Tag Archives: 1940’s, day dress, post-war

JUST FOUND – A PERFECT 1980’S DOES 1940’S DAY DRESS

Great “true vintage retro” find! It’s just a perfect go-to-town classic shirtwaist dress for 3 seasons. Elegant in its simplicity. Liz Roberts for Liz Petites was a better mid-priced brand in the Eighties. The dress is well-made and styled. The polyester fabric is a good imitation of the synthetics used in the Forties. I love the knife pleats in the midi skirt.and, of course, modest shoulder pads that are retro-correct but also make the silhouette better on many of us. The print is almost atomic, too, with irregular black shards instead of polka dots. The original belt is missing but, depending on height (I still have to decide), there’s probably excess in the hem that could cover a matching one. You can see that there is an older-style hem allowance – sweet!

So that’s it for my most recent investigation. Tomorrow we’ll return to the mid-century cocktail dress run-down. Stay tuned . . . . .

MORGANA MARTIN, THE MAGICVINTAGESPY

BLOG: MAGICVINTAGESPY.COM

BEAUTIFUL RAYON DRESSY DAY-DRESS FROM THE POST-WAR 1940’S

Taking a short break from the LBDs and going for a little color. This beautiful navy blue fitted rayon dress is a perfect example of the late 1940’s return to more luxurious day wear after the restrictions of rationing were ended. The label is Loma Leads, from a dress company that was organized in the late 1920’s and operated in New York and Paris. It had several departments and was around in one form or another at least into the early 1960’s. A very uptown classic ladies dress from the time when there was more fabric available again, so hemlines came back down and extra tailoring details like the peplum and bodice tucks were again possible. Women had been SO waiting for this! The exuberance of big rhinestone buttons on a day dress speaks to the attitude of a return to extravagance in fashion. The big skirts of Christian Dior’s New Look at this time is another example.

This style, however, is very buttoned-up and, to my mind, underlines the haughty, elegant and “rich” look intended here. After all the restrictions and deprivations of the “make do and mend” wartime years, luxury and affluence were the beckoning horizon for the United States and Canada while Europe was more intent on surviving and rebuilding after all the extensive damage to their infrastructure and land. But, Paris had always led the world of couture and design so fashion bounced back there, too, as Dior and other designers met the challenges and optimism of the new era and resumed their lead.

It is so fascinating to untangle the ways that fashion trends dovetail with historical events. The clues are everywhere and a good sleuth always looks for them. A completely different example from this time tomorrow – stay tuned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

MORGANA MARTIN, THE MAGICVINTAGESPY

BLOG: MAGICVINTAGESPY.COM . . . . . .