The world of fashion has seen a lot of changes over the decades and now it seems like many old styles are making a strong comeback, with very interesting combinations of the old and the new being created. Clothing in the 40’s was very simple until the war ended (and the rationing of clothing was over). Following this, the creation of new clothing styles began to emerge and suits from the mid and late 40’s had elements that are still being used for the manufacturing of modern ones.
1940 Men’s Fashion: What happened?
As mentioned above, the first half of the decade was heavily influenced by the war while the second half celebrated the end of the turmoil and the beginning of a peaceful life. The political changes that a country suffers after an ordeal like this are always going to have consequences on the fashion world and this really was one of the reasons why the 1940’s had such a distinct impact on the world of fashion. The more prosperity and peace you have, the more room for society to focus on the arts. The creation and design of clothing/apparel is certainly something that falls into this category.
After the war ended there was a very heavy emphasis on relaxation and the Hawaiian shirt became a widely used clothing item. It became quite popular amongst people who wanted to go to the beach and those that liked going away to enjoy their vacations. The popularity of all kinds of casual clothing really sky-rocketed and more men began to buy into this type of fashion in order to lay back and forget about all the bad memories associated with the war. America in general saw a huge change in the fashion industry and it was a positive one for sure.
Post war suits had a looser look and the use of accessories had become more common too. Care was taken to make sure the colors of clothing items paired together complemented each other and using bright colors was not typically considered very tasteful, unless you worked as an entertainer of some sort. This meant that the look of the era was very sober and clean cut, with elegance being the main component; with a very conservative look for men of all ages taking precedence. An important take away from this era is that it allowed people to discover that fashion flourishes when prosperity and peace are predominant in a region. There are many people who still think the 40’s had some of the best looking clothing to this day.
(photo credit: Rochelle, just rochelle)
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