Post WW2 Fashions

Austerity measures were not lifted overnight. There was a prolonged period of repatriation, repair and rebuilding, of people and of nations. There were material shortages and rationing that would continue until 1949.  However, rebuilding the fashion industry was not just a superficial exercise. It was part of the rebuilding of industry, trade and morale. In Britain, high quality woollen fabrics and fashionable clothing were being produced, but to the frustration of the population, exported for the most part as the government was desperate to generate income.

The Courier-Mail (Brisbane), 18th October 1943 page 2. Temptation is easy to resist when it hasn’t been encountered yet!

The Courier-Mail (Brisbane), 23rd August 1945 page 6.

The Argus (Melbourne), 2nd November 1945 page 6.

News (Adelaide), 31st December 1945 page 5.

The Telegraph (Brisbane), 22nd February 1946 page 4.

The suit is still similar to the uniform-like dress of the war period. Shoulders are still square, but pleats, pockets and long gowns return.

The Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 15th September 1946 page 7.

During the war American fashions had developed separately from the influences of French/European fashion. This would offer an enduring counter point to the post war return of haute couture; the sporty, casual yet smart ‘American Look’.

https://fashionhistory.fitnyc.edu/1940-1949/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1945%E2%80%931960_in_Western_fashion

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