1940s Pants
Women’s 1940′s Pants
Before the 1940s, women simply did not wear pants. It wasn’t until women began working in factories that safety reasons required women to start wearing pants. At first they just had to make do with wearing men’s pants but with a growing all-women workforce in the early 1940′s pants had to made for women. Many women started to wear pants after work hours at home or in the casual company of friends. It wasn’t until the late 1940′s that women wore pants out in public.
Women’s pants of the 1940s were not exactly figure-flattering. Pants sat at the natural waistline, well above the belly button. They were tight around the waist, with a wide waistband of about 2 inches. From there they had straight, wide legs that fit very loosely around the body. They were made of wool blends, cotton denim, cotton twill, wool flannel and seersucker in colors of blues, greys and browns. Pants were fixed at the sides with several buttons and later on int he 40′s a side zipper. Pant legs were usually uncuffed. Pockets were large and on the front sides only.
The other style of women’s pants of the 1940′s were the famous Rosie the Riveter coveralls. These were usually made of blue denim or heavyweight cotton canvas in brown, tan or blue. The coveralls buttoned down the front middle to get in and out of and were loose-fitting throughout. They often had breast pockets to keep pens and small tools in. They either featured a bib front, much like today’s overalls, or two suspender like straps that held up the pants which were also called pinafore style pants. Coveralls were usually worn with a long sleeve cotton blouse underneath. Both the shirt sleeves and pants cuffs were tied tight around the wrists and ankles to keep them from being caught in heavy machinery.
Women’s 1950s Pants
Women in the 1950s were the first to really enjoy the freedom of wearing pants. They were taboo on TV until Mary Tyler Moore was seen wearing them on the Dick Van Dyke Show. After that women started to wear pants outside of the home. There were two styles of pants that the 1950s are most know for: Capri and Cigarette pants. Capri pants get most of the attention but it was the cigarette pants that was worn more often. Cigarette pants had high waists, side zippers, flat fronts, wide waistbands (3 inches), full hips and were slim fitting through the legs. They ended at just above the ankle. These remind me of today’s skinny pants expect with the high waists and full hips. Cigarette pants usually just came in black. Brighter colors were reserved of capri pants and sport shorts. Both cigarette pants and capri pants were worn with a thin leather belt placed in the center of the waistband.
Carpi pants fit like cigarette pants except they ended just below the knee with a slit on each side. They started out just in black but eventually the fascination with tropical destinations brought in bright colors of pinks, greens, and blues. In the summer, sports wear became a popular fashion item. These were pants and shorts were designed for certain sports like biking and tennis. Clam diggers or toredor pants were mid calf length pants with wide, cuffed, pant legs. They were first used for biking and later just for fashion. Pedal pushers were another in between shorts and pants style. They came to a few inches below the knee and fit loosly but not baggy. They had the classic high waist and a sharp pleat down the front of the leg. Manufactures came up with many different names for these 3/4 pants such as Motor scooter slacks, calypso pants and pirate pants.
Reproduction Pants for Sale:
Vintage 1940s and 1950s pants sell very quickly and are a bit hard to find locally. Here are a few designers who make reproduction pants:
Tarastarlet (UK) Nice 1940′s pants, 1940′s dungarees, 1950′s Capri’s and shorts.
reVamp Vinatage Clothing 1940′s Pants- great for swing dancers
Vivianofholloway (UK)1940s pants in many colors, 1940′s Pinafore pants, 1950s carpi pants and 1950′s pedal pushers. I bought the 40′s pants and they are great (although they require a lot of hemming for short people.)
Vintage Modern 1940s and 1950s pants:
These pants are inspired vintage reproductions or new pants that have the style of 1940s and 1950s pants. All of these would make great additions to your vintage wardrobe.
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