The 1940s were harsh years due to the First World War that previously ended and the Second World War that was beginning. Because of this, all social aspects were altered, both at a conscious and subconscious level. There is something fascinating about fashion during hard times as you can see the war mentality in people being reproduced in the trends and the way the clothes and decorations were marketed.
Fashion during the 1940 was quite simple and very limited in terms of the variety of fabrics used. There were, however, some main materials that were used scarcely during those times such as silk, leather or wool since they were used as materials for war. Even the length of clothes had to be adjusted to conform to the drastic limitations that were imposed by the social aspects of that time. For example, jackets had to be as small as possible, covering at most 25 inches of the body. A classic outfit is the v shaped jacket that is still worn today, so keep that in mind if you are choosing a classy clothing style. Skirts were another main item of clothing for women, since pants were not as popular as they are today. Swing skirts that had a round cut were extremely popular and they were actually what the main population of females wore every day. Also, nylon stockings started appearing and they soon replaced the silk ones, since the latter became unavailable.
When it came to makeup, things weren’t that simple since all the Hollywood stars were wearing elaborate dramatic looks. A matte foundation or a bit of powder was used for the face and also a classic red lip color that is also in trend today. Brows were also quite odd as they were drawn pretty thick, very different from today. If you want to go for this type of look, you won’t have to use all the elements, you can simply go for the dramatic eyes and beautiful red lips to achieve the same elegance.
The interesting aspect of 1940’s look is the fact that most of the trends back then can be found today as classic trends, so you will never fail to impress when using this approach to your outfits.