History of Women’s Fashion in 20th Century

1900-1910 At the turn of the century fashion looked like the late 1800’s. Rich women needed morning dresses, afternoon dresses and evening dresses. Women wore long skirts, long sleeves, high necks and high button shoes. The ready-to-wear industry was blossoming. The first synthetic fabric, rayon, was produced at low cost. The new clothes had a straight line. They were soft and draped, and fashion designers made a great use of light and transparent fabrics.

1910-1920 The lampshade tunic and the Greek dress were popular in 1911 and 1912. They were highwaisted. After the beginning of World War I, skirts became fuller and shorter. The corset gave way to the bust bodice and an elasticized girdle to attach the stockings. The bob with bangs, a new hairstyle, became very popular. Shoes and boots had narrow toes and high heels. For daywear buttoned shoes were common.

1920-1930 The 1920’s marked the beginning of modern fashion and showed women’s need for a change. After the end of the war, it was party time. Women, for the first time in history, showed their legs. Constricting undergarments were rejected. The flattener bra was used to create the straight, flat look of flapper dresses with low cut necklines. The cocktail dress came into being in lame and beaded chiffon, often with dropped waistline. Make up by Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubenstein became a must for the Charleston-dancing girls of the Roaring Twenties. The cloche hat as well as waived hair became very popular. An important development was that of the sizing system still used today.

1930-1940 The Great Depression of the late 1920’s influenced women’s fashion. More women made new clothes out of their old ones. The sizing system was used to create easy-to-make patterns, so women could copy the dresses of the movie stars. The woman’s figure was emphasized by the flared, flounced skirts. Dresses were characterized by a more flowing hemline at the hips. Skirts grew longer, between the calf and the ankle. Soft fabrics like wool were used for daytime, while satin, chiffon and artificial silk for long evening dresses. Wide-legged pants were used for sport. Underwear was minimal with only a bra, a garter belt and seamed silk stockings. Elegant women always wore a hat and gloves. Shoes were high-heeled. Hair was given a permanent wave.

1940-1950 During World War II, many women went to work. Clothes became simpler and women began to wear more pants. Dresses had shoulder pads and knee length skirts. Sportswear became popular. In the late 1940’s, fashion changed under the influence of Christian Dior, who created the New Look consisting of a nipped waist, a lifted bosom, no more shoulder pads, fuller skirts and longer lengths.

1950-1960 Well-dressed women wore pencil skirts which had slits on the back, so they could walk. Undergarments included the uplift bra and girdles. Hair was long and put up in a ponytail or chignon. Shoes with wedge heels of wood or cork were popular as well as shoes with spike heels and pointed toes. Elvis’ fans wore black leather jackets. Marilyn Monroe was the ultimate 50’s icon. 

Women’s fashion of the 1960’s dramatically changed due to the sexual revolution. The mod look became popular during the early 60’s with shorter hems above the knee. The chemise and the sack ruled. Hippies did n0t care much about fashion but the looser and more casual look reflected the hippy clothing. Simpler clothes with geometrical shapes and patterns were in vogue. 1960-1970 The miniskirt, created by Mary Quant, was the shocker of the decade. Underwear was minimal. Coloured tights replaced nylon stockings. Women had long, straight hair. Bell bottom slacks were popular in the second half of the 1960’s. 8

1970-1980 The 1970's started out with the hippie look that continued on from the late 1960's. Bell bottoms and hip huggers were still popular. Skirts called maxis or ankle length skirts were popular for a brief moment. Miniskirts were prevalent during this decade and very short shorts, called hot pants, came into being. In the middle of the 70’s, high waisted pants made of various fabrics became popular.

1980-1990 There were many trends during the 1980's that ranged from the disco era early into the decade to the gothic look during the late 80's. Madonna influenced young women’s fashion. Girls and women followed her trend of Tule skirts and leather gloves and lots of jewellery. Tight jeans with loose ripped sweatshirts and leggings became popular. The 80's hair band and hip hop look crossed over from the late 1980's into the early 90's in women's fashion.

1990-2000 The 1990’s did not have a specific style, apart from the grunge look during the early 1990’s. It consisted of ripped pants, combat boots and flannel shirts. Women wore what they liked most: tight-fitting trousers, oversized sweaters, T-shirts, sweatshirts, leather jackets, coloured tights, tartan skirts, baby doll dresses, denim jackets, headscarves, leggings and many more.

2000-2012 In the first decade of the second millennium, women’s fashion consists of many styles of previous years. Women wear comfortable clothes: it does not matter if they wear clothes of the 70’s or clothes which are a revival of those of the 40’s or 50’s. Most women have understood that their style shows their individuality and personality and so there is no need to follow one set fashion.