over that timeless 1940's style you crave in the line of dresses. However, you could elect to go two other directions with your 1940's look.
"Pull Out Your Inner Rita or Katherine and Just Wear Pants"
These woman were trailblazers of their time, not only in entertainment but in the fashion world as well. Pants were on their way to acceptance socially for women during this time and women like Rita and Katherine were just a couple who bravely publicized their love of wearing pants as opposed to feminine dresses. Here's a look at them:
By purchasing high-waisted and wide legged trousers and pairing them up with a button front blouse, you will be sure to pull off this ultimate classic look.
I love to dress like this myself from time to time and always have people dig the look. Here I am with my vintage husband dolled up for the 40's look that I paired here with with a pin dot blouse originally from the 1940's:
Another style you could go for would be a "Military" style or "Post War" look. This would include heavy wools, flax, and stable, steady jackets. Here's a sneak peek at some examples you could try to pull together to pull off the post war look.
Notice the gals above sporting "crop" pants. These paired with a straight vest or military styled jacket such as the gal second from the left pictured above would be a look that would be sure to snag hundreds of compliments.
The infamous triple sister singing group who entertained soldiers around the world, The Andrews Sisters, pictured below show off a lovely ensemble you could easily recreate by selecting items like a brown pencil skirt, tan button front blouse with tie and vintage tie clip, and pick up a vintage army hat at an army surplus store. Sometimes antique shops carry authentic military uniforms too.
I was able to recreate this look myself with one of my Etsy models in my shop after some amazing vintage military items were brought in. Here's a look at what we came up with together. She went on to shoot in this outfit at a local Air Museum with some old war planes. A perfect turn out, don't you think?
By looking for items such as outlined in this blog post, whether at a charity shop or specialty vintage shop you will
successfully pull off the style of the 1940’s! Never forget to shop
online at site such as Ebay or Etsy
for authentic vintage clothing and accessories. Thanks for reading!
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