1930 - 1940

1930 - 1940

Wall street crash 

The Wall Street Crash, also known as Black Tuesday began in late October 1929 and was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States, when taking into consideration the full extend and duration of its fallout. The crash signalised the beginning of the 10-year Great Depression that affected all Western industrialised countries. 

A huge class difference had opened up between rich and poor. This time made a change fashion. People started making clothes to last longer and fashion style became to be more 'classic' so they would stay in style. 

Fashion

In the 1930s there was a return to a more genteel, ladylike appearance. Budding rounded busts and waistline curves were seen and hair became softer and prettier as hair perms improved. Foreheads which had been hidden by cloche hats were revealed and adorned with small plate shaped hats. Clothes were feminine, sweet and tidy by day with a return to real glamour at night. Right - Fashionable sleek day dress of 1936.

Almost everyone wore hat or cap when going out (both male and female).

Hollywood

Marlene Dietrich

 Actress and singer Marlene Dietrich was born Maria Magdalene Dietrich on December 27, 1901, in Berlin, Germany. One of the most glamorous leading ladies of the 1930s and 1940s, Marlene Dietrich is remembered for her soldering sex appeal, distinctive voice, and unusual personal style.Dietrich’s career in Germany began to take off in the late 1920s. Making film history, she was cast in Germany’s first talking picture Der Blaue Engel (1930) by Hollywood director Josef von Sternberg. An English language version, The Blue Angel, was also filmed using the same cast. With her sultry good looks and sophisticated manner, Dietrich was a natural for the role of Lola Lola, a nightclub dancer. The film follows the decline of a local professor who gives up everything to have a relationship with her character. A big hit, the film helped make Dietrich a star in the United States.

A new Silhouette 

In 1940 styles began to pare down losing the late thirties softness.  As war took hold, garments later became rationed.  Many of the dresses shown here have shoulder and gathering emphasis which also highlights a narrow waistline. Suits take on a crisp boxy look which when teamed with a shorter length skirt kept fabric to a minimum. In these drawings high V-necklines predominate.

Invention of nylon fibre

By the 1940’s, stockings had become an essential part of a woman’s attire. At the time, silk stocking were expensive and didn’t last, neither cotton or wool were dressy, and rayon sagged. Nylon stockings hit the shelves of New York City on May 15, 1940. By the end of the day, nearly 780,000 pairs had been sold. By the end of 1940, 64 million pairs of nylons had been sold. Nylons had affordability, a good fit, good looks, and mass appeal. A year later, this little problem came along called World War II and the three most common sheer stocking materials – silk, nylon, and rayon – were almost impossible to come by. Like a lot of materials, these materials were being used in the war effort.

Some women starting wearing socks folded over at the top of the ankle, but a lot of women started applying leg makeup and would even go so far as drawing a line with an eyebrow pencil down the back of each leg to give the appearance of wearing back seam stockings. 

It was Max Factor that actually introduced a stocking cream to give the illusion of stockings, and there were department stores that would set up a Leg Make-Up Bar.