The Fashion Folks

A site about fashion, styling, trends, fashion history and beauty

1930’s Fashion History

The Fashion Folks

We have talked about the glam life of the 1920s fashion, the swinging fashion life in the 1960s and also chatted a bit about the 1950s. But folks, what about the fabulous fashion of the 1930s? Here’s the 1930’s fashion history!

Society in the 1930’s

You can’t talk, nor understand, the fashion of a certain decade without giving it the context of how the society looked like. The 1930’s fashion was a product of the 1929’s economic crisis and the political disturbance in Europe. This led to a fashion where luxury was considered tasteless and the fashion was simplified.The haute couture fashion in Paris partly lost its status and the daily wear was more about the 1930's fashion historysilhouette than rich details. The clothes was made of cheaper materials and more fabric, than what was needed, was unusual. However, the glam life of 1920’s remained in Hollywood, where the Hollywood glam got elevated in status. Bette Davis, Fred Astaire and Greta Garbo to mention some icons from the decade!

Fashion trends

Although, as stated before, the daily fashion was supposed to be simple and tasteful, the 1930’s would become a decade of fun fashion. The economical restriction paved the way for creativity, innovation and make the most of what you had. The female silhouette did a comeback in the 1930’s (from the boyish one of the 1920’s), and your natural shape was also what was to be accentuated. Not through the old method of wearing corsets though, but with belts and a defined dresses. As the women shouldn’t overdo it with accessories, the 1930’s fashion went crazy with patterns instead. From floral, to dots, animals and cars the pattern explosion was a contrast to the simple and clean shape. The hats became a detail to count on and small details as ruffles and bows were common. During the 1930s more women also began to wear pants, a fashion that Greta Garbo made way for (embodied by actress Joan Bennett below), even though they were introduced earlier by one Coco Chanel!

Designers

One of our time’s most innovative and impactful designer, Elsa Schiapparelli, rose up as a leading lady in the fashion world. She was the one who famously designed the lobster dress with motif from Salvador Dalí, and also the designer who introduced the zipper to fashion. Schiapparelli was creative with her fashion, loved distinct colors, shoulder pads and a well-shaped silhouette. She kind of became the fashion world’s face of surrealism. Another famous designer from the decade is Nina Ricci, whose designs were feminine and a bit dramatic. Today people are perhaps most familiar with the brand through their perfumes, even though they still make clothes.

Folks, what do you think of the 1930’s fashion history? Hit us in the comments!

1930's fashion history1

Sources can be found on our Pinterest!

71 thoughts on “1930’s Fashion History”

  18. Such a good read!! I love history and adore that you blended fact with fashion. I wonder if clothes remained cheaply made from the 30’s onward… or if there’s a reason most clothes are made of cheap quality these days for a particular reason…

    ♥
    Amber
    All the Cute ?
    Today’s Post: Abstract Print Dress

    1. Thank you love! That’s an interesting thought for sure. Manufacturing became more and more usual back then and would develop into larger scales. But the cheap fabrics today are unfortuanetly more of laziness and saving money than the history of the 1930’s! Xx

      https://www.thefashionfolks.com

  21. I’m seriously loving this post! We take so much fashion inspiration from previous decades. It’s always so valuable to learn what each decade had to offer and so fun when trying to incorporate into current ready-to-wear looks <3

    xoxo
    Rina
    http://www.andshedressed.com

  23. I really enjoyed this post because I feel that the ’30s is an era that not many go into much detail about in the fashion world. We generally hear more about the ’20s, ’60s, ’70s and now, ’90s, so I feel this is a fresh take on vintage and retro style reporting. I love that the history and context were addressed because that certainly was influential! I’m sure wearing pants for the first time, being liberated from those deadly corsets, must have felt quite liberating back then! Thanks so much for sharing and I hope you’re having a great week so far!

    XO,

    Jalisa
    http://www.thestylecontour.com

    1. That’s true unfortuanetaly. Probably due to the fact that the fashion was rather simple compared to the 20’s or the 70’s. In both those decades, boundaries were pushed in the fashion evolution whereas the 30’s and the 40’s it was more about the daily life! And the simple fashion was a product of the economic crisis and the war! It definitely must have been a liberating and lovely change indeed, can’t even imagine the feeling of going from corsets to pants! Xx

      https://www.thefashionfolks.com

  34. I loved reading about the history of fashion in this period–I don’t know a lot about the 30s so it was interesting to read!

Comments are closed.

Begin typing your search term above and press enter to search. Press ESC to cancel.

Back To Top