Fashion Sketchbook, 1920-1960

One hundred and twenty full page sketches trace every aspect of women's fashion through forty momentous years in which the political status of women - their newly won emancipation in the 20s, their position as war workers in the 40s - was clearly reflected in the things they wore. This period saw the transition from the monopoly of the great couture houses to the fashion anarchy of today - which, ironically, has frequently drawn its inspiration from nostalgia for earlier years.The illustrations have been redrawn from original sources such as magazine features, contemporary photographs and actual garments, many of them previously unpublished. Particular emphasis is laid on details of construction and decoration which may not always be obvious in reproductions of the originals, and the explanatory notes on colour, fabric and cur should prove invaluable to anyone wishing to copy the clothes for stage wear, as part of a school or college course, or in dressmaking.