The 1940’s: Shoulder pads and knee-length dresses
In the 40’s, women set aside the long, flowing dresses that they had been wearing and collectively started wearing shorter dresses. They often went just past the knees. An interesting evolution was that it was now seen as ideal to have broad shoulders, so women started wearing shoulder pads under their dresses, blouses and jackets. Of course, World War II had a massive impact on fashion during this period. While their husbands were off to war, women would remake their suits into women attire. The clothing of this era is characterized by function over fashion.
Continue on to the next page to see what the ideal woman in the 1950’s looked like!