Fashion in the years following World War ~ Style

Fashion in the years following World War is characterized by the resurgence of haute couture after the austerity of the war years. Square shoulders and short skirts were replaced by the soft femininity of Christian Dior's "New Look" silhouette, with its sweeping longer skirts, fitted waist, and rounded shoulders, which in turn gave way to an unfitted.

Innovations in textile technology following the war resulted in new synthetic fabrics and easy-care fabric finishes that fitted the suburbanlifestyle of the 1950s with its emphasis on casual sportswear for both men and women. For the first time, teenagers became a force in fashion.

Christian Dior launched the first collection of the House of Dior. The new collection went down in fashion history as the "New Look". The signature shape was characterized by a below-mid-calf length, full-skirt, pointed bust, small waist, and rounded shoulder line. Resisted at first, especially in America, where fashion magazines showed padded shoulders until 1950, the radical new silhouette soon became immensely popular, influencing fashion and other designers for many years to come. The "softness" of the New Look was deceptive; the curved jacket peplum shaped over a high, rounded, curved shoulders, and full skirt of Dior's clothes relied on an inner construction of new interlining materials to shape the silhouette.