10:10 07/04/2012
The development of fashion in the 1910s of the XX century was largely determined by global events, the main of which was the First World War 1914-1918. The changed living conditions and worries that ended up on women's shoulders demanded, first of all, convenience and comfort in clothes. The financial crisis associated with the war also did not contribute to the popularity of luxurious dresses made from expensive fabrics. However, as is often the case, difficult times created an even greater demand for beautiful clothes: women, not wanting to put up with circumstances, showed miracles of ingenuity in search of fabrics and new styles. As a result, the second decade of the 20th century was remembered for models that combined elegance and convenience, and the appearance of the legendary star Coco Chanel in the fashion sky.
At the beginning of the second decade of the twentieth century, Paul Poiret remained the main dictator in the fashion world. In 1911, women's trousers and culottes made a splash. The fashion designer continued to popularize his work through social events and various trips. Poiret noted the creation of the Thousand and One Nights collection with a luxurious reception, and later in the same 1911 he opened his own school of arts and crafts, Ecole Martin. Also, the fashion revolutionary continued to publish books and catalogs with his products. Then Poiret went on a world tour, which lasted until 1913. During this time, the artist has shown his models in London, Vienna, Brussels, Berlin, Moscow, St. Petersburg and New York. All his shows and trips were accompanied by articles and photographs in newspapers, so that the news about the French couturier spread all over the world.
Poiret was not afraid of experiments and became the first fashion designer to create his own fragrance - Rosina perfume, named after his eldest daughter. In 1914, with the outbreak of the First World War, the House of Paul Poiret ceased its activities, and the artist made an attempt to return to the world of fashion only in 1921.
This, however, turned out to be a failure, largely due to the fact that the luxurious and exotic style of Poiret was supplanted by the revolutionary models of Coco Chanel.
Emancipation and the first practical models
The first step in the transition to "comfortable" fashion was the final disappearance of corsets, voluminous hats, and "limping" skirts from women's wardrobes. In the early 1910s, new models came into use, the main among them was the "yule skirt" with a high waist, wide hips, drapery and narrow at the ankles. As for the length, until 1915 the hem of the dresses reached the ground. Skirts, on the other hand, were shortened a little: models came into fashion that reached “only” up to the leg lift. Dresses were often worn with capes, and dresses with a train were also popular. A V-shaped neckline was common, not only on the chest, but also on the back.
The craving for practicality touched not only clothing, but the entire female image. In the second decade of the twentieth century, ladies for the first time stopped doing intricate elegant hairstyles and opened their necks. Short haircuts have not yet become as widespread as in the 1920s, but the fashion for long, beautifully styled hair on the head has become a thing of the past.
At that time, operetta was extremely popular throughout Europe, and the dancers who performed on stage became an example to follow, including in terms of clothing. Along with the operetta, the audience enjoyed the cabaret, and especially the tango dance. Especially for the tango, a stage costume was invented - Turkish harem pants, as well as draped skirts, in the cuts of which the dancers' legs were visible. Such outfits were used only on stage, but in 1911 the Parisian fashion house "Drecol and Beschoff" offered the ladies the so-called trouser dresses and a skirt-trousers. The conservative part of French society did not accept the new outfits, and those girls who dared to appear in them in public were accused of denying generally accepted moral standards. Women's trousers, which first appeared in the early 1910s, were negatively received by the public and became popular only much later.
In 1913, emancipant women began to protest in Europe against movement-restricting clothing, insisting on the appearance of simple cut and comfortable models. At the same time, there was still a slight but tangible influence of sports on everyday fashion. Abundant stripes and decorations, intricate appliqués and details that adorned clothes began to disappear. Women allowed themselves to bare their arms and legs. In general, the cut of clothes has become much more free, shirts and dress shirts have come into fashion.
All these trends were characteristic of casual wear, while dressy models were still kept in the style of the 1910s. High-waisted dresses with elements of oriental style, models with a narrow bodice and wide skirt with frills were still popular in the world. A pannier skirt came into fashion, the name of which is translated from French as "basket". The model was distinguished by a barrel-shaped silhouette - the hips were wide, but the front and back of the skirt was flat. In short, the outfits for going out were more elegant and conservative, and some fashion designers sought to keep the trends observed in the fashion of the 1900s. Erte became the most notable among the artists who adhered to conservative models.
Loud debut of the great Erte
The most popular fashion designer Erte, whose name is associated with luxurious and feminine images of the second decade of the twentieth century, did not recognize the trend towards practicality and functionality.
© provided by the Internet agency "Bi-group"
Sketch of a dress by fashion designer Erte (Roman Petrovich Tyrtov)
Roman Petrovich Tyrtov was born in 1892 in St. Petersburg, and at the age of twenty he moved to Paris. Erte took the pseudonym from the initial letters of the name and surname. Even as a child, the boy showed a penchant for drawing and design. From the age of 14, he attended classes at the Academy of Fine Arts in St. Petersburg, and after moving to the French capital, he went to work at the Paul Poiret House. His high-profile debut in Paris was the creation of costumes for the play "The Minaret" in 1913. The very next year, when Erte left the House of Poiret, his models were very popular not only in France, but also in the theater troupes of Monte Carlo, New York, Chicago and Glyndbourne. Music halls filled the talented fashion designer with orders, and Erte created costumes for productions such as Irwin Berlin's Music Box Repertoire, George White's Scandals and Mary of Manhattan. Each image created by the couturier was his own creation: in his work, Erte never relied on the experience of his colleagues and predecessors.
The most recognizable image created by the fashion designer was the mysterious beauty, wrapped in luxurious furs, with many accessories, the main of which were long strands of pearls and beads, topped with an original headdress. Erte created his outfits, inspired by ancient Egyptian and Greek mythology, as well as Indian miniatures and, of course, Russian classical art. Denying a non-fitted silhouette and abstract geometric patterns, Erte became the chief artist of the Harpers Bazaar magazine in 1916, a contract with which he was offered by magnate William Hirst.
© RIA Novosti Sergey Subbotin
Cover of the magazine "Women's business"
Popular even before the outbreak of the First World War, Erte was one of the trendsetters until his death in 1990 at the age of 97.
War and fashion
The dispute between adherents of the old style and supporters of practical clothing was decided by the First World War that began in 1914. Women, forced to do all the male work, simply could not afford to dress up in long puffy skirts and corsets.
During this period, functional details began to appear in clothing, referring to the military style - patch pockets, turn-down collars, jackets with lacing, lapels and metal buttons that girls wore with skirts. At the same time, women's suits came into fashion. The hard years brought with them another reform: comfortable knitwear was used in tailoring, from which jumpers, cardigans, scarves and hats were created. Casual dresses, the length of which became shorter and reached only to the calves, were worn with high, coarse lace-up boots, under which women wore leggings.
In general, this time can be described as a spontaneous search for new forms and styles, a passionate desire to get away from all the fashionable standards that were imposed by fashion houses in the 1900s. Trends literally replaced one another. Common to the wartime silhouettes was the freedom of cut, sometimes even the "saggy" clothes. Now the outfits did not emphasize all the curves of the female figure, but, on the contrary, hid it. Even the belts no longer fitted the waist, not to mention the sleeves, blouses and skirts.
The war, perhaps, made women much more independent than all the emancipant outbursts that characterized the early 1910s. First, women took over the work that men used to do: they took places in factories, hospitals and offices. In addition, many of them ended up in auxiliary military services, where working conditions dictated practicality as the main criterion when choosing clothes. The girls wore uniforms, khaki sports shirts and caps. Perhaps, for the first time, women felt their independence and significance, became confident in their strengths and intellectual abilities. All this allowed the ladies themselves to direct the development of fashion.
© Illustration from the book "Icons of Style. The History of Fashion of the 20th Century. Edited by G. Buxbaum. St. Petersburg. "Amphora", 2009"
Dartey "Military crinoline", drawing 1916.
During the war, when almost all fashion houses were closed, women voluntarily got rid of all imposed canons, freeing clothes from unnecessary details. The practical and functional style took root and fell in love so much that the fashion houses that resumed their activities after the war were forced to follow new trends, and attempts to regain popularity of the previously relevant crinoline and uncomfortable "narrow" styles ended in failure.
Of particular note, however, appeared at the same time and became extremely popular "military crinolines". These puffy skirts differed from their predecessors in that they used not the usual hoops, but a large number of petticoats. It took a lot of fabric to sew such outfits and, despite the low quality, the price of "military crinolines" was quite high. This did not prevent the voluminous skirt from becoming one of the main hits of the war, and later this model became a symbol of the romantic style caused by general protest and war weariness. Unable to resist the mastered practical style, fashion designers decided to bring originality and beauty to simple-style outfits through details and finishes. Dresses "haute couture" were richly decorated with pearls, ribbons, appliqués and beads.
The impact of the First World War on fashion cannot be described only by the emerging trend towards practicality. Soldiers who participated in battles in foreign territories brought home as trophies, including new exotic fabrics, as well as hitherto unseen shawls, scarves and jewelry from Tunisia and Morocco. Fashion designers, getting acquainted with the cultures of different countries, absorbed ideas and embodied new styles, patterns and finishes in tailoring.
After the end of the war, when secular life improved, and balls began to be given in Paris again, many women abandoned the costumes that had become familiar and returned to pre-war fashion. However, this period did not last long - after the war, a completely new stage in fashion began, which at that time was most influenced by Coco Chanel.
Men's style from Chanel
Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel, by her own admission, tried all her life to adapt a men's suit to the needs and lifestyle of a modern woman.
Coco Chanel began her journey in the fashion world in 1909 when she opened her own hat shop in Paris. The rumor about the new designer quickly spread throughout the French capital, and the very next year, Coco was able to launch not only hats, but also clothes, opening a store at 21 Rue Cambon, and then her own Fashion House in the Biarritz resort. Despite the high cost of clothing and the simplicity of the cut, which was unusual for that time, Chanel's models were rapidly gaining popularity, and the designer had a wide clientele.
The main task of the clothes that fashion designers previously offered to women was to emphasize the wasp waist and highlight the chest, creating unnatural curves. Coco Chanel was thin, tanned and athletic, and the style common at that time did not suit her perfectly - with all the desire, no clothes could make an "hourglass" out of a girl's figure. But she was the perfect model for her own outfits. "Cuffed in a corset, chest out, butt exposed, so tight at the waist, as if cut into two parts ... to contain such a woman is the same as managing real estate," Koko said.
Promoting convenience and unisex style, the fashion designer created very simple dresses and skirts, distinguished by clear lines and the absence of jewelry. The girl, without hesitation, swept aside unnecessary details and unnecessary accessories in search of the ideal model that does not restrict movement, and at the same time allows a woman to remain a woman. Disregarding public opinion, she deftly introduced women's clothing elements of masculine style, independently setting an example of the correct use of simple outfits. "Once I put on a men's sweater, just like that, because I felt cold ... I tied it with a scarf (at the waist). That day I was with the British. None of them noticed that I was wearing a sweater ..." Chanel recalled. That is how her famous plunging-neck sailor suits with turn-down collars and "jockey" leather jackets appeared.
When creating clothes, Chanel used simple materials - cotton, knitwear. In 1914, she shortened the women's skirt. At the start of World War I, Coco designed practical sweaters, blazers, shirt dresses, blouses, and suits. It was Chanel who contributed to the popularization of pajamas, and in 1918 even created women's pajamas, in which you could go down to the bomb shelter.
Closer to 1920, Coco, like many artists of that time, became interested in Russian motifs. This line in the work of Chanel was developed already at the beginning of the third decade of the twentieth century.
The second decade of the twentieth century, despite all the hardships and hardships, became a turning point in the evolution of fashion - it was in the 1910s that artists began to actively search for new forms that could give women freedom without depriving them of grace. The reforms brought into fashion by the war and the trends of the post-war years became decisive in the development of the industry in the following decades.
The last century is the time of crinolines, bustles, "polonaise", dolman, plentiful ruffles and frills of all kinds. The next century, the very height of the era of beauties (beautiful era), is distinguished by simplicity and common sense, and although the details are still carefully worked out, the fussy trimming of the dress and unnatural lines are gradually fading into the background. This desire for simplicity became even stronger with the outbreak of the First World War, which explicitly proclaimed the two main principles of women's dress - freedom and ease of wearing.
Belle epoch - a time of luxury
In the 1900s, if you were a sophisticated young English lady belonging to the elite of society, you were supposed to make the pilgrimage to Paris twice a year along with other similar women from New York or St. Petersburg.
In March and September, groups of women could be seen visiting the studios on rue Halevy, la rue Auber, rue de la Paix, rue Taitbout and Place Vendôme.
In these often cramped shops, with seamstresses feverishly working in the back rooms, they met with their personal sales assistant, who helped them choose wardrobes for the next season.
This woman was their ally and knew all the darkest secrets of their lives, both personal and financial! These early fashion houses depended entirely on their powerful clients for survival, and knowing their little secrets helped them do just that!
Armed with copies of Les Modes, they looked through the latest creations of great couturiers such as Poiret, Worth, the Callot sisters, Jeanne Paquin, Madeleine Cheruis and others, to come up with a wardrobe that would overshadow the wardrobes of not only friends, but also enemies!
Decades have passed, and these gruesome magazine images of static women, where every seam and every stitch is visible, have been superseded by the freer and fluid style of Art Nouveau, which used new photographic methods of image.
Together with a salesperson, the women selected wardrobes for the next six months: underwear, loungewear, walking dresses, alternations of clothing, suits for traveling by train or in a car, evening wear for leisure activities, outfits for special occasions such as Ascot, wedding, theater visit. The list is endless, it all depended on the size of your wallet!
Wardrobe of a lady of the Edwardian period (1901-1910)
Let's start with the wardrobe. It consisted of several items of underwear - day and night shirts, pantaloons, stockings and petticoats.
Women began their day by choosing a combination, then putting on an s-shaped corset, over which there was a bodice.
Next came the day ensemble. These were usually morning wear, made in a simple style, which could be worn when meeting friends or when shopping. As a rule, it consisted of a neat blouse and a wedge-shaped skirt; in cool weather, a jacket was put on top.
Returning to lunch, it was necessary to quickly change into day clothes. In the summer, it was always some kind of colorful pastel-colored clothing.
By 5 pm it was possible, which was done with relief, to take off the corset and put on a tea dress for relaxing and receiving friends.
By 8 pm, the woman was again pulled into a corset. Sometimes the underwear was changed to fresh. After that, it was the turn of an evening dress for the house or, if necessary, for going out.
By 1910, such dresses began to undergo changes under the influence of the work of Paul Poiret, whose satin and silk dresses, inspired by oriental motifs, became very popular among the elite. The big hit in 1910 in London was ladies' bloomers as a costume evening dress!
During the day, it was also necessary to change stockings at least twice a day - cotton stockings for daytime wear - in the evening changed to beautiful embroidered silk stockings. It wasn't easy being an Edwardian woman!
Edwardian silhouette - myths and reality.
1900 - 1910
Before 1900 every lady of high society - with the help of her maid - was forced to tighten herself daily in tight corsets that made it difficult to breathe, as her mother and grandmother did. For a woman, it was very painful! Certainly, the sale of smelling salt was very profitable in that era.
The purpose of the corset [according to the illustrations] was to push the upper body forward, like a dove, and pull the hips back. However, Marion McNeely, comparing the illustrations with photographs of women in the 1900s. in their Everyday life, suggested in Foundations Revealed that the real purpose of s-corsets was a ostentatiously straight posture, designed to accentuate the curves of the hips and chest by pulling the shoulders back, resulting in the chest being lifted and the hips rounded.
My take on the matter is that there is a tendency, as in modern fashion illustrations, to over-emphasize lines. Comparing the picture above of the fashion house Lucille from 1905 with Edward Samburn's beautiful natural photograph of a young woman from London proves the fact that women didn't overtighten their corsets!
It was most likely an idealized version of the Edwardian woman of the time, popularized through the illustrations of Charles Dana Gibson and postcards of Gibson's girlfriend Camilla Clifford, leaving us with a highly exaggerated impression of the female forms of the Edwardian era.
Fashion in dresses - 1900 - 1909
Women began to wear jackets in a simple style, long skirts [the hem is slightly raised], and half boots with high heels.
The silhouette gradually began to change from the s-shaped in 1901 to the empire line by 1910. The typical colors for every day clothes for an Edwardian woman were a combination of two colors: a light top and a dark bottom. The material is linen [for the poor], cotton [for the middle class], and silk and quality cotton [for the upper class].
In terms of detail, during the Belle Epoque, lace frills signaled a woman's social status. Numerous frills on the shoulders and bodice, as well as appliqués on skirts and dresses.
Despite the ban on corsets, women, especially from the new middle class, began to feel more social freedom. It has become quite normal for women to travel abroad on bicycles - for example, to the Alps or Italy, which is beautifully captured in the melodramatic painting “A Room with a View”, based on the book by E.M. Forster, which he published in 1908.
Popular casual wear consisted of a high-collared white or light-coloured cotton blouse and a dark wedge-shaped skirt starting under the bust and going down to the ankles. Some skirts were also sewn into the corset from the waist to under the bust. This style, a simple athletic blouse and skirt, first appeared in the late 1890s.
Often there was a single seam on the skirts, as a result of which even the most hopeless figures acquired a pleasant harmony!
Skirts and dresses were sewn to the floor, but in such a way that it was convenient for women to climb into the wagons. By 1910, the hem became shorter and ended slightly above the ankle. The blouses originally featured voluminous shoulders, but by 1914 they were significantly reduced in volume, which in turn led to more roundness of the hips.
By 1905, with the increasing popularity of automobiles, fashionable women began to wear a coat or semi-long coat in autumn and winter. These coats were very fashionable, they came from the shoulder and ended below the waist, which was about 15 inches in length. In such an outfit, and even in a new short skirt that did not even reach the ankles, the woman looked very bold! If it was damp or snowing outside, a duster could be thrown over the top to protect clothes from dirt.
Afternoon dress, despite being done in various pastel shades and with lots of embroidery, still remained quite conservative in the 1900s, as it was worn to attend formal dinners, meetings and conservative women's meetings - here the dress code was influenced by women with a Victorian outlook on life!
The tea dresses, which the women, if they were at home, usually put on by 5 pm, were excellent: as a rule, they were made of cotton, white and very comfortable. It was the only time for an Edwardian woman when she could take off her corset and breathe normally! Women often met and entertained friends in a tea dress, because you could afford to be extremely informal!
In Edwardian Britain, women were given the opportunity to show off their finest Parisian outfits during the London season from February to July. From Covent Garden, royal receptions and private balls and concerts, to the races at Ascot, society's elite have shown off their latest, greatest and worst attire.
Evening gowns in the Edwardian period were ostentatious and provocative, with low necklines that openly showed off a woman's breasts and her jewelry! Evening dresses in the 1900s sewn from luxurious material. By 1910, women began to tire of large evening dresses, especially the French women, who decided to abandon the trains on the dress and switched to the Empire style from Poiret, inspired by the Russian Seasons.
In 1909, as the Edwardian period drew to a close, there arose a strange fashion for tight skirts below the knee, whose arrival is also credited to Paul Poiret.
Such tight skirts strongly tightened the woman's knees, which made it difficult to move. In combination with the increasingly popular wide-brimmed hats [in some cases as large as 3 feet] made popular by Lucille, Poiret's main American rival, fashion began to seem to have crossed all the lines of reason by 1910.
Hairstyles and ladies' hats in the Edwardian period 1900 - 1918.
Fashion magazines of that time began to pay great attention to hairstyles. The curls curled with tongs in the style of "Pompadour" were considered the most popular then, as it was one of the most quick ways hair styling. In 1911, the 10-minute pompadour hairstyle becomes the most popular!
Such hairstyles held up well to surprisingly large hats that overshadowed the hairstyles to which they were pinned.
By 1910, pompadour hairstyles gradually changed to low pompadour, which, in turn, with the onset of the First World War, turned into simple low-cut buns.
To take advantage of this hairstyle, hats began to be worn lower, right on the bun, the wide brim and bright feathers of previous years were gone. Wartime regulations did not approve of such things.
"Russian Seasons" 1909 - Wind of Change
By 1900, Paris was the fashion capital of the world, with Worth, Callot Soeurs, Doucet and Paquin among the leading names. Haute couture or haute couture was the name given to the enterprise that used the most expensive fabrics to sell them to the powerful elite in Paris, London and New York. However, the style remained the same - the Empire lines and the Directory style - high waist and straight lines, pastel colors, such as the greenish color of the Nile water, pale pink and sky blue, reminiscent of tea dresses and evening dresses of the elite of society.
It's time for a change. This was preceded by the following events: the influence of the Art Deco style, which arose from the modernist movement; the advent of the Russian Seasons, first held in 1906 in the form of an exhibition organized by their founder Sergei Diaghilev, the phenomenal performances of the Russian Imperial Ballet in 1909 with their luxurious costumes inspired by the East and created by Leon Bakst.
Nijinsky's bloomers caused great surprise among women, and the master of opportunism Paul Poiret, seeing their potential, created a harem skirt, which for a while became very popular among the youth of the British upper class. Poiret, perhaps influenced by Bakst's 1906 illustrations, felt the need to create more expressive illustrations for his creations, as a result of which he attracted the then unknown illustrator Paul Iribo, working in the Art Nouveau style, to illustrate his work "Paul Poiret's Dresses" in 1908. It is impossible to overestimate the impact that this work had on the emergence of fashion and art. After that, these two great masters worked together for two decades.
The emergence of modern fashion - 1912 - 1919
By 1912, the silhouette took on a more natural shape. Women began to wear long, straight corsets as the basis for tight-fitting daytime outfits.
Ironically, the brief flashback in 1914 was simply nostalgia: most of the fashion houses, including the Poiret fashion house, presented temporary stylish solutions with bustles, hoops and garters. However, the desire for change was unstoppable, and by 1915, at the height of the raging bloody war in Europe, the Callot sisters presented a completely new silhouette - an unringed women's shirt over a straight base.
Another interesting innovation in the early years of the war was the introduction of the matching blouse, the first step towards a casual style that was destined to become the main element of women's costume.
Coco Chanel adored women's chemises or shirt dresses, and through her fondness for the popular American jacket or sailor blouse [a loose-fitting blouse tied with a belt] - she adapted the jumpers worn by sailors in the popular seaside town of Deauville (where she opened a new store), and created a women's cardigan with expressive everyday straps and pockets, which became a harbinger of the 1920 fashion look 5 years before it became the norm.
Like Chanel, another designer Jeanne Lanvin, who specialized in clothes for young women during this period, also liked the simplicity of the chemise, and she set about creating summer dresses for her clients, which heralded a move away from restrictive dresses.
The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 did not put an end to the international display of the Parisian collections. But despite attempts by American Vogue editor Edna Woolman Chase to organize charity events to help the French fashion industry, Paris was justifiably worried that America, as a rival to Paris, intended to profit in one way or another from the situation. If you're lucky enough to own trendy French vintage periodicals of the day, such as Les Modes and La Petit Echo de la Mode, note that they rarely mention the war.
However, the war was everywhere, and women's dresses, as in the 1940s, of necessity, became more military.
Clothing became reasonable - jackets of strict lines, even warm overcoats and trousers acquired a special feminine shape if they were worn by women who helped in the war. In Britain, women joined the volunteer medical squads and were in the nursing service of the NE. In the United States, there was a reserve of female auxiliary personnel of the MP, as well as special women's battalions.
Such military groups were intended for upper-class women, while women from the working class in different countries, especially in Germany, worked in military factories. As a result of this upheaval of social classes, when poor and rich, men and women all together, as never before, the phenomenon of emancipation in women's dress has grown.
1915 - 1919 – New silhouette.
It was the time of the Art Nouveau figure
Now the emphasis in lingerie was not on shaping female figure but for her support. The traditional corset has evolved into a bra, which has now become indispensable for a more physically active woman. The first modern bra appeared thanks to Mary Phelps Jacob, she patented this creation in 1914.
The traditional bodice was replaced by a fashion for a high waist, tied with a beautiful wide belt-scarf. Fabrics such as natural silk, linen, cotton and wool were used, and artificial silk was also used - twill, gabardine (wool), organza (silk) and chiffon (cotton, silk or viscose). Thanks to young designers like Coco Chanel, materials such as jersey and denim began to enter life.
In 1910 there was a horizontal look at the design of dresses. Alternatively, vertical capes were used, such as Poiret's popular kimono jackets, worn over a tailored jacket and skirt set. The hem of everyday clothes was at a level slightly above the ankle; the traditional floor-length evening dress began to rise slightly from 1910.
By 1915, along with the advent of the flared skirt (also known as the military crinoline), the reduction in the length of clothing, and, consequently, with the appearance of now visible shoes, a new silhouette began to appear. Shoes with laces and heels have become a nice addition to the models for the winter - beige and white colors have joined the usual black and brown colors! With the development of hostilities, evening dresses, as well as tea clothes, began to disappear from the collections.
Annette Kellerman - swimwear revolution
The swimsuit designs of the Edwardian period led to the overthrow of social mores, when women on the beach began to show their legs, albeit dressed in stockings.
Aside from the Australians, especially the Australian swimmer Annette Kellerman, who in some ways revolutionized swimwear, it should be noted that bathing suits changed gradually from 1900 to 1920.
Kellerman caused quite a stir when, upon her arrival in the US, she appeared on the beach in a body-hugging swimsuit, which resulted in her being arrested in Massachusetts for indecent exposure. Her trial marked a turning point in swimwear history, and also helped shed the outdated norms that had landed her in custody. She created the look for babes in Max Sennett swimsuits, as well as the standards for sexy Jantzen swimsuits that came later.
The birth of the image of the Charleston dress
It is difficult to determine exactly when the low-waisted tomboy dress style that became the norm by 1920 appeared. Here, the image of mother and daughter, created by Jeanne Lanvin in 1914, draws attention.
Take a close look at your daughter's little rectangular dress with a low waist and you'll recognize the look of a Charleston dress that will dominate only a few years from now!
Black was the standard color during the First World War, and the petite Coco Chanel decided to make the most of it and other neutral colors, as well as wartime clothing, and thanks to Chanel's love for simplicity, a shirt dress with a low waist belt was created. , models of which were demonstrated at Harpers Bazaar in 1916.
This love of her more sporty and casual dresses quickly spread from the seaside town of Deauville, where she opened a shop, to Paris, London and beyond. In a 1917 edition of Harper's Bazaar, it was noticed that the name Chanel simply does not leave the lips of buyers.
Paul Poiret's star began to fade with the advent of the war, and when he returned in 1919 with numerous beautiful models in a new silhouette, his name no longer aroused such admiration. Having chanced upon Chanel in Paris in 1920, he asked her:
“Madame, for whom are you mourning?” Chanel wore her trademark black colors. She replied: "For you, my dear Poiret!"
As if in a time machine, we continue to return to the most significant decades in the history of fashion of the 20th century - and the next in line are the years 1910-1919. In that era, European fashion succumbed to colossal influence from outside: this was the widespread popularization of sports, and the expansion of oriental, and then national Russian styles (together with Diaghilev's Russian Seasons), and, of course, the First World War, which divided the decade into two periods and made people take a fresh look at fashion and the entire clothing business in general.
1910–1913: sporty style and new colors
The main discovery for the history of fashion in the pre-war era was a new color scheme. In 1905, at an exhibition in Paris, bright multi-colored paintings of the Fauves (Matisse, Derain and others) are shown, in 1911, Sergei Diaghilev, as part of the Russian Seasons ballet tour, staged the ballets Scheherazade and Cleopatra in London with colorful costumes by Leon Bakst, made in oriental style. Orientalism, with its lively colors and rich decor, becomes a new fashion trend of the early 1910s and brings bright colors of spices and outlandish plants to the catwalks instead of pastel shades. The well-known French couturier Paul Poiret was also considered a trendsetter for Orientalism. He became an innovator of this era: Poiret freed women from corsets, highlighting a new silhouette with straight vertical lines and a high waist. He also simplified the cut of the dress, making the silhouette soft and natural, and added bright color and decor in ethnic style.
At the same time, the first years of the new decade draw inspiration from the 1900s, which are not far from the history of fashion. For the ladies of beau monde, the daily routine still involves four changes a day - in the morning, at noon, at tea and at evening dinner. Girls prepare for marriage, which is obligatory in this era, by collecting a dowry in advance. It included at least twelve evening dresses, two or three evening capes, four street dresses, two coats, twelve hats, ten tea-dresses, and dozens of pairs of shoes and stockings.
In 1913, sportswear was added to the already extensive wardrobe of the lady. Passion for sports spreads across Europe from England, where horse riding and cycling are extremely popular. Ladies begin to play golf, croquet and tennis, to skate, horseback and open cars instead of horse carts - all these active activities required getting rid of the corset with metal bars and abandoning too puffy dresses with long skirts in favor of light dresses with straight, slightly fitted silhouette and ankle-length skirt.
Ladies are allowed to take off the corset during the traditional five o’clock in England: “tea” dresses had a lace shirt with a high collar, puffed puff sleeves and a long skirt with a floral pattern that fell freely from the chest and today would remind us of our grandmothers nightgowns. But the evening dress code was still strict: ladies competed in the luxury of their hats, and silk dresses sparkled with expensive trimmings of lace, embroidery or fur...
1914–1919: military of the new time
In August 1914, Germany declares war on France. General mobilization begins in the country, and haute couture fades into the background: all light industry is thrown to the needs of the front. Evening dresses practically disappear from seasonal collections (only the United States remains their main customer during the war), and ladies no longer need to change clothes four times a day, as before. The fashion includes dark colors, which were previously used only for outerwear: black, gray, navy blue and khaki.
Women's clothing from 1914 begins to be influenced by the military style: the silhouette of day dresses becomes minimalistic, the length of the skirts is shortened almost to the middle of the calf, and pockets appear on them. A work suit for a woman consists of the main must-have of this era - an elongated fitted jacket with large buttons - and a narrow long hobble skirt, which has become the "grandmother" of the modern pencil skirt. The English brands Burberry and Aquascutum are making a name for themselves during these years by introducing women's wardrobe military cloak - trench coat.
With the change in the length of the skirt, the role of shoes becomes more and more important - in this era, leather shoes with an ankle strap and ankle boots with buttons or laces are in fashion, but always made of leather in two colors.
It was during the war years that Coco Chanel had his finest hour: having opened his first store in Deauville in 1913, Chanel was actively gaining clients. Her simple but elegant jersey suits, consisting of a white blouse with a V-collar, a loose jumper with a belt and a turn-down collar (Coco borrowed it from sailors) and a puffy mid-calf skirt, were incredibly popular and allowed Chanel as early as 1916 year to join the ranks of the couturier and demonstrate his first haute couture collection.
The war gives a tremendous impetus to the development of the ready-to-wear industry - companies that during the war worked for the needs of the front and produced military uniforms, already in peacetime, begin to switch to the production of prêt-a-porter clothes and shoes for everyday wear.
History of men's fashion. Men's fashion of the 20th century
1900s in men's fashion
The last period of refined masculine elegance. Petersburg in the era of the Silver Age was famous for its dandies. Russian mods were guided by English fashion. The Prince of Wales, the eldest son of Queen Victoria, later King Edward 7 was a style icon. It was he who first unbuttoned the button of his waistcoat when he ate tightly. He also brought into fashion arrows on trousers and tucked-up trousers.
A long coat, a frock coat and a bowler hat are in fashion.
1910s in men's fashion
The frock coats were replaced by cropped jackets without padded shoulders with a high waist and elongated lapels. The men's suit has acquired a more elongated silhouette. Jazz is in fashion, and with it a jazz suit with pipe trousers and a tightly buttoned jacket. World War I popularized military uniforms. A military model - a trench coat (from the English word trench, "trench") for soldiers of the British army, supplied by Burberry - is becoming so popular that subsequently it continues to be worn "in civilian life".
In St. Petersburg, the main refined dandy is Prince Felix Yusupov.
1920s in men's fashion
The Prince of Wales was still a fashionable role model. He brought into fashion cropped wide "plus fours" golf pants, with which long woolen socks were worn. During this period, Scottish Fair Isle sweaters, panama hats, narrow ties tied with a Windsor knot, two-button jackets, pocket squares, brown suede shoes and English gingham caps are worn. By the way, the design on the men's suit fabrics "Prince of Wales" is named after Edward 7, who loved informal plaid suits.
In Russia, this is the time of war communism and civil war. After the 1917 revolution, the Silver Age dandies disappeared. They are being replaced by vanguards of a new formation.
The fashionista of that time was Vladimir Mayakovsky.
Real dudes appeared in the era of the NEP. They wore striped trousers, bow ties, soft hats and boaters, and tried to look like Jazz Age Americans.
1930s in men's fashion
Fashionistas imitate glamorous Hollywood stars. Popular hobbies are aviation, cars and sports. A fit athletic physique is in fashion.
The suits took on a more masculine look, the line of the shoulders increased, and the chest expanded, the jacket began to fit to the hips. Sportswear, jeans and knitwear appear in the men's wardrobe. Caps and leather helmets were worn on the head. In the 30s, the so-called "captains" hats with varnished visors were popular. The colors of the clothes are dominated by brown and khaki.
During the war years, Russian dandies and dudes fell in love with trophy fashion. Things brought from Germany and other countries became a fashion item for those who would later be called dudes.
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1940s in men's fashion
The key image of a man during the Second World War is courageous and in military uniform. Common things were short coats and short jackets with patch pockets.
In the first period of the post-war period in America, unusual suits called zoot (zoot suit) appeared, which consisted of a long double-breasted knee-length jacket with wide lapels and baggy trousers, narrowed at the bottom, a wide-brimmed hat was worn with the suit.
In the post-war Soviet fashion, compared to the 1930s, the current silhouette became wider, things seemed to be a little big. An important male business accessory was the felt hat. They wear double-breasted jackets, wide trousers and long coats. Dark tones prevailed. Light and striped suits were considered a special chic. Even after the war military uniform remained common clothing in civilian life, the image of a man in uniform was incredibly popular. Among other things, leather coats came into fashion.
Since 1947, style began to captivate large circles of Soviet youth.
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1950s in men's fashion
The post-war world was changing rapidly, and fashion was changing with it. In England, in the early 1950s, a style appeared that was called "teddy boys". This style is a kind of variation on the style of Edward 7 (Edwardian era) hence the name (in English language Teddy is short for the full name Edward. They wore tapered trousers with lapels, a straight-cut jacket with a velvet or moleskin lapel, tight ties and platform boots (creepers). The bangs fit into the cook.
In 1955, rock and roll entered the life of British youth, reflected in clothes in the form of silk suits, flared trousers, unbuttoned collars and medallions.
In 1958, the influence of Italy comes to English fashion. Short square jackets, skinny trousers, white shirts with a thin tie and vests are in fashion, a handkerchief peeking out of the breast pocket of the vest. The boots took on a pointed shape (Winkle Picker).
1960s in men's fashion
In the world of men's fashion, significant changes: Ready-to-wear mass production industry is launched. The gray suit becomes the uniform of office workers. A loose long jacket, button-down shirts, a tight tie, Oxford shoes, a black wool coat and a fedora are in fashion.
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In 1967, among the youth, the revival of the teddy-boy style, which received the new name rockabilly, a new version style was ennobled by the trend of glam rock. The costumes have acquired flashy colors.
1970s in men's fashion
Unlike the 1960s, in the 70s there was no single trend in fashion, there were different trends. Fashion as a way of self-expression. Trends were shaped by street fashion. Among the youth, the hippie movement: long hair, flared jeans, multi-colored shirts, as accessories, baubles, neck pendants and beads.
Clothing becomes more versatile and practical. In the course of a variety of styles and their mixing. Turtlenecks became a cult item of clothing in the 1970s. Turtlenecks "noodles" are popular in the Soviet Union.
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1980s in men's fashion
A new generation of businessmen, luxury consumers, called yuppies, has formed.
Italian fashion became relevant, making tan, black glasses and brown shoes popular. Men's wardrobe ceased to be universal and was strictly divided into business, evening and casual. Corporations are introducing a “working Friday” dress code.
In the Soviet Union, jeans with "bananas" and "varenki" were at the peak of popularity. Traders flourished, branded clothing brought from abroad was considered a sign of wealth and style.
1990s in men's fashion
In the West, minimalism, simplicity and practicality have become the main fashion trends in contrast to the rampant consumption of the 80s. Men's business attire has become looser and simpler. Sports and sportswear with logos is popular famous brands becomes everyday.
In the youth environment, the “grunge” style is common: baggy clothes of large sizes, gloomy tones. Variety of subcultures: rap, hip-hop, rock defines appearance teenagers.
Popular unisex style. The basis of the men's wardrobe is casual wear.
In Russia, men's business fashion is dominated by the notorious crimson jacket - the personification of success and prosperity.
In the late 1990s, widespread information technologies leads to the rapid spread of fashion trends in the world.
2000s in men's fashion
This is the era of metrosexuals. The cult of a beautiful body becomes the main idea of fashion. A sleek appearance and an accentuated interest in fashion trends are in fashion.
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Based on sources:
Style bible: wardrobe of a successful man / N. Naydenskaya, I. Trubetskova.
D / f “The breath of the century. The life of a dandy"
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The development of women's costume, the change in style 1900-1920.
HISTORY of fashion at the beginning of the 20th century.
Fashion in 1900-1907 completely different from the fashion of the subsequent fifty years and is, as it were, a continuation of the forms of the late 19th century.This period is characterized primarily by an unprecedented splendor of decor, an abundance of costume jewelry, furs, feathers, magnificent, luxurious fabrics, a love of pretentiousness and a desire to emphasize the richness and variety of clothing.
Fashion magazine "The Delineator", 1900-1903
In an effort to create the perfect outfit, the artists turned to the decoration of expensive stones and elements that emphasize the richness of the costume - appliqué, fur trim.
Becoming popular in the second half of the 19th century, the Art Nouveau style influenced many areas of life, including clothing preferences. Flexible lines, lace, a large number of decorations and large headdresses - all these features inherent in the outfits of the beginning of the century owe their popularity to Art Nouveau.
First years of the 20th century
were a time of inevitable change that marked the beginning of today's fashion industry.The period between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the First World War in France is commonly referred to as the Belle Epoque (“Beautiful Era”).
The decadence of the Art Nouveau era that dominated art dictated its own special, somewhat perverted aesthetics, turning a woman into an unearthly creature. The atmosphere of the transitional period seemed to breathe new life into women's fashion.
The artificial silhouette so characteristic of the 19th century (it was shaped by structural underwear) gave way to the new forms of the 20th century, which followed the curves of the female body, trying to emphasize its uniqueness.
Marcel Proust in his "Memories of Lost Time" correctly noted that it was at the beginning of the 20th century that the structure of women's dress completely changed.
Until the First World War, the woman remained mysterious and female nudity was out of fashion.
The waist line was located in a natural place and only in front was somewhat underestimated.
From a large hat hung a veil tied under the chin, which was one piece with a foamy frill that reached the waist, which created the impression of a magnificent bust.
At the second stage, which lasted somewhat longer, from 1901 to 1905, the shoulders became of normal width, the expanded part of the sleeve moved to the bottom and formed puffs when the arms were bent.
One of the innovations characteristic of this period was the appearance of the S-shaped silhouette, which is notable for the fact that it emphasized the waist by forming a voluminous protruding bust and a puffy back of the dress,at the same time, the bulge of the abdomen was destroyedThe lingerie companies offered ladies several options for corsets to help them achieve the dainty, slim waist that fashion demanded (up to 37 cm in extreme cases!)
Changes in the shape and size of women's corsets for 16 years, the end of the 19th - the beginning of the 20th centuries.
The fashion of 1900-1907 borrowed many forms from past eras. Louis XIII's costumes were reflected in wide collars, short boleros and gathered front blouses.The Louis XIV period manifested itself in moderate jackets called Louis XIII vestons, which at that time began to rival the petite boleros.
Home dresses had empire features and pleats a la Watteau.
The women's fashion of the end of the Belle Epoque (1908-1914) differed from the previous period in a new high-waisted silhouette with a straight skirt.Jeanne Paquin created a collection in 1905 that featured high-waisted dresses, which was a serious departure from tradition.
In 1906, her Japanese-style collection appears.
The third stage, shorter, lasted from 1905 to 1907.sleeves of the same form as in 1900, with extended puffed shoulders; subsequently they began to acquire the most fantastic forms. The waist was still tightened as tight as possible, the bulge of the hips became more moderate.
The skirt was shortened and opened up the toe of the boot, and the hem of the skirt became less embellished. In addition, the vertical position gradually returned to the silhouette.
In 1906, during the Edwardian era, fashion absorbed the tastes of the English aristocracy of those years, acquiring a more straightened neoclassical silhouette.
It was more respectable in relation to the French Art Nouveau and its black and white and striped colors emphasized elongation and geometricity.
AT prewar years clothes bloomed with new colors, which was greatly facilitated by the exhibition, which was accepted by the French public, impressed not only by the ballet, but also by the amazing scenery and costumes of the dancers, on which the artists Leon Bakst, Alexander Benois and Nicholas Roerich worked.
Paul Poiret, as the main fashion designer of the decade, was the first to respond to the new public fad.
