Fashion By Royal Appointment

The Queen with a Royal Fan

So, what have you got planned for the Diamond Jubilee looonng weekend? A street party with a lovely bit of bunting? Heading up to London for a swell time at the river pageant?  Keeping it local at the Real Vintage Fair at The Hexagon on Sunday 3^rd (with roller disco)? Taking it easy at the concert and garden party at Forbury Gardens on Sunday afternoon? Going to the carnival on west-side at Prospect Park on the Monday?
 
However you intend to celebrate our Queen’s 60 years of crowning glory we thought we would take a peek at the fashions and styles of 1952 to help us all get in the mood.

Okay, so what was being worn in 1952? Well, obviously some people were practising wearing a weighty seven pound diamond and rare jewel encrusted crown complimented with a full length velvet robe.  And everyone else? …

Bet she's wearing her slippers

For the Gals

The 1950’s was a decade of transitions. The early 50’s were still in the more formal style of the 40’s, reflecting an economy still recovering from WWII. Clothing coupons had been abolished in 1948 but food rationing only stopped in February 1952 (petrol rationing continued until 1957). After the mid 50's a more relaxed approach was to make its way in, with Capri trousers, denim, knitted sweatshirts, shorter hair and flat shoes, to give way to the 1960’s. But that was all still to come.

The 1950’s is epitomised as an era of glamour. There were two main styles in the early 1950’s. Women were sick of the drudge of the everyday as well as cost-cutting with their fabrics and looks during and since the war. They were more than ready for glamour and to re-emphasise their femininity. Enter Christian Dior’s New Look in 1947. Initially this radical and shocking look was not readily taken to but when people got their heads round it the style went on to reign supreme for another 10 years and is still influential today. So, 1952 was slap bang in the middle of this force of fashion.  The look was designed to highlight women’s narrow waists. With fitted jackets, nipped in waists and full A-line skirts this style gave the classic hourglass figure. It was sophisticated, elegant and feminine (and swishy). Most importantly the mid-calf length skirts lavishly used reams and reams of fabric which demonstrated luxury which women craved after years of scrimping. Underneath all that material was a support system of girdles, corsets and stiffened petticoats to keep the skirts big and the waistlines small.

The other dominant style worked along similar lines in a different way. The pencil skirt had been around since the 1940’s and was still on trend. In the previous decade the pencil skirt was popular because it was smart, flattering and cheap as it did not require too much material. In the 1950’s the ultra feminine pencil skirt remained a favourite because it emphasised the waist and therefore a womanly figure; it was far removed from the silhouette of a war-time uniform. Although the look was very polished and smart it was also very easy to copy. Combined with the introduction of mass-produced clothing of far better quality than ever before and using modern textile techniques with new synthetics (easy care, drip dry, nylon, acrylic, polyester and spandex) the look was accessible too. Shops such as Marks and Spencer sold their own versions or women made them up from patterns.

Both looks were matched with leg-elongating and fetching high heels. Round or peep toe were favoured. However, Dior then introduced stilettos at a fashion show in early 1952 and as we know the rest is history.

Other significant elements of fashion include the introduction of the dolman sleeve (wide at the armhole and narrow at the wrist) which was adopted into many outfits. Stand away collars came in bringing attention to the neck and throat, which were also highlighted by the shorter hairstyles, while the swing back coat (by Jacques Fath) was indispensable at drawing attention away from the stomach area; key at a time of post-war high pregnancy rates.

Accessories were another important post-war demarcation point because of their luxurious frivolity. Gloves were an essential, particularly in white or cream to emphasise elegance. Hats were still popular in the early 1950’s in a variety of designs including the pillbox and those styled very close to the head. Fur collars and cuffs (ahem, polite cough) and stoles layered on the glamour and fur even featured on brooches.

Of course handbags were crucial in finishing of an outfit and also indispensable in holding a host of newly available make-up made popular by colour Hollywood flicks and by the singers of the time. (The UK singles charts began in November 1952 with Nat King Cole, Frankie Laine, Doris Day, Vera Lynn and Johnnie Ray holding top spots). Max Fax brought make-up called Pan Cake, for a flawless finish, to the consumer so they could copy their film favourite’s looks such as Gene Kelly in Singing In The Rain and Diana Dors in The Last Page (both 1952 hits). Red was on the lips but so were shimmering pinks with matching nails. Stars such as Elizabeth Taylor were also having their hairstyles copied and then in 1952/3 a wave of copy-cat newbie Queen hair styles became popular.

And that was all just for day wear! In the evening the look was based on the same silhouettes; whether the look was demure floating in a full skirt or sophisticated in a pencil skirt it was all ramped up a notch with more glamour. Strapless dresses in fabrics such as chiffon (double helpings of swish) took centre stage with a supporting cast of boleros, short shrugs and gloves.

 

Fashion Trends from 1952

For The Guys

In the early 50’s Elvis was still a truck driver, rock and roll was in its infancy and the world was just about to experience the 'teenager'. In 1952 menswear was serious business. Since the end of the war women were encouraged back into the home so that men back from the war could take up places in the world of work and menswear was formal and professional consisting of uniform suits in dark hues. Generally the suit was simplified by taking out the shoulder pads of the 40’s, removing the double breast on the jacket and shortening the jacket and trousers slightly. This was the early 50’s concession to fashion. Sorry boys, not much glamour for you in 1952.

However, hats were really big! We don’t mean physically big, that would be ridiculous, it just wouldn’t have worked on a daily commute on the tube. Silly. No, but hats were very popular. No self respecting man left the house without one but the hat could be individualised through various styles, with the Fedora being a fave. They could also be placed at a jaunty angle – steady there!

A typical family chillaxing in the early 1950's

Casual wear for young chaps was basically a mini-version of men's styles or veered to the preppy Ivy League look which remained smart although the suit jacket was replaced by a comfy cardy. Out of the mainstream the teddy boy movement was gaining ground (though they weren’t termed teddy boys until 1953) with their appropriated and altered version of the Edwardian dapper.

All in all 1952 was still entrenched in the formal 40’s but with Dior’s dominant New Look everywhere the demand for luxury, femininity and glamour was met and then some. With thoughts of the war still being pushed to the back of people’s minds, Elizabeth’s accession to the throne in ’52, followed by a year’s preparation for her coronation, Britain must have had a jolly good knees up … and looked damn fine while doing so! Perhaps sixty years on it's our duty to go out there, do our bit, and bring vintage style to the streets of Reading.

Whatever your plans we hope you have a fab Jubilee weekend.

Love Frock&Roll

Picture credits: Fashion trends from 1952 reproduced by kind permission wesewretro.com