Women’s Fashion In The 1930s

Women’s Fashion In The 1930s

Clothing styles were less extravagant for the most part during the 1930s. However, you could still tell between the “haves” and “have nots” of this time. Some of the more affluent type of dress was presented by models in issues of the women’s magazine Good Housekeeping.

You can see some of the businesslike influence in these simple outfits if you go back to the April 1930 issue. Models in some of the photos displayed simple-yet feminine outfits of two-piece V-neck cardigan, simple blouse, and button-down wrap skirts.

Other photos presented in this issue of Good Housekeeping showed off long free-flowing dresses with moderately low V-necklines. These dresses are known often as the “1930s Trousseau”.

These particular outfits are what many people would perhaps associate in times past with tea time or luncheon in high society. These particular elegant yet simple lines of clothing or in the ever-growing middle class social circle.

The shapes of these dresses were designed to show off a woman’s most feminine features-tight or snug at the waist and then bowing slightly out. Most of these dresses are either slightly gathered and/or pleated. The pattern for many of the early 1930s dresses that were made is known as the “cross cut bias” style.

Some of them are one-piece while others are accented with a short elegant jacket. Today (the year 2007) many people would consider wearing these styles of dresses to a formal or semi-formal dinner.

The sleeves of most of the 1930s dresses and outfits referenced in this article are of ¾ length or shorter. The Hem line of most of the outfits during this time was cut between the knees and the shin. Colors of fashionable ladie’s wear in the 1930s were of different colors such as red, navy, white, and black.

One of the most famous fashion influences of the 1930s was Coco Chanel. Another one of this time was Madeleine Vionnet, who was a French Designer.

In fact, Vionnet was the one who is most known for the “cross cut bias” pattern for dresses, which is a style associated with actress or dancers such as Ginger Rogers. This particular type of dress is very long, and is usually all the way down to the lower back.

In a 1932 drawing of the back view of a lady wearing a bias cut dress, a bow accents the backside just below the V-shaped back opening. This particular look is one of the elegant and wealthy, and is likely to cost more than the simpler fashions described earlier in this article.