Fashion through the ages! Fashions of the 20th Century to the present day in the UK

Picture courtesy of www.sawyerbrook.com

The Victorians 1850 – 1900s Clothing in the Victorian era began with very full skirts, restrictive clothing with lots of layers and petticoats. Sleeves were always tight and bonnets were very common. As it progressed, the modern industrial invention of the sewing machine brought more variety to clothing. Towards the 1900’s hats became very fashionable and as women began to fight for equal rights, their clothing became less restricted and more masculine. The silhouette completely changed.

The Roaring 20’s By the 1920’s clothing became increasingly more masculine and saw the introduction of the shorter, low waisted dress. Clothing became more loosely cut. Women continued to wear hats. Fabrics began to become more exotic as they were imported from around the world, and brighter colours became more widely available. Women were starting to be influenced by fashion designers such as Coco Chanel.

The War (1940’s to 1950’s) The Second World War made importing fabrics virtually impossible and fashion was affected as a result. Styles became much simpler, and clothing eventually began to be rationed. Fewer colours were available due to a shortage of dyes and chemicals. Again clothing became more comfortable, practical and masculine as women began to do manual labour and factory work – this was even reflected in smarter dress clothing.

The Swinging 60’s After the war, clothing began to become much more flamboyant. Women became more daring and independent and with it, skirts began to get shorter. Make-up and hairstyles became much more exotic. There were many new materials available, creating new colours, textures and patterned fabrics. Men also began to become more experimental in their fashions, and began to be influenced by music, film and popular culture.

The 70’s The 1970s began with a continuation of the mini skirts, bell bottomed and hippie influences. People became more and more influenced by music and pop culture such as glam rock, disco, punk and dancewear. There are many iconic pieces of 70s clothing such as platform shoes, hot pants and flared trousers.

The 80’s and 90’s The 1980s was hugely influenced by ‘expensive dressing’, trying to produce an image of wealth and success with lots of accessories and embellishments. Dancewear continued to be popular, with leggings, leotards and leg warmers coming into fashion. Suits and ‘power dressing’ became a huge trend. Fashion became more wide-ranging in the 1990s with minimalism and rock music both hugely influencing clothing. Bright colours due to the increase in synthetic fabrics came into fashion.

Fashion of the 21st Century… Today clothing continues to be influenced by music, film and pop culture, as well as looking back at the different fashion era’s that have came before us. As the world has become more multi-cultural, so has fashion, which has became increasingly influenced by clothing styles from around the world. Which era will influence your fashion designing and dress making? For more information on Fashion Through The Ages, take a look at http://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/FashionthroughtheAges