1940s

As the decade began, fashion had not really changed and was not very attention grabbing. The silhouette for the man and woman had hardly changed from the previous years. The female shape consisted of wide, padded shoulders; a narrow natural waistline; thin hips; and a skirt that fell to just below the knee. For men also, the line fell in an inverted triangle from square shoulders down to the waist and hips.

Accessories were still essential for women. Hats remained popular, with styles varying from those tipped over the forehead to those planted firmly on the back of the head. During the war, however, hats were increasingly replaced by fabric head scarves and turbans, especially for women involved in war work in factories. It could be said that hats were one of the casualties of war. For a time, there was also a vogue for “snoods,” a kind of pouch made of fabric or of knitted or crocheted yarn that held fashionable long hair in place at the nape of the neck. Purses took the form of small box bags, especially in black plastic patent with a mirror in the lid. For daytime, women carried over-the-shoulder bags or large “clutch” bags without handles. “Crushed” suede gloves with flaring cuffs were popular for day wear. These were elbow length but were worn casually pushed down the arm; hence the name crushed. For evening wear, shirred (gathered with elastic thread) rayon jersey gloves were considered a glamour accessory around 1944 as fabric replaced leather. Despite this continuity, there had already been occasional hints of change on the runways of the fashion salons in both Paris and New York, where a number of designers had been experimenting with a new silhouette focusing on the waist. 


In 1947, Dior introduced the "New Look", featuring longer and fuller skirts and a return to the classic femininity of a nipped waist.