Vintage Fashion Guild Timeline 1940 - 1950
 1939-40 Green Wool,Suede & Tartan Suit set by Jane Derby, courtesy pastperfectvintage.com  1940s Grey Flannel Suit, photo courtesy of Deborah Burke, antiquedress.com
Women who were deprived of the latest fashions from Paris began to look to homegrown talent. Designers such as Norman Norell and Claire McCardell soon built a following. Mainbocher and Molyneux fled Europe and set up shop in the United States. This development profoundly changed America's fashion profile and the market continued to gain momentum after the war ended.
 ca 1945-6 Ceil Chapman Crepe Gown, Deborah Burke, antiquedress.com  ca 1945 - 46 Black Rayon Crepe Dress with studs, courtesy Jody Steinman, coutureallure.com
 1948 - 1950 Black Silk Taffeta Dress, Hollis Jenkins-Eavns, pastperfectvintage.com  ca 1949 Green Wool Gabardine suit, Hollis Jenkins-Evans, pastperfectvintage.com
February 1947 brought one of fashion history's most dramatic events - Christian Dior's explosive first collection hit the runway. He called it the Corolle line but the American press, which referred to the collection as "New Look", ignored this. The media's chosen name stuck and so did the fashion.
The New Look called for rounded shoulders, exaggerated bust lines, wasp waists and padded hips and long, often extravagantly full skirts that required an exorbitant amount of fabric. This was a strident comment on the end of wartime asceticism.
 1948 - 1950 Black Rayon Crepe Dress, courtesy DesignerTrend.com  1940s Striped Silk Dress,courtsey Harriet Prone, tastyvintage.com
|
