Recession Fashion - 1930's

1930's hat design from the French La Gazzette magazine



Early 1930's french fashion


Check out popular 1930's makeup styles
and 1930's Hairstyles

Womens Fashion of the 1930's was directly influenced by the great Wall Street Crash of October 24, 1929 and subsequent Depression. The Autumn, 1930 Sears Catalogue admonished, “Thrift is the spirit of the day. Reckless spending is a thing of the past.” The beginning of the decade saw women sewing more. Clothing was mended and patched before being replaced. Less ready-to-wear garments were purchased, even though styles were dramatically changing.

A softer, more feminine style replaced the boyish, flapper look of the twenties. At the beginning of the decade, hemlines dropped dramatically to the ankle and remained there until the end of the thirties. Necklines were lowered while torsos were sensuously molded beneath squared shoulders. Darts were replaced by soft gathers. Dress waists returned to the natural waistline. Moderately full skirts accentuated a small waist and minimized the hips. Dress bodices were designed with inset pieces and yokes. Necklines received dramatic attention, often with wide scallop-edged or ruffled collars.

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1920's Fashion Film

Hollywood Fashion in the 1920's

This is a beautiful color film from 1928 featuring some female stars of the day in sparkling up to date styles.
By the late 1920's fashion designers were very forward looking. The Cloche hat was queen - which
has become the iconic image of that decade.The single biggest change in womens fashion was the switch from corseted restricting garments to a loose, more feminine style. The Sillouette was flat and straight [ just for a few years ], as the waist made a welcome return by 1929 and 1930.

Joan Crawford - Photographed from 1920 to 1930

1930
1929
1928
1927

1926
1925
1924
1922
1921

The wonderful and generally forgotten Hollywood Diva of the 1920's.
She's largely and unfortunately remembered for her role in Whatever happened to Baby Jane
[ remember the eyebrows ? ] ..though it is a great movie.
Here she is in all her Flapper glory in a timeline of photos from 1920 to 1930.Enjoy.
Images courtesy of Joan Crawford Best
A quote from Joan "

"I wanted to be famous, just to make the kids who'd laughed at me feel foolish. I wanted to be rich, so I'd never have to do the awful work my mother did and live at the bottom of the barrel--ever. And I wanted to be a dancer because I loved to dance... Maybe the illusions, the daydreams, made life more tolerable, but I always knew, whether I was in school or working in some damned dime store, that I'd make it. (Funny, but I never had any ambition whatsoever to become an actress.)"