Regulation lengths

[Dawna]

I've long been curious about the references to "regulation length" that I find on so many patterns, for everything from shorts and slacks to socks and skirts. Does anyone here know anything more about it? Of course, I gather that this refers to standard lengths but who regulated it, what lengths were regulation, where, and during what years? If anyone has any information about this I'd love to hear it!

By the way, regulation lengths were of course found in menswear too (as far as I can tell) but I'm posting here since I'm more interested in women's clothing in general. Thanks!

 

[Stanley Doble]

Could it come from military regulations, from the time when officers bought their own uniforms, and when even their off duty or civilian clothes came under official scrutiny?

 

[Dorota]

Could that be a reference to American L-85 regulations, restricting yardage of material used for clothes? Forties Fashion. From Siren Suits to the New Look book by Jonathan Walford gives some examples of said regulations: "The maximum lenght for a box coat was 42 inches (107 centimetres), with a hem sweep of no more than 60 inches (152 centimetres). A fitted coat could be 43 inches (109 centimetres) long and have a sweep of 72 inches (183 centimetres)" etc. etc.

 

[Louise Anne]

Christian Dior had a certain length for a skirt for a lady in his mind and there a photo of him somewhere using measure stick to tell if she wear wearing the right length or not .
apart from Dorota makes about it been wartime which would be a government of a country your in then it's just fashion etiquette

 

[Mabel]

Regulation L85 was instituted in the U.S. in 1942. It regulated every item of women's clothing and much of mens. The purpose of the regulations were to freeze the current silhouette, since any significant change in fashion would have also meant changes in manufacturing equipment, techniques and labor, and we needed as much time, effort and materials as possible for the war. Pattern companies included these regulations into new patterns, so that women would have them at their fingertips when constructing a garment. Some of the guidelines in the L85 were:

Men's clothing was restricted to single breasted, two-piece suits (no vests). Suits were without cuffs, pleats, sleeve buttons, or patch pockets. Only one pair of pants was sold with a suit instead of two as previously was the norm.

Women's clothing: If they were made of made of wool, or any other fiber necessary for the war effort, these limitations were in place: Skirts were limited to 72 inches in circumference, and were 17 inches above the ground. Hem depths were limited to 2 inches. Jackets were to be no longer than 25 inches. On blouses, there could be no turned back cuffs, double yokes, sashes, scarves, or hoods.

The restrictions applied to everything but wedding gowns, maternity apparel, infants and children's clothing up to 4 years, religious vestments and burial shrouds. They were in place until at least 1946; in early '47 Christian Dior introduced 'The New Look", which was a different silhouette, and was not bound by the restrictions.

The regulations had other, less obvious effects on fashion: home seamstresses were encouraged to alter men's suits into smart outfits for women. Popular magazines and pattern companies advised women on how to remake their husband's or brother's suits, since the men were in uniform and otherwise the clothing might sit in the closet, untouched. This is why many forties styles have a masculine feel to them. Also, since the military was using so much green and brown dye, clothing manufacturers began to use a lot of red dye, which explains a lot of the unusual shades used in the forties.

In the UK the Board of Trade issued regulations as well, but I don't have much information on them. I am sure that other countries involved in WWII had their own regulations, so depending on where your vintage patterns are from you might look into that countries wartime regulations. Hope this helps.

 

[lareine]

Fascinating, Mabel. Thank you for posting it!

 

[Dorota]

Some info about l85 regulations can be found as wel on www.blitzkriegbaby.de website:
Limitation Order L-85: Duration and Termination, Fashion and Morale, Fashion Survivability, Curtailment, General Restrictions, Implementation.