“When a woman smiles, her dress must smile with her” – Vionnet

 

The jazz age of the 1920’s was a fabulous time. A time of new found freedom after the restraints of World War One. It was a time to enjoy yourself, to let your hair down and dance the night away to some hot jazz in an underground speakeasy. And it was a time when women’s fashion also became less restrained. For many years women had been forced into the confines of a corset, or many layers of petticoats and folds of fabric. But with new designers like Vionnet on the scene in Paris, women began to know what freedom really felt like! With a much more sleek and flowing style, the 1920’s became an era of progression, with many fringes, beading and tassels ornamenting the much loved flapper style. It was a new modern influence that was oh so fun, and is still seen in fashion today.

One of the largest contributors in twenties fashion fantasies was Madeleine Vionnet. Born in Chilleurs-aux Bois, France on June 22^nd 1876, Vionnet found her feet early in the fashion stakes, and continued to refine her skills until they triumphed in the 1920’s. Not being born into privilege, Vionnet worked hard to earn her place. At only twelve years old, Vionnet was forced into work like many young girls of the era, and began an apprenticeship as a seamstress. She was confident in her work, with natural abilities. By the age of eighteen, Vionnet had been married, and suffered the loss of an infant. After such tragedy, she chose to up and leave her current life, and moved to London in search of a better storyline. Whilst in London, she continued to work as a seamstress, and was fortunate to be employed as an assistant to Court dressmaker Kate Reilly. Reilly was contracted to dress the Royal family, and Vionnet must have learnt tremendously under her guidance. After a few years abroad, Vionnet decided to head back to Paris, which was already becoming the centre of haute couture. She began working for the Callot Soeurs, a famous couture house in Paris, and for the next six years made toiles for all of their innovative designs. Following this success, Vionnet changed scenes and took a position with Jacques Doucet, from 1907 – 1911. By this time, Vionnet was starting to discover her own unique style and way of dressmaking, which didn’t always coincide with that of her employer.

The following year, amongst the onset of World War One, Vionnet took the brave step of opening her own House. Finally she could design what she wanted. The House was only attainable for two years however, and in 1914, Vionnet had to close the doors. The war had proved too much of an obstacle for many in Paris couture to overcome, with other great designers like Chanel also succumbing to the German advances. Like many, Vionnet fled Paris to safer grounds, and returned after the war was over. In 1920, the House of Vionnet returned to the couture scene, and by 1923, it was so successful that it moved to a larger premises on the famed Avenue Montaigne. Vionnet once again started producing her innovate designs that freed women from their corsets. By 1925, Vionnet had crossed the Atlantic, and opened her first boutique in New York, selling ‘off the peg’ designs to the fashion forward American. Many Hollywood starlets of the time became supporters of this new found luxury brand, including Marlene Dietrich, Katherine Hepburn and Greta Garbo. By 1930, Vionnet was still going strong, with her ingénue techniques of draping and bias cutting largely contributing.

The bias cut was not something new when Vionnet started showcasing it, but the designer is largely credited with making it so well known. Cut on a forty five degree angle to both the warp and weft of the fabric, the bias techniques allows the fabric to drape and wrap around the models body. Coup en Bias as the French refer to it, is a free flowing style that displays the natural curves of the female form. With such a linear silhouette, the wearer has no need for a corset or petticoat. There is also no stiffeners used to structure the fabric, and no padding is required either. Many of Vionnet’s gowns that encompassed this style also had no requirements for buttons or other fasteners. One could easily slip the ensemble on over your head. Previously the bias technique had only been used on hemlines, but Vionnet started using it to create entire gowns, which is why she had to order her fabrics two yards wider than usual. These fabrics were purchased by the bolt, and consisted of crepe, crepe de chine, gabardine and silk satin.

 

Vionnet continued to be an innovator over the 1920’s and 1930’s. Other design concepts that can be attributed to Vionnet, and that still appear in fashion today, are the handkerchief hem, the cowl neckline and the halter top. Vionnet was a perfectionist like many of us designers are. She used to create her samples on miniature dolls to ensure the right look before it went onto larger scale production. At the top of her empire, Vionnet employed one thousand staff in over twenty six ateliers. She remained for her entire life, very much a private person. Choosing to complete her work away from her ateliers, Vionnet spent most of her time in her private study. Here she would have her head seamstresses visit her to go over design ideas and options. It was very rare that Madame Vionnet was ever seen in her atelier! Due to the huge success of her new style, it was inevitable that Vionnet had her designs copied. It was a well know trade in the 1920’s that many leading designers had their styles ripped off and sold overseas for a much lower price. Vionnet tried her hardest to stop this from occurring, and would even personally fingerprint all of her garment labels to prove their originality. Vionnet also fought for her workers rights during her reign in fashion. She fought hard to introduce better labor practices and fairer conditions. Health care for her employees was one of her achievements, as too was maternity leave. Dining halls and canteens were first scene in Vionnet’s ateliers before other designs adopted the same benefits for their employees.

Known in the industry as the “architect among dressmakers”, Vionnet crafted a career full of success. In 1939, once again due to the threat of war, Madame Vionnet closed her House for good. She officially retired in 1940. Having popularised many styles still evident today, Vionnet was a designer of immense talent and charge. The influence of the 1920’s would have been a completely different scene had it not been for Vionnet striving to give women independence and freedom in their fashion choices. The grand couturier passed away at almost one hundred years old, in March 1975. What a legacy she left behind!

Love Always, Anastacia Rose xx

Fashion on the Ration – How women remained stylish during World War Two

Clothing is something most of us take for granted these days. Usually if we want to purchase something, we either jump online and order it direct to our door, or we head to the local shopping centre and browse amongst the varied range of stores within. Most of us also purchase fashion for the here and now, the latest trends or celebrity inspired look. We occasionally invest in larger budget items such as a coat or evening dress, with the intention of keeping it in the wardrobe for a few years. But fast fashion has largely taken over our lives, with our wardrobes changing style from season to season. So can you imagine what it was like to be a woman surviving in the 1940’s when fashion became an item rationed by the government due to the Second World War? Some had been through it previously in the First World War, but it was much more prominent in Britain and across Europe for almost the entire decade of the roaring forties. Women no longer had the freedom to go to their local store or couturier to buy something fabulous. Instead fashion was dictated to them by what was available during the war years, and what was deemed appropriate (which is why Dior created such controversy when he released his 1947 New Look). Many innovations came from war time rationing of clothing, some which we still use today, and others which I’m glad never caught on!

At the beginning of the 1940’s, Britain was heavily involved in the war, with many of its country men fighting on the front line, and many of its women being put to work in factories. As the war progressed, with no end in sight, many sacrifices had to be made. Food is something that was largely controlled and became extremely hard to come by. But what many people don’t realise is that clothing too was a luxury that suffered drastically during this time. On 1^st June 1941, clothing became rationed across Britain with a limit being put on the amount of garments one could purchase. As money was also scares during this time, coupons similar to those used to receive food items were given out in 1942 under the Utility Clothing Scheme. This allowed people to save up their coupons and then head to the stores to purchase garments. Women had to be frugal in their choices of clothing, as whatever they purchased was likely to have to survive for many seasons to come. It became apparent early on in this scheme that some manufactures were producing inferior garments, which lead to the less wealthy citizens receiving items that soon wore out. To try and make it an even playing field for all members of society, the Government introduced the ‘CC41’ label. This ensured that whatever was produced, be it socks, underwear or jumpers, had to adhere to a sustainable level of quality. This way, everyone could obtain these higher quality garments with the coupon rations.

There was much uprising over this new way of life, with many feeling uncomfortable with this new style of dressing. To try and relieve some of the negative attitudes, the Government approached a range of British designers to come together to create war time fashion for the public. Big time designers like Norman Hartnell, Bianca Mosca, Digby Morton and Hardy Aimes, came together and produced a range of fashion that not only stuck to the current regulations, but ensured a stylish take on it as well. No longer were people afraid they would all look the same, and being able to still wear designer brands help lift the spirits of many during this challenging period. Austerity regulations also largely affected men’s fashion. Only single breasted suits were allowed to be produced, with limitations placed on lapel sizes, number of pockets per garment, and the width of turn up and cuffs on both trousers and shirts. It is estimated that these limitations saved some four million square yards of cotton per year!

The 1940’s was also the beginning of manmade fabrics coming into the mass market. Natural fibres such as wool and silk were used for the soldiers’ uniforms and parachutes, which left women’s clothing out in the cold. Fabrics such as rayon and synthetic jersey became widely used, and are often found in vintage garments today. Fabrics had to be user friendly, something you could easily wash at home as the luxury of a drycleaner was long gone. As women began to be conscripted to working for the war effort, it bought about a mass change in the outfits they required. No longer was it practical for a woman to wear a tea dress if she was working on the factory floor. Trousers became the new favourite items in women’s fashion as it allowed much more ease of movement. Headscarves and turbans also became popular in the forties as women needed to cover their hair whilst working as a safety precaution. With France no longer at the top of the fashion scene due to German occupation, practicality took over couture, with styles becoming much more paired down, unadorned and refined.

The ‘Make do and Mend’ campaign came to life during the Second World War, with women encouraged to repair their own clothing. This also saw the humble dressmaker turning to alternate resources to produce garments. Curtains were no longer just used as window furnishings, but turned in to practical items that could be worn for many seasons. The suits of men away at war were no longer safe either. Women used their tailoring skills to turn them into suits for themselves, so they could save their coupons for other items. Older garments had extra panels added to the waist to lengthen the hemline, and nothing was ever thrown out. Patching, darning and altering became hugely popular in the forties, more out of necessity than desire.

Some fashion trends from this time which we are still aware of today are monochrome colour palettes, exquisite tailoring and the original jumpsuit. Known back then as the Siren Suit, the all in one garment was designed to be easily put on over night time attire whenever the air raid sirens sounded. It had a zipper running the front length of the garment, with large pockets for personal items, and a drop down panel at the rear. It was worn by both men and women, and became known as a signature garment during the war. Winston Churchill was a fan! The colour of many garments produced during this time were restricted as fabric dyes became a luxury. Black and grey was very common, but the British did their best to be patriotic too. Red, white and blue was worn proudly whenever possible, with white being largely popular during the blackout every evening. This ensured the wearer would be seen more easily if out on the street, in the hope of reducing accidents between pedestrians and cars. Tailoring was also a staple of the 1940’s, with all suits, coats, skirts and trousers needing to withstand not only the current season, but many more after. A suit had to be wearable from summer through winter for more than one year, which called upon the finest of tailors to put their skills to use.

Other limitations placed on fashion during the time were how much fabric could be used per garment. This meant that the width and length of skirts was restricted, and for the first time ever in modern society, a skirt could be no longer than knee length. Jackets too had to be shortened in the body, no longer than twenty five inches allowed! They also had to be unlined, with no cuffs or patch pockets. Metal zips became hard to find, and so the zipper less dress was born. Being made out of a stretch fabric, women simply pulled it on over their heads. Elastic was another luxury, only being used in women’s knickers. One item that wasn’t restricted during this time was head wear. Hats of all shapes and sizes were still allowed, although hard to come by. Another fashion invention that came from the war was a sleek yet stylish handbag with a built in compartment for carrying ones gas mask. Usually carried in a small cardboard box with a long string to throw over your shoulder, the gas mask became a staple of wartime that everyone had to carry with them at all times. But the idea soon came to design a handbag that could accommodate the rather ugly but necessary accessory.

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Even though the war was declared over, and V day celebrations rang out everywhere on 8^th May 1945, fashion restrictions remained in place across Britain until 1949. Finally after almost a decade of being told what to wear, the survivors of war could now dress themselves. It took a few more years for fashion to regain its crown, but once again France was at the top. No more dull colours, short hemlines or straight skirts. Flamboyant feminine style was back, and the 1950’s was all the better for it.

Love Always, Anastacia Rose xx