1950's Wardrobe: The Basics

[Marzipan]

Hi, everyone! I'm hoping someone can help me out. I'm planning on revamping my entire wardrobe into one typical of a 50's housewife. So far I have a few fitted sweaters, knit skirts, and a bunch of sun-dresses but I'm lacking in the basics. As I have a very limited budget and tend to splurge on pretty dresses rather than on more practical clothes, I need a good list of what I really need.

Can anyone give me some pointers and ideas?

Thanks!

 

[pin_up_pixie]

Skirts are always a great thing to have. A few knee length circle and pencil skirts will do wonders for your wardrobe. Also capris and dungarees (jeans) are great staples. I'm a huge fan of dresses, and although they aren't as versatile as separates, nothing makes me feel more "50's" then a pretty dress with pearls.

Hope that helps to get you started.

Julie

 

[RebeccaMUA]

I second the dungarees, capris and even straight leg trousers with slits at the ankles paired with sweaters or even button up collared shirts for working around the house.

The nice dresses and skirts you already have are great for going out and greeting your hubby when he gets home

 

[LizzieMaine]

Cotton housedresses are a must -- gingham checks, small polka dots, small floral prints, anything like that, in simple button-front styles. This was the standard uniform for working around the house thru the fifties, and when dirty you'd just toss them in with the washing.

Middle-class women would *not* wear housedresses into town -- they were only for household chores.

 

[Foofoogal]

Look for dresses with Swirl label. They are devine wrap around frocks . I love them.
http://fashionsfinest.fuzzylizzie.com/Swirl.html

DONABOUT is another brand of neat wrap dresses.

 

[PS]

FooFoo, those dresses are so perfect! Now, I am on a mission!

 

[Lillemor]

Oh, you have more than me. I've only got the various shaped skirts with gingham, shirts, and knit pullovers. I need housedresses which I'm quite sure no one over 70 y.o. in my sleepy town would blink an eye at if I went into town dressed like that.lol Thanks for starting this thread.

I'm not going to stick to 50s alone, except for my regular wardrobe where the look and shapes just seem easiest to wear. Especially on a low budget if you're impatient and want something to wear now.

Loafers? I though it was only the very young teenagers who wore dungarees to play in the garden and not adults[huh].

Yes Foofoogal, I'm on a mission too!

Thanks for starting this thread.

 

[Joie DeVive]

I second Lizzie's suggestion. It's my understanding that jeans were really saved more for camping and outdoor work by the housewives of the 50s.

When working around the house, ladies mostly stuck to house-dresses. There are some great patterns for them out there if you know or are learning how to sew, which was also a very 50s activity.

 

[roots66]

I second Lizzie's suggestion. It's my understanding that jeans were really saved more for camping and outdoor work by the housewives of the 50s.

When working around the house, ladies mostly stuck to house-dresses. There are some great patterns for them out there if you know or are learning how to sew, which was also a very 50s activity.

Click here for images of a dungaree dolly doing her vacuuming in jeans.

 

[Joie DeVive]

My Grandmother wore jeans plenty too, but mostly for mucking out the stalls, weeding the garden, and collecting eggs. Around the house though, she mostly wore house-dresses. She wasn't dressed up. These were usually button front or zip front frocks. Some of them look a bit more like mu-mus or bathrobes than dresses to me, but you can still find plenty of examples of them made up through the 1960s.

Of course, my Grandmother got married in 1941, so her style influence is probably more 40s than 50s, but she was a housewife in the 1950s, that is until she went back to work as a school secretary. And, as she tells it, Grandma didn't change into a nice dress when Grandpa came home either. Neaten hair and add lipstick maybe, but that was about it. She saved the nice dresses for going out.

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

In the winter, I think it's very possible to live in:
High-waisted wool pencil skirts (anywhere I say wool, feel free to sub any warm fabric)
Wool a-line or near-circle skirts
Sweaters (including cardis)
Blouses to wear under the sweaters
Tights (you'll wear Spanx, you mentioned, right?) or stockings
Boots, Flats, or Pumps

You'll also want:
High waisted jeans
Wool Pendleton jacket
Plaid shirt
Saddle shoes
Slips

For fun, maybe:
quilted circle skirt
versatile trouser
Knit dresses to layer your cardis over

And for lounging/housework:
Robe
cotton housedresses (I like front zips personally and there are plenty of cute ones to be found)
daniel green slippers (the satin heeled ones are nice but there are more practical flat ones too)

What do you think ladies, decent list?

 

[epr25]

Low heeled shoes or wedges. Or keds to go with you jeans or capris.

 

[Joie DeVive]

What do you think ladies, decent list?

:eusa_clap Wonderful list!!

I'd add:
At least 2 hats; one serviceable, one more cute or foo-foo.
At least one pair of white dress gloves.
Possibly penny-loafers for casual shoes.

Oh, and epr25, good call on the Keds.

 

[Marzipan]

Good Golly! I'm so glad I asked this question... so many great ideas!

One question:

did women wear Saddle shoes or just teens?

Oh, and I'm wearing a girdle with stockings now unless it's freezing in which I wear nude hose or tights if I'm feeling rebellious.

 

[LizzieMaine]

My Grandmother wore jeans plenty too, but mostly for mucking out the stalls, weeding the garden, and collecting eggs. Around the house though, she mostly wore house-dresses. She wasn't dressed up. These were usually button front or zip front frocks. Some of them look a bit more like mu-mus or bathrobes than dresses to me, but you can still find plenty of examples of them made up through the 1960s.

Of course, my Grandmother got married in 1941, so her style influence is probably more 40s than 50s, but she was a housewife in the 1950s, that is until she went back to work as a school secretary. And, as she tells it, Grandma didn't change into a nice dress when Grandpa came home either. Neaten hair and add lipstick maybe, but that was about it. She saved the nice dresses for going out.

I think it has everything to do with age -- the generation of women who were teenagers in the mid-forties were the first to wear jeans as street apparel as opposed to something worn for work or farm chores or some other special activity. The specific look of a "sloppy joe" sweater and an oversized men's shirt, worn tails out over rolled jeans, with bobby socks and loafers, was the de facto middle-class teenage girl's uniform from about 1943 to 1947 (and was viewed with extreme dismay by most commentators of the time.) A lot of women who became postwar brides might very well have carried this look over as casual household wear. A woman who came of age ten years earlier, though, wouldn't have been caught dead in such an outfit.

Saddle shoes were part of the teenage uniform in the thirties, though, so they weren't at all uncommon on women who'd grown up wearing them, especially during the summer. You'd more likely see ordinary brown or black lace-up oxfords around the house, but saddles wouldn't be out of place.

As for stockings, most women would wear cotton "utility hose" for household chores, and save the sheer nylons for in-town wear. Cottons or cotton-wool blend stockings were commonly worn in winter as well -- sometimes as a liner under sheer hose, and sometimes on their own. They're quite comfy even in the coldest weather!

 

[Foofoogal]

all the Swirl collectors are going to hate me and all the dealers will love me. lol
I have about 8 Swirl dresses. Make sure about the measurements. I have one that would look fab on Fleur as she is tall. I am about 5.1 3/4.

 

[Emer]

What do you think ladies, decent list?

That's a wonderful list Miss Bella! Will really help those of us who are still babies to the vintage eras!

I just started building up my wardrobe too, and I have been surprised at how many versions of Navy pants are out there. They've become a staple of mine (not sure if they are truly 50's), but when it gets super cold here on the east coast the dresses and skirts with tights really don't cut it!

Also, I've noticed any type of button down cardigan/shirt can make an outfit vintage, capris, and some sort of heel (I love Mary Janes, but again, not really sure which era they fall into). That's a typical outfit for me if I can't scrounge up something better.

Great thread!!

 

[Marzipan]

I know what you mean about the freezing winters. I went out yesterday in a dress and nude hose and thought I was going to ice-block before I got to the car... lol.

Someone told me to get wool tights but they make me itch.

Can't wait to start shopping! Oh, wait, can't wait to earn the money so I can start shopping! lol

 

[Emer]

How about wearing hose underneath the wool stockings? Might keep you even warmer and relieve the itchy fabric of the wool.

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

They don't have to be wool. Try cotton ones! Or Merino, which is softer.

It's under 30 right now and I'm in cable knit tights, a knit dress, and a cable knit cashmere cardigan. I was nice and toasty with my coat on outside. Except my neck, which should have been covered by a scarf.

Maybe I'm just tough!