Dreaming of Hollywood - 1930s Fashion

Hollywood glamour - Painting
of Mae West (1930, artist unknown).
Featuring a bias-cut gown and
wide-brimmed hat.

Fashion was greatly influenced by the Depression that resulted from Wall Street Crash of October, 1929.  Flappers of the previous decade had matured and social and financial circumstances required people to change their attitudes and lifestyles. As noted by Sears Autumn Catalogue (1930) "Thrift is the spirit of the day. Reckless spending is a thing of the past." Fiction, such as Anita Shreve's Sea Glass is a great example of how lifestyles and fashion had to change during this transitional period.

As a result, fashion saw more garments being produced at home and the availability of patterns available on the market increased. Joseph Shapiro, who established Simplicity Sewing Pattern Company in 1927, was the leading supplier of home-sewing patterns, closely followed by Vogue and McCall. Less manufactured clothing was being purchased as a result. Clothing also became excessively mended and patched before being replaced.

Movies were one of the few escapes from the hard times of the decade and people would flock to the picture houses - referred to as the "talkies" as movies had moved from silent to having sound. As such, women began to idolise the fashion of Hollywood starlets. This saw the return of softer, more feminine style garments as opposed to the boyish, flapper look of the 1920s. Light fabrics such as crepes, chiffon and satins were used to create pieces that moved and flowed with the body. Hemlines dropped dramatically and there was the return of the natural waistline, which were accentuated by bias-cut dresses and skirts. Foreheads, previously hidden by cloche hats, were revealed under a variety of new millinery styles.