The 20th Century We Left Behind ~ Hoops & Hobbles Were A Sign Of The Times

Fashion is a wonderful way to look at history. It embodies the mindset and artistic expressions of the various different eras. It occurs to me as I learn more, that the 20th century represents a span of artists and designers that may never be replicated.

In the early 1900’s women transitioned away from wearing the hooped caged underskirts, which made the skirt of their dress so wide, they could hardly sit on a chair. They abandoned the restrictive clothing, and opted for the flamboyant flapper era, within a span of a few years.

In today’s world you don’t often see people wearing corsets, unless it is in a burlesque or bondage show. But prior to the flapper era, the idea was to make a very exaggerated hour glass figure, with a tiny waist, often tightened to as small as twenty-two inches.

It was not uncommon for women to faint, therefore they carried smelling salts to revive themselves. What we will do for fashion. We probably all have recollections of wearing high heels to the point of agony.

So in the early 1900’s, not only did women have to wear wide hooped skirts, but corsets as well. When you compare it to today’s Lululemon attire, it is quite the distance we have travelled. Keep in mind, the women of the early 20th century, often had ten or twelve children, and few modern appliances.

The first world war contributed to dramatic changes in fashion. Women had to stay home and look after the farms, businesses, and homes. There was a bolstering of confidence. The suffrage movements were well known and widespread. The twenties styles were creative, bold and rebellious. They veered away from the hourglass look and wore straight dresses without any emphasis on the bust, waist or hips.

There was a brief period of time in the twenties when hobble skirts were the rage. They were long pencil skirts, almost ankle length, and very narrow at the bottom, with no back slit. It meant you had to walk like your ankles were tied together, taking very tiny steps. Some designs are just plain dumb.

From the 1930’s – 1950’s there was a certain daytime practicality. But even so, women wore gloves, hats, and developed a keen eye for matching what they wore. It was a time of Hollywood glamour, and war time escapism. The fifties brought about a revival of the hourglass figure and pin-up girls. They called it the “New Look” but it was really just a shorter revamped version of the turn of the century fashions.

Similar to the 1920’s, the sixties rumbled with unrest and civil disobedience. This also brought about a fashion revolution. The hourglass went out, the hemlines went up, and free love was ushered in. High class came in the form of beehive hair dos, white lipstick, black kohl eyeliner, and dresses so short you could not shrug your shoulders. We went from wearing silk stockings with a line up the back that you had to get straight on your legs before leaving the house, to the allure of fish net stockings.

The seventies carried the sixties cast offs to represent the cool, the hippie, and the bohemian. Women wore bell bottoms so long, and wide – that the bottoms frayed into a denim fringe. You could do a face plant, tripping over your jeans, just trying to cross the street.

It was still a time of fashion extremes, with maxi coats worn over mini skirts. But the beehive hair gave way to long, straight hair, parted in the middle. It was an au natural time, where the make up got toned down, and we grew bean sprouts under the sink.

The eighties emerged with even more extremes. Shoulder pads rivalled those worn by the Dallas Cowboys. Once again, the hair got big. Only instead of piled up beehives, it was backcombed and teased into tresses that no other decade would even attempt to pull off.

Materialism leads us to a place of easy boredom. Throw out the old, and bring in the new, is thought to be a progressive way of thinking. But is it? Maybe it was at one time – but cannot be sustained. Or maybe we should never have been so frivolous in the first place.

Now we face restrictions in supply chains, higher labour costs, fewer resources, mass production with poor quality control, and diminishing food security. People have more concerns than trying to be fashionable. The heyday could very well be behind us, until the time of the next millennium.

The earth has come to a point where the mass production is hitting the wall. In fact it has ebbed and flowed so much over the years, we are like chickens watching a game of ping pong.

Capturing and examining some of the 20th century designs, gives us a broader scope of culture and knowledge. There is so much to be learned from the designs of the past. Everything from textiles, to sewing techniques – to the identification of coloured gemstones, hallmarks, etc. Each has a story to tell.

The move into the 21st century brought increasing concerns about climate change, fossil fuels, natural disasters, pestilence and disease. The 20th century began January 1, 1901 and ended on December 31, 2000. It really does represent a time span of prosperity and change.

From the perspective of change, regarding the roles of women – we are still hooped, and hobbled in some ways.

But instead of wearing the hoops, we have learned to jump through them – high heels and all!