1940: Patriotism in fashion
Propaganda was a huge part of the war effort. It was required to keep up morale and downplay the severity of the war, keeping everyone calm. As a result every publication had to support these morale boosting messages, even Vogue used several propaganda phrases such as "Dig for Victory".
Due to more men joining the army be it voluntarily or through conscription, workers were needed to replace the men. As such, women were more than happy to do their bit and quickly took up the roles. Women embraced wearing trousers for the first time. A move that never went out of fashion.
In 1941, Nylon stockings and all other clothes were rationed and so soldiers became the go to source for stockings. Clothes rationing became such a big deal that Vogue ran an article titled "Your one and only dress". Patriotism and propaganda wasn't only found in written articles however, all clothing was designed to have military detailing such as epaulettes or double breasted button detailing. This was done to create a sense of unity and solidarity for everyone in the country.
In 1942 the idea of "Utility Clothing" was conceptualised. A group of designers were commissioned by the Board of Trade to create a line of clothing that was simple enough to be mass produced easily and that didn't use up lots of material and labour; they wanted the designers to be as economical and minimal as they could be.
Propaganda was a huge part of the war effort. It was required to keep up morale and downplay the severity of the war, keeping everyone calm. As a result every publication had to support these morale boosting messages, even Vogue used several propaganda phrases such as "Dig for Victory".
Due to more men joining the army be it voluntarily or through conscription, workers were needed to replace the men. As such, women were more than happy to do their bit and quickly took up the roles. Women embraced wearing trousers for the first time. A move that never went out of fashion.
In 1941, Nylon stockings and all other clothes were rationed and so soldiers became the go to source for stockings. Clothes rationing became such a big deal that Vogue ran an article titled "Your one and only dress". Patriotism and propaganda wasn't only found in written articles however, all clothing was designed to have military detailing such as epaulettes or double breasted button detailing. This was done to create a sense of unity and solidarity for everyone in the country.
In 1942 the idea of "Utility Clothing" was conceptualised. A group of designers were commissioned by the Board of Trade to create a line of clothing that was simple enough to be mass produced easily and that didn't use up lots of material and labour; they wanted the designers to be as economical and minimal as they could be.
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