#afternoonedress

[professorpski]

Not Going Anywhere Fast in 1950, Vogue 1964

This 1950 ensemble with sleeveless dress and matched caplet captures the other skirt silhouette introduced by Christian Dior in 1947: the long and narrow. We tend to think of the long, wide skirt as the New Look of the post-war era, but Dior also offered long, narrow skirts that year as well. Both had the small waistlines and soft shoulders you see here in a Vogue Pattern re-issued in modern sizes.

I was intrigued by the shape of this dress  The bodice has a deep horizontal tuck whose purpose seems two-fold: decoratively, it both echoes the deep stitching that holds the capelet’s self-lining in place and makes the waistline seem even narrower as the eye notes the pleat is wider than the bodice where it hits the skirt (that portion is gathered).

Then, the skirt of the dress has deep pleats at the waistline which create more space for the body and seems easier to wear. But look at the sketch of the pattern piece, and you see that the pleats are not meant to add walking easy. Instead, the skirt narrows from those pleats at the waistline down to the low hemline.

Looking at the fashion illustrations, we can see that walking was never the point. This ensemble was a dressy afternoon outfit, or an evening out ensemble. Think concert, cocktail party, dinner out. See the large, black hat and long, black gloves, the corsage, and pearls around the neck to the right, and the long white gloves worn with a veiled hat and again pearls on the right. Standing, chatting, flirting, and sitting were the main activities, not walking, which is why this is not a practical day ensemble with walking ease, but one where the waist pleats help show off the small waist and the roundness of the hips. A quiet, but effective means of drawing attention to the figure.

Find it at your local fabric store, or online here: https://simplicity.com/vogue-patterns/v1964