How WWII influenced fashion

By the end of the 1930's and in the 1940's fashion changed dramatically.
For women the dresses were more and more practical. Instead of the glamor of the thirties with draped bias cut dresses, a very feminine silhouette with a slender waist showing of curves,  and puffed sleeves by the end of the thirties, the forties were all about practicality. How to look elegant even in wartime? And how did the war change fashion forever?

1930's debutantes in long gowns

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In September 1939 Germany invaded Poland and that was the beginning of WWII with Britain and France declaring war to Germany. In 1940 Germany invaded France and occupied Paris. Big fashion houses like Chanel, Elsa Schiaparelli and Jean Pattou stayed in Paris. They were isolated from the rest of the world. Britain and the US filled the gap in fashion.

In 1940 food was rationed in England, and a year later clothing was rationed as well. There was program for all ration problems called ‘Rationing, Utility and Austerity’ All clothes sold had to be labeled with the Utility Scheme label CC41 . In 1941 Silk was banned as it was needed for manufacturing parachutes. It was forbidden to import clothes, the money for clothing had to fund the war effort. The same thing goes for the US, so they were isolated economies. In 1942 the Board of Trade and London’s Fashion Group worked together to create a suit, dress and overcoat under the given rations with more appeal to the public. The materials used could be no more than 2 3/4 Yards (2m50) for an overcoat, 2 yards (1m80) for a dress and 2,5 yard (2m20) for a suit. There were rules of how a garment was made. Rules included:

-dress may only have 2 pockets
-No metal or leather buttons
-No boys under 13 could wear long trousers
-All embroidery and lace were banned
-Jackets and coats could hove only 3 pockets
-No double breasted Jackets and coats
-Trousers could not be cuffed
-No shirring, rushing, boning or fancy stitching was allowed

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a 1940's 'Utility dress'

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As in Britain, in the US clothing and make-up was rationed. The aims to appear beautiful and strong for patriotism and support.To encourage sales and keep morale high lipsticks had names like ‘Victory Red’. Make up for legs became popular since silk was banned for stockings. Hair was put up in Victory Rolls, which allowed women to keep the hair out of their faces while working in factories, and still look graceful. A snood became also popular. Hollywood lead the way in this new fashion, and make-up artists working in Hollywood stated to commercialize their products (Max Factor

Colors for printed and died fabric was limited. Chemicals were needed in the war industry. So reds, greens and blues were less vibrant then in the thirties. Fashion was also directly influenced by the war as military like suits and dresses were worn by women. And they soon found that these colurs combined perfectly with their ‘Victory Red’ lip stick.


As men were called to the front, women were called upon as work force. Women in factories often wore shapeless jumpsuits, and kept their hair pinned up under a head scarf. ’Rosie the riveter’ became the icon of the working women.

female factory worker in WWII

Rosie the Riveter

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Siren Suit

The practical look was the most prominent in the ‘Siren suit’. In 1939 gas mask were distributed in Britain. Commercial made fashionable leather bags were sold, with compartments for the respirator. A new hairstyle occurred in 1939 the ‘Gas Mask Curl’ with curls on either side of the head leaving the center free for the main strap of the gas mask. In the fall of 1939 Siren Suits appeared in store windows. They were to be worn when the siren sounded. They were zipper closed, one piece jump suits that could be worn over pyjama’s or nightgowns. According to Charles Cunnington, a doctor in London during the war, “It gave the wearer an attractive appearance. So necessary of course when she is about to be blown to fragments, in which case her charm will abruptly cease”
(I will be making the jumpsuits later this year, so follow me on Facebook for more information!)
 

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As for any time really, also in WWII there was anti-fashion. As American Jazz and swing started to spread in the end of the thirties, a subculture of youth used it to dress and act in a rebellious manner. In Germany the ‘Swing Kids” grew their hair longer, wore frivolous clothes or what was considered un-german. in the 1930’s in New York a fashion evolved under young urban black and Hispanic youth. they wore Full legged tapered trousers, very high, oversized jackets with padded shoulders. These ‘Hepcats’ called the suit ‘Zoot’ meaning according to cab Calloways ‘Hepcats dictionary of Jivetalk’ something like ‘the Ultimate’ or ‘exaggerated’. Variations of this style was worn by the paris youth. The suits had shorter trousers with exposed their brightly colored socks, a tie with a tight knot, thin mustache and a quiff of hair completed the look of these ‘Zazous’ (I will go in to this further on my blog next week!)

Dancing the Jitterbug. The man in the middle clearly wears wide legged tapered and cuffed trousers.

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used stockings turned in for the war industry

Although invented before the war, only after the war synthetics became a hit. Viscose was already made by Du Pont in the 1930’s and designers like Elsa Schiaperelli used it a lot. It is light weight and drapes like silk. But as for all materials, they were soon called upon by the war industry. As soon as Nylon was no longer needed for the war, Nylon stockings took a fly.

So considering that all, you might want to respect the 1940's women for keeping a sense of style and grace under these conditions. And it made the way for later generations to start wearing more practical clothing.

Everything was influenced by the war. Not in the least music was. To keep up moral for the men at the front.
This song by Gene Krupa and Anita O'Day is a fine example.