It doesn't surprise me how popular vintage fashion is becoming. Clothing in the past was made better and women tried harder to look good. Today, comfort often trumps any effort to look nice.
My favorite vintage-blogger is Jessica. She is an invaluable resource. On Facebook, Jessica just linked to an interesting article in The Huffington Post about how women dressed in the past. The article is provocatively and accurately titled, "7 Ways Your Grandmother Dressed Better Than You."
The article is worth reading. Here are the highlights:
1. You dressed to impress at every occasion.
2. Clothes were made better.
3. Fabrics were, generally, of a much-better quality.
4. They wore the right underwear.
5. Details mattered.
6. Fit was paramount.
7. Clothing cost more.
What do you think?
my late, great granny had a dress shop in the 60s. she had a huge wardrobe that i loved to play around in. she was very tall, so i never would've been able to wear anything. the quality was so, so good of those dresses.
ReplyDeleteanyway, i totally agree with you. even women's powder compacts were of better quality. true, women weren't working outside of the home as commonplace as now, but even men wore hats outside.
Agreed - but I do so like to dress to impress. I clearly remember my grandmother getting dressed to go up the road to the post office to collect her pension. Hair done perfectly, hose, the whole nine yards.
ReplyDeleteI'm sad at how relaxed we all seem to have become.
But, I'm not about to give up my boyfriend fit jeans just yet ;-)
I understand. I think the key is finding balance between the two.
DeleteAgree. I will admit to loving my jeans and t-shirts, but I wish people still had more reason to get really dressed up. The most I see people dressed up for now are weddings and funerals - and not even that much at EITHER type of event. And I definitely agree that stuff was built to last - any vintage item I have in my closet I can tell has held up over time and will hold up still compared to something I bought down the road at Target (as much as I love Target).
ReplyDeleteI'm no expert but it seems most clothes now are made in China using cheap material and shoddy workmanship. Of course garments like that won't last. But, in our disposable society, shoppers seem to prefer low-price, low-quality over the alternative.
DeleteAnd that makes me sad. Ok, have a big wardrobe - if you can't afford much more than the shops that sell sweat shop stuff, buy it, love it and wear it to death. I did this when I was younger and money was very tight.
DeleteBut that isn't what happens. People with disposable income buy armfuls of cheap clothing and bin them after a few wears.
I love Jessica too : ) - thanks to you!
ReplyDeleteI have to agree on every single one of the highlights, it's soo true.
To prove my point and confirm yours :) you just have to look at random vintage pictures from any occasion: street shots for example - people dressed up!
Also for traveling, before people would dress in business attire, now all you see are jeans and jogging suits.
You're right. Plus, I remember when people dressed up to go on an airplane. They wore nice clothes, not sweatpants and tees.
DeleteI wish we could go back to those days. You didn't have to explain to someone that wearing cargo shorts, a tshirt and flip-flops wasn't appropriate at his GRANDMOTHER'S FUNERAL.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes--i saw this recently at a funeral. And the person in question was at least 25 years old.
My grandmother and I certainly dress *differently* that's for sure! :D I wouldn't say my grandmother dressed less comfortably- she wore nice button downs and trousers. And I argue that there are ways to dress for comfort and still look nice, which is why some of today's outright slovenly looks drive me up the wall. o.o
ReplyDeleteI've been watching the current very cheap clothes trend with a combination of personal horror and academic interest. Manipulating currency, emergent behavior, markets competing over youth and a shrinking middle class all intersect.
Sweet Ally, your words are the much needed hug of happiness I truly needed this morning. Thank you so very, very much! I'm delighted to know you enjoyed that thought provoking post so much, as well as that you consider me to by your favourite vintage blogger. That is a compliment of the highest magnitude.
ReplyDelete♥ Jessica
Ally - I miss those days of fabulous dressing. It is sad when you go out to a nice restaurant and see people dressed in work-out gear and on formal occasions such as weddings and parties people just don't make the effort. Quite a few years ago when Staff Christmas parties were big deals I used to go buy and special dress, get my hair done in an up-do, take the entire day to get ready and made sure my nails were done and I had the perfect accessories. It was funny because people would be amazed that I actually did this and was asked why I went to such lengths for a staff party. My response was we are having a lovely dinner, I am with my beau and we are having a night out, so why wouldn't you take the extra time and effort? I always felt glamorous and beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI work in an office and I find more often than not people do not dress for their jobs, it is sloppy and usually too casual. I am old school and wear heels and work appropriate clothing. In my humble opinion I think when casual Friday's started in the workplace in the 90's it was the death of classy dressing.
I think so. Actually I see the good points in both, now and then - I wouldn't like to wear corsets and hard as a rock bras every day, but in the other hand I pick a vintage piece any time over a new one when I get a chance, I like it when the clothes are nice quality. But I also love hanging around in my sweatpants.. perhaps it's better to dress up coz we want to, not coz we have to :)
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything ! In the past elegance was not just a matter of brands. You can also see it when you watch a movie...think about old movie stars and how elegant and classy they were ! Our modern actors, when photographed in candid pics, look all sleazy and not put together most of the times, see what I mean ? I am so tired and I am afraid I write in terrible english, forgive me :) Hugs from Italy
ReplyDeleteFashion and Cookies
Grazie, amico!
DeleteI am old enough to remember my mother squeezing into a girdle, wearing gloves for formal occasions, and dad was always in a suit and tie when going out to eat. That was when I was really young.
ReplyDeleteI work in a medical setting where we wear scrubs or business casual. I have never worn anything more formal to work and would never even want to.
But, yes, I think people are going "too casual" in places where it is not appropriate.
And, yes, the quality of all clothing in terms of material and workmanship has gone downhill. I bought a bag of athletic anklet socks recently and each sock only last one wearing. Holes in the heels immediately.
I shop at Good Will more of the time and buy stuff from 10-15 years ago when cloth was still woven, not poured out on a mold.
I don't want to go back to the days of girdles and women required to wear dresses or skirts. But the People of Walmart website is truly horrifying! Hopefully there's a happy medium. Is it really so difficult to comb your hair before putting it in a scrunchy bun? Are pajama bottoms ever appropriate outside your home? I think people try to look like they don't care, but that's the problem - they don't care.
ReplyDeleteI love the vintage look... my waist is the appropriate size, but my rib cage is too large... and my chest is too small. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteI miss the vintage quality. I'm slowly discovering that quality is still out there, but we also don't expect our clothes to last, so we don't treat them appropriately.
And to add to the comment on the airline attire -- I love traveling in maxi dresses -- comfortable and yet pulled together!
I adore vintage styles, but ultimately would feel very restricted by them. I love breaking boundaries. I think I would have been one of those girls who wore trousers and waistcoats and made men angry and ladies huff!
ReplyDeleteI do miss the quality aspect though. Even spending big bucks makes it hard to find stuff that really LASTS. My best quality pair of boots is actually a pair of secondhand vintage Frye's.
I do think it's important to get dressed. I was disappointed to see just how many wore jeans versus yoga pants to even sit in class. I promise a nice dress is just as comfy as yoga pants.
I have a photo of my Nan in a fur coat and house slippers! she mixed comfort and glamour!her hair was 'set' once a week, they were her standards. I believe in foundation underwear, and I love dressing up, if I walk out the door I am dressed. I don't wear jeans or trousers simply because I don't like them on me, and on my recent holiday (hardly any facilities) I took my petticoat, frocks, make-up and wellies (gum boots)!! individuality and effort is something I admire in others x x
ReplyDeleteI love vintage clothing (and retro inspired cuts). eShakti does a great job with their dresses, some of my favorites. Because clothing was a lot more well made and expensive then, women owned less. I'd be happier with less stuff of better quality. That's actually one of my wardrobe goals.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. Jessica is so great.
ReplyDeleteI'm for vintage all the way - the fabric is better and the tailoring is better, no question. I think free trade has made us pretty spoiled about clothing prices.
ReplyDeleteVintage tends to be expensive and doesn't always fit well due to the individual sizing. But I do like that people used to dress for occasions and I still like to. The first time I was aware of the difference in dressing then and now was in an Agatha Christie book where a character observed that they could tell the class of a person by the way they dressed for the occasion. A higher class person dressed for the occasion in suitable attire compared to the lower classes who would wear their best or worst clothes even in an unsuitable environment. Also remember that after the year 2000, there isn't any defined style of a decade the way it was all the way through history and especially the 20th century. Now there is the choice to wear any decade of fashion and while we have that great freedom, sometimes it doesn't mean that we are dressed better necessarily
ReplyDeleteI think 'clothing cost more' is vastly linked to the 'it was made better' In some ways, many 'designer' clothes today cost far more than they ever would have decades ago, and at the same time are made at the same quality you get in low-end department stores. I'd happily shell out more money than is reasonable for my pay grade if the product was quality, durable, fitted correctly, pleasing to the eye, sold through a pleasant company with good customer services, and made by people paid a living wage. It's easier to dress nice when the resources are there (when you personally have access to them... unfortunately, many people can only afford off-the-rack modern styles that are produced at the expense of other people such as themselves, getting paid a wage that's below the cost of living in their region/society. It's a sad cycle.)
ReplyDeleteI don't have an excuse for looking like a slob, however, since I have the ability to tailor and make my own clothes. Except maybe that my job, like many others, isn't in an office or as a secretary (as it most assuredly would've been in the 1950s) and I have to dress accordingly or suffer sore arms (because dress sleeves cut into my biceps and constrict my shoulder movement), and aching feet and back (if I wore pretty rather than practical shoes when I'm on my feet all day).
I'm curious whether they considered the working class in their assertion that people back in the day dressed 'better.' I have a feeling that the working class never have been able to dress as nicely as the 'middle' or 'upper' classes. Dirty, hard jobs. Little money. You wore what's within your means, what suited your lifestyle. And you had little occasion to dress up and usually only one good outfit (your Sunday best).
Sorry for the ramble. Interesting topic, though.
We are of a similar vintage and share a liking for clothing from that era. As kid I only had brothers but my mother was from a large family and she had several sisters and nieces (aunts and cousins to me). While most of your readers will not remember the jingle/tune I suspect that you could hum along to the tune of the ILGWU ("Look for the union label...").
ReplyDeleteWhen I got to HS age my mother had to go back to work in the factory. She was a piece work seamstress. She made exclusively woman's dresses (this was the 1960s) and most of what she made was for the department stores of the era, Lord & Taylor, Saks 5th Avenue, Orbach's, etc. She could buy dresses at the piece work price (about $8-9 for a dress that would sell in the stores for $40-60 which was a small fortune back then). She would often bring home dresses for my aunts and cousins. I would be so jealous...as you may imagine.
Pat
What interesting personal history. It reminds me of a piece of my history: during high school, I worked as a store clerk in Loehmanns which sold discount designer dresses -- probably some made by your mother!
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