How War Shifts Women’s Fashion

By: Mia Johnson

It is no secret that the environment strongly influences self-expression. Fashion is a primary way we might communicate our spirit and essence. Art manifests itself in many ways, however world events strongly impact its various forms such as fashion, music, and film. Even if it is something you don’t always notice, everyone has experienced a shift in culture due to the climate of their surroundings. An example of this occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic when simple clothing and loungewear sales skyrocketed as no one was buying “going out” clothes and everyone was stuck at home. In this article, I will dive into how a historical event like WWI, influenced what women wore and how the fashion industry operated as a whole during this time.

Women’s Fashion Pre-War

Prior to the kick-off of the first World War, the Edwardian period of fashion was extremely popular. This type of fashion is known for excess, luxury, and extravagant clothing. Garments that were worn by women heavily reflected their social status and age. In addition, women tended to have up to five outfit changes a day. They wore corsets, long skirts, tailored suit dresses, and dramatic hats. Dresses were bell-shaped, hemlines touched the floor, and women dazzled the streets in high lace collars. Women bought from French designers, such as Paul Poiret, who created corset-free dresses that draped loosely and straight down. Dresses like these were a prominent part of women’s fashion in the 1920s.

One of Paul Poiret's designs

During the War

France was the core of the fashion industry right before the war began. However, during the war, there was little to no communication between the US and Europe, and therefore, New York emerged as the new center for fashion. As Americans could no longer purchase clothing easily from France, French fashions became limited among women in the US.

As men went off to fight, women who previously stayed at home, had to join the workforce in jobs such as administration, drivers, nurses, and manufacturers. Many occupations women took on required uniforms, resulting in a military look arriving into fashion. Colors such as khaki black came into popularity to mimic military uniforms. With more women working, trousers and business professional clothing were worn that emphasized comfort rather than lavishness. Designers like Coco Chanel brought women’s trousers to the mainstream by meshing practicality with femininity as they had to bear more responsibilities during this time period. Women wore more overalls and pants with silhouettes getting straighter and hemlines getting higher. The Edwardian era was coming to an end as wearing flashier garments became impossible. It was no longer reasonable to have five outfit changes a day, as work attire was most commonly worn. The fashions completely shifted from playful and frivolous to comfortable.

With materials being limited, manufacturing had to become more efficient in order to save resources like textiles and fabrics. Because of this, more conservative clothing was made. The trench coat, a staple fashion piece to this day, was popularized. Silhouettes were looser around the waist, providing a more androgynous look. As a bell shape was preferred before the war, we began to see more layering during this time. With individuals suffering from hardships, color palettes became muted and duller. Less detail was put into the garments. Pockets were stitched on women’s skirts and jackets instead of being hidden in the seams, jackets were worn long over the hips, and women’s waists were no longer emphasized as heavily as they were during the Edwardian period. Restrictions such as the corset were falling out of style, instead the girdle was favored especially for women who participated in athletics. Wool was an important material saved for soldier uniforms and for knitting socks and sweaters to send abroad. Different fabrics emerged in its place as obtaining wool became more challenging. A fabric called Serge was manufactured, and silk and jersey material were used often.

Why is this important?

Fashion and art will always be a reflection and reaction to the atmosphere and times. What happens today will reflect what we wear tomorrow. Pandemics, wars, and worldly events are occurring at this very moment and will mirror the general direction of the fashion industry. History is how we draw parallels to what has happened in the past, and what might occur in the future. For example, we can see similarities to how WWI and the 2008 recession led to more conservative clothing. The “business casual” style in the late 2000s became popularized due to the lack of manufacturing materials. By learning about past events, we can gather conclusions on motivations behind wearing certain trends.