Clothing Styles From the '50s
Fashion in the 1950s was caught in a crossfire between the post-World War II need for elegance and glamour, and the financial cautiousness brought on by the pending Cold war. This bipolarity manifests itself best in the differences between the fashion styles of men and women. While women were urged to celebrate their beauty with glamorous clothes and accessories, men kept it simple to the point of looking monotone and uniform.
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Casual Wear for Women
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Women in the '50s wore a lot of dresses and skirts, while trousers took a backseat to the more feminine way of dressing. Even at home, when cleaning the house and doing chores, women didn't turn to trousers, but instead wore wrapped dresses. These were simple dresses that were easy to wrap around the waist, complimenting the curves.
Casual dresses were generally divided into full-skirted dresses and pencil skirt dresses. The popular patterns were flowers and leaves, and dresses were generally not shorter than calf length. Women paired the dresses with short jackets and accessories in the form of pearl jewelry and gloves.
Casual Wear for Men
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Men's casual wear in the 1950s included trousers and a few different variations of shirts. A very popular and widespread shirt pattern was the Hawaiian print. Cowboy shirts with bolo ties were also popular among working class men, as were polo shirts and cardigans. Material used for trousers was loose wool flannel and casual trousers looked very similar to the business suit. Younger men wore the jeans in the '50s.
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Evening Wear for Women
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The 1950s evening wear for women was spectacular and glamorous. Long dresses were inspired by Hollywood and were tightly waisted and full skirted with bare shoulders. Women covered their shoulders with shawls or minks.
Younger women wore simpler cuts, but still sported very tight waists that emphasized their busts. Shorter cocktail dresses were also allowed in the evening, but not for very young women, who were encouraged to keep the dresses calf length.
Evening Wear for Men
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Conformity was central to menswear in the '50s and as a result, men's evening wear wasn't too different from their office attire. The most important piece of clothing was the business suit, which was usually dark blue, dark brown or charcoal. Men wore their suits with white shirts and ties in dark colors. The ultimate accessory was a hat.
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References
- Photo Credit George Marks/Retrofile/Getty Images
