Clothes & such

Discussions on every day life in the Weimar Republic, pre-anschluss Austria, Third Reich and the occupied territories. Hosted by Vikki.
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Silberio
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Clothes & such

#1

Post by Silberio » 20 Sep 2007, 07:23

Howdy :)

I'm sorry if this have been answered before, but I searched, but didnt really find anything :/

Well, I've been wondering all this time, what did people wear during the 40's?
Did people use costumes only, or did they wear casual clothes, etc.

Thanks :)



-Silberio.

nedz
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#2

Post by nedz » 20 Sep 2007, 22:38

I think you mean uniforms rather than costumes.
Most people were not in the armed forces and so never wore a uniform.


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Silberio
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#3

Post by Silberio » 20 Sep 2007, 22:39

Yeah, I mean, like civilians.

What kinda clothes they used.

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HaEn
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clothing

#4

Post by HaEn » 20 Sep 2007, 23:19

By "Costumes", 'he probably means "suits". Jacket, vest and Pantalons.
Some words lose something in a translation.
For example in Dutch a "suit" is often called a "pak". Rather confusing for a stranger.

But, Silberio, I can assure you that not everybody walked around in a suit, and even fewer in an uniform.
One wore what was available and half way decent looking.
cheers
HN

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Silberio
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#5

Post by Silberio » 23 Sep 2007, 03:35

Excuse my english, I use to confuse some words with others - Heh.

By the way, could anyone show me some pictures?
I am pretty interested in this right now - Haha.

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JTG
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#6

Post by JTG » 23 Sep 2007, 04:13

Dear Silberio:

The Topic you have asked about is almost impossible to answer.

You must think about which Country and Man or Lady and in which YEAR for the fashion style: British, American (where there was free input in films and dance-halls) or the Occupied Countries where everybody was expected/required to conform with the Germanic ideal.

John Germain

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Geli
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#7

Post by Geli » 26 Sep 2007, 03:22

Women wore dresses much more often than they do now. My mother says that girls were not allowed to wear pants to public school in New York City, even in the winter. When women did wear pants, there were buttons or a zipper at the side. My grandmother told me that it was considered improper for a women to wear pants with a front-fly like a modern pair of jeans. Women's pants tended to have high waistlines; nothing was low-rise back then.
During the war years, padded shoulders were in. Skirt-lengths were below-the-knee. Women's fashions tended to be fitted at the waist.

http://www.sensibility.com/vintageimages/1940s/

Only farmers or blue-collar workers wore jeans in public. Suits were everyday dress for men, not just at the office. "Zoot suits" were in.

Scroll down for some info about men:
http://www.vintageblues.com/history3.htm

Sorry, that's the best I can do for now, I've got to run. Try doing some searches on "Fashion" and a particular year or country. Good luck!

Johnny_Blaze
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#8

Post by Johnny_Blaze » 04 Oct 2007, 17:31

Silberio,

You could go to your neighborhood library and look at magazines from the era. Life, Time, etc were around back then and give excellent examples.
Americans were basically wearing the same things Europeans wore.

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Benoit Douville
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#9

Post by Benoit Douville » 08 Oct 2007, 23:06

Geli had the right answer. I really like the facts that suits were everyday dress for men, not just at the office. I mean during that period of time, men had class compared to today's fashion outside of the office...

Regards

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Geli
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#10

Post by Geli » 09 Oct 2007, 23:37

I agree that everyone looked better and classier back then, but today we're much more comfortable! :)

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Laurasia
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#11

Post by Laurasia » 12 Oct 2007, 15:55

Yes everyone did look much classier & "proper" back then - which is great. :) And I have to say that I have always loved the woman's hairdos back then.

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Vikki
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Re: Clothes & such

#12

Post by Vikki » 06 Aug 2008, 03:06

The best guide to what people wore during the period is the people themselves, as they’re shown in photographs, magazines, newspapers, books, etc. of the time. Just browsing through a few of those, I pulled out some photos from the following:

Berlin Illustrierte Zeitung
Das Blatt der Hausfrau
N.S. Frauen Warte (publication of the N.S. Frauenschaft)
Die Sürag
Die Woche

Frauen helfen siegen: Bilddokumente vom Kriegseinsatz unserer Frauen und Mütter (Zeitgeschichte-Verlag, 1941).

And from two secondary sources:
The Home Front: Germany in World War II by Time-Life Books.
The German Homefront 1939-45 by Terry Charman.



As several people pointed out above, even casual dress of the time tended to be a lot less informal than today. Dress of course depended on social and economic factors, and on the activity being done. And while dress shown in fashion plates and ads may not have been practical or attainable for all, it gives a view of the “ideal” of the period.
Attachments
Fashion (NS Frauen Warte).jpg
Fashion (NS Frauen Warte).jpg (120.24 KiB) Viewed 7491 times
Fashion 004 (Frauen Warte 4.39).jpg
Fashion 004 (Frauen Warte 4.39).jpg (115.1 KiB) Viewed 7487 times
Fashion 005 (Frauen Warte 4.39).jpg
Fashion 005 (Frauen Warte 4.39).jpg (127.44 KiB) Viewed 7486 times

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Vikki
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Re: Clothes & such

#13

Post by Vikki » 06 Aug 2008, 03:11

More from period advertisements:
Attachments
NSFW 10.36.jpg
NSFW 10.36.jpg (82.92 KiB) Viewed 7480 times
Fashion 007 (Frauen Warte 4.39).jpg
Fashion 007 (Frauen Warte 4.39).jpg (137.22 KiB) Viewed 7472 times
Fashion 006 (Frauen Warte 6.39).jpg
Fashion 006 (Frauen Warte 6.39).jpg (106.08 KiB) Viewed 7469 times

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Vikki
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Re: Clothes & such

#14

Post by Vikki » 06 Aug 2008, 03:19

What the stars were wearing: newspaper articles about the movies Feind Hört Mit (1940) and Junge Herzen (1944):
Attachments
Film Feind Hört Mit (BIZ 6.40).jpg
Film Feind Hört Mit (BIZ 6.40).jpg (53.9 KiB) Viewed 7450 times
Film Junge Herzen (Die Sürag 23.4.44).jpg
Film Junge Herzen (Die Sürag 23.4.44).jpg (124.95 KiB) Viewed 7453 times
Film Junge Herzen 2 (Die Sürag 23.4.44).jpg
Film Junge Herzen 2 (Die Sürag 23.4.44).jpg (118.82 KiB) Viewed 7435 times

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Vikki
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Re: Clothes & such

#15

Post by Vikki » 06 Aug 2008, 03:33

Far beyond fashion plates and ads, the best view of "casual" clothes can be seen in photos of people as they go about their daily activites: on the street, shopping, going to school, or, as the case of a few of the photos below from later in the war, refugeeing from bomb-damaged areas.
Attachments
The German Homefront 1939-45 2.jpg
The German Homefront 1939-45 2.jpg (188.15 KiB) Viewed 7417 times
Die Woche 17.9.41.jpg
Die Woche 17.9.41.jpg (100.69 KiB) Viewed 7400 times
The German Homefront 1939-45.jpg
Civilians hearing news of the German surrender, 8 May 1945
The German Homefront 1939-45.jpg (202.44 KiB) Viewed 7402 times

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