Fundamentals of Fashion Merchandising, History of Fashion

Inventions that enabled faster textile production 

Prior to the Industrial Revolution, textiles were hand made.

Inventions and discoveries that enabled faster production to meet the consumer’s desire for fashion include:

• Power Loom (1785)

• Cotton Gin (1793)

• Spinning Jenny (1794)

• 1st Sewing Machine (1830)

• Synthetic Dyes (1870)

Fashion Industry Origins

Slave produced cotton used domestically and exported

• Mid-1850s, department stores appeared

• Bon Marché- first department store in Paris.

• Department stores offered a greater assortment of goods, credit policies,

price awareness, and promotional techniques.

• Fashion production and distribution which meant greater profits

1910-1919

• US became highly industrialized and entered WWI in 1917

• Women’s Roles Change

• European designers relocate to the US and European tailors saturate the market 

1920s

Age of Flappers 

• Bobbed hair, simple jewelry, cloche hats, gloves, and leather handbags 

• Clear lines, styles are less fussy

• Image: Bias cut tunic over wrap-around skirt

• New slim bustless, waistless silhouette

Roaring 20s until 1929 Crash

• Birth of the assembly line production influences fashion and the arts

• Artists like Picasso influence dressmakers such as Vionnet and Lanvin

• Cubism and futurism makes ornamental design obsolete

• Art Deco influence visible

• Sexy lines bare more flesh

• Harlem Renaissance

• Rayon to the US

1930s

• Genius in drapery and bias cut

• No corset, but brings out the best in women’s curves

• Skirts are longer, silhouettes leaner and closer to the body

• Subdued elegance

• Dress fit for a lavish soiree

The Great Depression

• Time of practical fashion for most

• Notable fashion: Chanel’s little black dress, jersey dress, and jacket

• Women playing sports, leisure 

• Hollywood glamor is important during Great Depression

• Vionnet, Lanvin, Chanel, Schiaparelli, Balenciaga, are influential in modern shapes 

• In the US, Mainbocher known for women’s leisurewear category

• Latex (rubberized fabric) changed underwear garments with a two-way stretch

• First nylon stockings were knitted and sold in 1938

1940s

WWII and Becoming Prosperous

• The skirt is shortened due to the shortage of fabric

• Shoulders are padded, shoes are platform with soles made of cork, wood and even tire treads.

War Time

• Rationing. People “make do”

• Synthetics, recycled woolens, felt, taffeta, corduroy are most popular. Decorations are made from simple felt

• Women in pants and trench coats

• France no longer dictates because of World War II, American designers become popular, bringing in casual styles. (ex: Claire McCardell)

• Demob suits

• Zoot Suits

Utility Designs (War Time)

• The maximum allowed cloth was 13 feet

• The limit for cloth for a blouse was 3 feet

• There were only 3 buttons allowed on any garment.

• No cuffs on pants or sleeves were allowed

1950s

Golden Age of Fashion in the US

• Unadulterated femininity. Image of the “New Look” in Berlin 

• Consumerism picks up

• New materials 

• “Rebel” men 

Noteworthy Styles of the 1950s

• Trapeze dress was a turning point

• The first Chanel suit in braid-trimmed tweed appears in 1954.

• Givenchy launched his “sack dress.”

• Cardin introduces the “bubble dress.”

• Poodle skirts, twin sets, ballet shoes, and ponytails were popular for teenagers.

• Evening apparel

1960s, Swinging London

First generation to do their own thing

• Women’s fashion, conservative then not

• Men’s fashion, London influenced

• Unisex clothing

• Twiggy

• Haute couture dominated the world’s fashion stage, but mass-produced fashion was making inroads in the US.

“Youthquake” in the 1960s

Swinging, joyous and mad about

color.

• Knees

• Mini skirts (1966) and short A-line dresses.

• Square-toed or vinyl thigh boots

• Pea coats and op art shiny raincoats

• Styles are sweet and modern.

• Mod dress pattern

1970s

“Anything Goes”

• Cool, young, hippie styles mixing folklore and Indian

motives and flowers were all the rage.

• Ethnic designs, disco (John Travolta), preppy, and punk styles

• Popularity of DIY

• Blurred lines and bright colors

• Rising American designers:

  • Bill Blass, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Diane Von Furstenberg, Vivienne Westwood

• Youth dictates fashion

• Rise of subcultures towards the end of 70s

• Fitness craze, Jane Fonda’s influence was huge

1980s

CONSUMERISM

Social and Cultural influences

• Yuppies – Young Urban Professional

• Wall Street & “Greed is good”

• New Companies: Apple (1984), MTV (1981)

• Music videos as art

• Pop and hip hop

• Variety exists but bigger is better

• Madonna

Power and Excess

• Power Dressing

• Big shoulders, close-fitting skirts, and blouses with batwing sleeves

• Inverted triangle shape

• Dynasty (TV drama)

• Smaller trend: commuter styles

Men began to have more interest in fashion than ever before

• Gekko shirt & Wall Street

• Striped shirt with a white collar and cuff

• Yuppies preferred suits- Armani

• Casual alternative:

  • Unstructured jackets with t-shirts

  • Miami Vice look

American Designers

• Still an emerging process

• French still dominate global markets

• Japanese designers become popular

  • Rei Kawakubo

• US Ready-to-Wear takes off 

1990s

• Globalization and Technology

• Casual Fridays Start

• Lycra 

• Active Wear

• Ready to Wear Chains 

  • GAP, J.Crew, Banana Republic

• Lifestyle Brands 

Fashion Becomes Big Business

• Lots of variety, handmade fabrics, asymmetry and overlay

• Rebelled against waste and fickleness

  • Direct contrast to 80s

• Grunge aesthetic

  • Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden

2000s

Age of globalization, emerging markets, million dollar conglomerates

Sex and the City

• popularity of feminine, ladylike styles for high-powered women

New levels of individualism

Democratizing fashion

• How does this affect the brand/designer??

Present Day

• Speed to market, fast fashion

• Quick response

• Designers are now celebrities and vice versa 

• Subcultural prominence grows 

• America is a dominant fashion influence but its future is not certain