Women's Fashion 1920s-2000s

By ncharlonis

  • The Flapper

    The Flapper
    In the 1920s, women gained the right to vote through the 19th amendment. Women use fashion to reflect the modern age and active new women (1). With the addition of women's rights and boycotting of prohibition, women's fashion reflected the partying aspect of society. The dresses began to show more skin by showing the knee but also dropped the waistline. There was more texture added to outfits including beading and sequins. There became a difference between day and evening outfits.

  • VOGUE 1940s

    VOGUE 1940s
    WWII was at its prime and women were called into action. They were given jobs on the front line as well as back home, replacing the men who went to war (2). WAAC, or Women's Army Auxiliary Corps, provided women with clerical jobs in the army to save the combat roles for men (3). Women during the 1940s would be a simple dress past knee length. This allowed easy movement for the women who worked as well as appropriateness for the workplace.

  • The Housewife

    The Housewife
    After the end of WWII, men came back and took over the jobs they once had. Women were made housewives and would make sure the house was clean, dinner was made, and children were taken care of. This is the age of respectability and conformity (4). After marriage, women hardly worked outside the home and it was the man who was in charge. Fashion reflects that women were often seen as trophies that their husbands showed off.

  • Disco

    Disco
    The introduction of bell bottoms was huge in the 70s. This is when women as a whole began to wear pants every day. Women's fashion became more relaxed with the introduction of baggier pants and more revealing tops (5). This was the first time women were allowed to choose between pants and skirts (even how long the skirts were) all based on their own personal preferences (6). Music had a huge influence on fashion, and disco, which was popular to dance to, had influenced the bell bottom craze.

  • 2000s

    2000s
    The 2000's fashion was heavily influenced by the entertainment world (7). Pop stars were the influence of trends in fashion rather than the fashion industry. This brought a blend of both fashion trends television and entertainment which left confusion for the next decade. Fast fashion, or business replications of high-end fashion designs, was the rave of the 2000s. Y2K was a popular trend in fashion, with tiny shirts and low-rise jeans (8).