1940's fashion - Wardrobe Plan - How to dress accurately

FREE IMAGES An overview of a well dressed 1940's woman

Suit for Church, Street, business and Travel.

Also:
1940's fashion - A Young womans wardrobe Plan - 1947
1940's Fashion - Betty's Winter Wardrobe Plan 1948
1940's fashion - New York Women
1940's Fashion - Women's dress Code in the War Years
A 1940's Housewifes Daily Routine

1940's fashion - Wardrobe Overview
How often do you find your eyes enviously drawn to an attractively dressed woman in a pleasing frock, or suit, and who keeps her hair ' just right', her nails beautifully manicured, her makeup simple but appealing, her shoes fashionable, and above all has an air of graceful and feminine confidence about her? It would be nice to be that woman and have other women gazing at you enviously instead, wouldn't it? If you are a 1940's fashion enthusiast and you want to be ' just perfect ' in your chosen style, here's some vintage pointers for the everyday woman of the mid to late 1940's.

An attractive woman
1. Is appropriately dressed for every occasion.
2.Has good posture and attractive figure
3.Keeps herself well groomed.

1940's Fashion Film - How to Dress and Makeup



How to dress appropriately every day.

Appropriate clothes are suitable to the occasion, to the season, and to the time of day.

Street Clothes

These are general purpose fashionable attire worn to the office, when shopping, out on daily visits, or to college or when travelling.Skirts and pretty tunics are particularly satisfactory. Dresses should be long sleeved and high necked. Hats should be made from material that will not spot in the rain or snow, and should have a protective brim. Coats should be simply cut and trimmed and shoes should have sturdy low heels.

 Skirts and Blouses

Shoes - for street wear are practical: They may be oxfords or pumps, depending on the current style, but they
should be of low heels and fit up round the foot to give all day comfort. They can be in several colors. Dark wine red, dark blue or green, and try to match your jacket, cardigan or coat. Black shoes may be worn with black or blue coats and with dresses of black, blue, red or green. Brown shoes may be worn with brown or tan coats, and dresses of green, tan, red or brown.

 1940's Shoes

Hosiery - for street wear should not be sheer, fragile hose. Current styles indicate what colors of hosiery are suitable.

Jewelry - Do please be inconspicious. A class ring or pin and simple beads to harmonise with the costume.

Gloves - must harmonise with everything else you wear and be durable.

Dress Clothes

Are those worn to afternoon occasions, like parties, receptions, formal dinners etc.Such dresses typically will made of rayon, silk prints, and crepes, taffeta, organdy and voile. These of course are less simple than street clothes and frequently have curved lines, flares, ruffles, and more elaborate trimming. They can have lower necks and short sleeves than street clothes and can brighter in color.

1940's Day Dress - Vintage Costumers

Dress shoes - may be made of patent leather, kid, or suede and designed as Oxfords, Pumps, or sandals with dainty instep straps. Their heels are of medium height. they sometimes are a perfect match for your dress.

 Women trying on dress shoes in 1942 - Source LIFE

Hose - for dress wear are fully fashioned stockings, tan and sheer in texture. Your figure may influence your choice of colors for your stockings. For example if you are short and wish to appear taller, wear the same color from head to heels, including stockings to match your dress.If you want to look shorter, wear light toned stockings to match your light colored dress.

 Fully Fashioned Stockings 1949

Gloves, jewelry and purse should be lightly decorative and in keeping with the spirit of the rest of your costume.

Typical Afternoon Outfit -1947

Dressing for Housework.

Garments may be attractive, simply made, loosly fitted and washable. Do not wear wool clothes in the kitchen as they absorb odours. Slacks are also very handy, and a neat turban to keep your hair tidy and clean.

The 1940's Fashion Wardrobe Checklist

Occasions - street | college | Shops | Office | Business | Travel

Dress - simple, conservative in color.
Shoes - Oxford or strap. Practical and low heel. Leather or reptile skins.
Hosiery- Sturdy cotton, rayon
Coats- simply cut and tailored.
Hat- Practical with brim
Gloves- Heavy leather, plain pull on.
Accessories- Leather purse, plain handkercief, only necessary jewelry.

Occasions - Church | Visits | Movies

Dress - conservative
Shoes - Oxfords, low or medium heels
Hosiery - Nylon, silk or fine lisle
Coat - tailored
Hat - Small | Pill box
Gloves - Suede, kid, mocha, chamois or fabric


Occasions - Spectator sport

Dress - Gayer colors
Shoes - Same as for street
Hose - Plain or fifured depending on the season
Coat - Very plain, scarfs
Hat - Wide brim hat
Gloves -Same as for street
Accessories - same as for street wear, purse of leather,linen or cotton


Occasions - Dress | Party | Afternoon

Dress - Dainty, neck somewhat low, long or short sleeves, finer, softer materials.
Shoes - Pumps or strap, kid, satin, suede and in medium heels.
Hosiery - harmonise with chosen dress, sheer hose with dainty light dress, semi sheer with heavier fabrics
Coat - Simple or elaborate to harmonise with dress.
Hat - Color to harmonise with dress and coat, small, medium or large.
Gloves - Suede, glace kid, or fabric, white or color to match dress.
Accessories - Kid purse, as much jewelry as desired to accent costume, handkerchief to harmonise with dress.

How nice you look Margaret !

1940's Day Dresses

The ultimate secret of correct dress is wearing the right things together, and of course you have to have taste.
The secret is to have enough, but not too much, variety and contrast to make your look interesting.
Less is more.

1940's Fashion Film - What Not to Wear !



Edited from Elizabeth Todds ' Clothes for Girls ' 1947 - GlamourDaze 2010.

For the definitive breakdown on 1940's makeup styles, see the Vintage Makeup Guide
The 1940s Make-up & Beauty Guide - Instant Download.

1940's Fashion - Betty's Winter Wardrobe Plan 1948

FREE IMAGES Betty's Fall and Winter Clothing Plan
Planning your winter wardrobe in the late 1940's

Following on from the earlier Young Womans Wardrobe Plan from 1947.

For more information on womens lives, fashion, etc in the 1940's check out the following links:
1940's Fashion - How to Dress Accurately
A 1940's Housewifes Daily Routine
Helena Rubinsteins 1940's Makeup Guide
1940's Prom
The 1940's Fashion Silhouette

And for the definitive guide to 1940's Makeup styles visit
1940's Vintage Makeup Guide

Download original vintage makeup guides from the 1920's,1930's, and 1940's at
Vintage Makeup Guide.com
Is your seasonal wardrobe just a haphazard collection of outfits thrown together, or a complete and harmonious set of carefully chosen garments that will turn head and stop other women in their tracks as they envy your style and fashion sense ! Can you tell by the way they look, which other women planned their wardrobe? Back in the 1940's women meticulously planned their wardrobe down to the last detail.
1940's Fashion writer Elisebeth Todd interviewed ordinary women like Betty below, on their fashion planning in 1948.

The following is a list in her own words of Bettys wardrobe plan from 1947.

Winter Coats and Jackets

New York women out for a walk in the winter snow -1945.

Good black coat, Brown tailored coat, Tan polo coat.
Pastel, plaid, tan, soft and tailored jackets.

Winter Suits

Lauren Bacall in fashionable checked tweed suit.

A powder blue herringbone tweed suit for travelling, church and dates.
A pink tweed suit for the same occasions.


Winter Dresses

A gold wool dress - very dressy for dances.
Can be dressed up ultra with black coat and black accessories.

Day Dresses - 1945 - The War Years look.

A red and black check dress - for church or games or a day out with friends.
A powder blue lightweight wool, tailored two piece dress.
This can be worn with any of the coats and with pumps or saddle shoes and anklets.

 Francis Bergen wearing an off the shoulder dinner dress - 1948 - source Life

A red plaid wool one piece dress.[ My favourite dress ever !]
Can be worn with brown and black coats for dates and dress up affairs.

 Gene Tierney in a stunning off the shoulder red dress -1948

A gold chiffon dinner dress with long full sleeves. This is my pet !
It has silver embroidery on it.

 Ingrid Bergman models a beautiful floral chiffon dress - 1948

Green net formal with a short taffetta jacket which is worn with the dress for dinners or used as a wrap.Finally, a knee length black wool dress with half sleeves.
This is my head turner.


Fall and Winter Skirts.

Typical plaid skirt and matching shoes -1948 - Life magazine

Brown wool swing skirt
Black crepe plaited
Green plaid plaited
Blue and red plaited
Striped taffetta evening skirt to be worn with white blouse for parties.
Green Pencil skirt

Lauren Bacall in dressing room - 1948 - Life magazine

Winter  Shoes

Brown suede and alligator pumps - Two pairs
Black mary janes -One pair
Cuban heel oxfords -One pair
Brown and white low heeled pumps.
Brown ladies galoshes.
[ Glamourdaze note - these were designed to fit over your high heeled shoes]

Gaytees Galoshes for Women - 1946

Winter Hats

Powder blue felt
Navy Blue silk
Turban, wrap around.
Red felt medium brim hat.

L'Officiel Echo De la Mode - Paris hats - December 1947

Gloves for the Winter Season

Black leather gloves
White long gloves - for evening wear and formals.
White angora mittens - for snowy and cold weather.

1940's gloves - Vogue magazine 1941- source My Vintage Vogue

1947 gloves - Christian Dior - source Opera Gloves.com

1940's Fashion Purses

Blue leather, black leather and gabardine.

Betty's Underwear and Hosiery

Slips - 2 peach, 2 white, 1 blue and 1 black.
Panties - 8 pairs white.
4 brassieres
Girdles- 2 long line girdles
6 pairs of silk hose.

Source Life - Underslips - 1947

Corsetiere Fitting - 1947 - Source The Corsetiere


Winter Pajamas

Blue and white striped - cotton
Peach wool nightie
Blue wool Pajamas.

1940's Fashion - Mrs Isles wearing cotton pajamas . Life Magazine


Planning your wardrobe includes deciding what clothes you will need for the coming season, trying on and judging what will fit as the season progresses. Older women may add a pound or two during the colder months of winter.Planning also includes combining tops and skirts, dresses with cardigans or jackets. What hosiery to go with what outfit and in what weather. What shoes work best with what hats.

Where do you start ? With the wardrobe you left from last winter of course! What articles of clothing do you need ? One way to begin is to list all the occasions for which you will need clothes.

List the wearable garments from last year. Are they still in fashion ? If you had a successful wardrobe last year, then hang on to them and simply accessorise. Be ready for all temperatures and all occasions.

Edited from original text by Elisebeth Todd - 1947 Clothing for Women and Girls.
"So as you can see, a woman need not have many garments to be well dressed !"

1940's Fashion - New York Women

FREE IMAGES Street Fashion 1940's in New York

Continuing in the theme of vintage street fashion, here are some great photos from LIFE MAGAZINE
A fabulous site to browse for a window into the past. When it comes to glamour, nothing much has changed in Manhattan. But these women in the 1940's really raised the bar when it came to dressing to the nines.Full on fashion whilst out buying the loaf of bread. Furs were all the rage then, and no one was bothered.

Two women talking on the sidewalk of Fifth Avenue 1942 Alfred Eisenstaedt

Two women chatting on Fifth Avenue 1942 - Photo Alfred Eisenstaedt

Stork Club Powder room 1944 - Photo Alfred Eisenstaedt 

New York Street Fashion 1940's

 Images courtesy of LIFE

1940's Fashion - Womens Dress Style after the War

FREE IMAGES A look at Women's Dress Codes in the late 1940's
up to and including Christian Diors New Look.

This is a follow up to Women's Dress Code of the 1940's - the War Years.

You can also download a beautiful illustrated 1940's make-up and beauty guide from Vintage Make-up Guides.

The image of the Land Girl / Factory Girl was replaced very quickly by a return
to a more skirty fashion.


Like all style trends, design covers four main components of fashion ....

The Silhouette | The Detail | The Colour | and the Fabric

The Silhouette -

In the 1947, womens dress code changed dramatically from the trim waist and hips ,broad chest and shoulder pads with shoulder-length curled or rolled hair to the New Look !




The New Look debuted via Christian Dior in 1947, sloping shoulders, cinched waists ,and wider than wide hips !!
With Longer lengths and drastically fuller skirts. Woman’s fashion now changed to a soft, feminine and decidedly romantic image.As a result, ironically, womens emancipation was stalled somewhat with women being shooed back into the kitchen once more.

The Detail -

Womens Daywear of the late 1940's.

1.The fitted jacket-and-skirt suit, with a peplum to the hip
2. One- and two-fabric day dresses with squarish curved necklines,
3. The bust shaped by soft flowing gathers , swags or drapery on the skirt.


Eveningwear Dress styles of the late 1940's.

1. Lace and taffeta with asymmetric, bouffant styling were all the rage.
2. Cap sleeved cotton blouses [ and rayon too for a while until polyester arrived ]
3. Wide-leg pants and matching tap-style shorts for recreation .


Women's Underwear in the late 1940's.

By the end of the forties,corsets had been finally replaced by the all in one girdle and
the increasingly popular two piece - bra and the girdle.



Nylon Stockings began to adorn womens legs once more, having been used in chiefly for parachutes during the war years.
This time the sale of fully fashioned stockings took off on a global scale.
There wasnt a fashionable woman alive who couldn't wait to jump into the latest pair.


Women's Shoes in the late 1940's.

Wedge heels were still worn but now with shallower wedges.
Shoes became more delicate,high-heeled court shoes, or shoes finely strapped round the ankles, worn with beige nylons were the rage for a time as part of the " New Look".
Plain high heeled black leather or suede court shoes were the main shoe style.



Women's Hats and Gloves in the 1940's

Hat design for women went completely mad during the 1940's - every shape and size was in.
Recycling your old hat into something unique was also very popular.


A becoming hat was designed to enhance your good features
and to counteract ones less attractive features.

For example -glasses were not considered a nice feature for a girl in the 1940's.


Oh dear - we can't have that, can we ? !
-so a hat with a brim worn just above glasses would make them less conspicuous.etc.


Headscarves -having been used extensively in the factories during the war were also incorporated by designers.

Rouched Chiffon Gloves were popular in the 1940's and Opera Gloves continued
to be worn right into the 1950's for evening wear.




1940's Fashion Colours

The color of fashion in the early 1940's went to war aswell,with patriotic nautical themes and dark greens and khakis dominating the color palates,though some morning dresses had bright floral shades.
After the war, colour became a feature once more,with shocking feminine primary
colors becoming the rage, as exemplified by the glossy Vogue Covers.
Clothing Dye like DYLON went on to thrive in 'make-do & mend' post war Britain making fabric dyes to brighten up the homes, wardrobes and spirits of women across the country.



The Color Helm, produced by Ostwald Color Standards in the 1940’s was the standard
color guide.


The Womens Wearing Apparel version was hugely popular for obvious reasons.
It suggested color combinations [ for home dressmaking or dyeing ] in the degree of contrast
wanted !

Clothing Fabric in the 1940's

Natural fibers such as linen, cotton, wool, and silk.
Rayon [ artificial silk ] originally patented in 1926 for dress making was the big thing for those women who were handy with a singer sewing machine.


and finally a snapshot of typical fashion accesories for women in the 1940's



 Vintage 1940's make-up Guide for Instant download.

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