So which era of clothing do you like best?

[Baron Kurtz]

A flapper is nice on the eyes but for the most part it was about the body

Really? One of the reasons for my dislike of the 20s is that i find the flapper look is incredibly unflattering. No shape at all. No body at all. Straight up and down with a bunch of bead necklaces.

bk

 

[Justdog]

Style choice

I refuse to be pigeon holed. I am a fusionist. The art of dressing intrinsically involves semiotics, sending symbolic messages. The ones I choose to send vary over time and are sometimes complex.

And so I insist on choice. I revel in the freedom to combine elements from different eras.

:cool2:

Brilliantly put!

 

[dhermann1]

Really? One of the reasons for my dislike of the 20s is that i find the flapper look is incredibly unflattering. No shape at all. No body at all. Straight up and down with a bunch of bead necklaces.
bk

Well, it just proves that taste is basically a matter of taste.
From looking at still photos of those styles, however, I would suspect that the simpler cut of the flapper outfits (compared to the billowing cut of the earlier time) must have allowed much greater ease of movement. A wiggling body with simple clothes can be a lot more revealing than a static one, heavily draped. Maybe this is an overlooked aspect of that style. And if you've ever looked at some of the old pix on Shorpy.com., you'll realize that some of the undergarments worn in those days could be surprisingly revealing, compared to what we're used to today.

 

[olive bleu]

Whoopsie daisy, I just voted without noticing it was for men only. Sorry 'bout that. You'll have to minus one vote from the 50's then.

It was?? guess i missed that.

 

[surely]

"A wiggling body with simple clothes can be a lot more revealing than a static one, heavily draped."

dhermann1, now you better stop writing like that, this is a family oriented lounge.

 

[Lady Day]

30s for formal and after five wear.

40s for day dresses, blouses, suits and slacks.

50s for casual, skirts, and sleep wear.

LD

 

[Shaul-Ike Cohen]

Thirties, not surprisingly. But my preferences are not at all limited, and maybe more importantly, I don't like just anything only because it's from that period.

Also, the thirties didn't last from Jan 1930 to Dec 1939, rather from '32-ish to well over the 1940 threshold, maybe even '45. The pleasing proportions were loosening already with some '39 wide lapels. I think I've come to appreciate the mid-thirties a bit more lately, widening my view from '36-'38 to something like '33-'39.

But what can I say - of course a lot of the sixties appeals to me too, for instance, and I'm talking less about businessmen than about mods.

And to my astonishment, I found Kramer is the best-dressed guy on the Seinfeld show. (The idea seems to be he just never really bought new clothes since the seventies.)

Of, course, the period is just one dimension, and a garment from a given year doesn't have to be any typical anyway.

 

[Mr. Rover]

I'm in the same boat as you- I just watched the Maltese Falcon (1931) and I love the style in that movie as much as the 1941 version with Bogart. I also watched Charlie Chan Goes to Shanghai (1935) and the men's clothes are very impressive with nipped waists and medium-width lapels of varying gorge heights. Some are high, almost how high they are in the mainstream right now.

 

[CharlesB]

60's...love that rat pack style

 

[Vladimir Berkov]

I prefer an early-to-mid 1930s look for myself, but I prefer a 1950s look for women. Go figure.

 

[Jerekson]

Early 1930's, hands down. Everything about the era is my style.

 

[=Clipper=]

I would have to say 30's and 40's. I kind've outgrew the 50's fashion years ago but still can appreciate the era and its history.

 

[Matt Deckard]

Yeah... I just think the 50's were closing in on that anti fit that we live in today. 30's were the time when clothes weren't too meticulously fitted for men, nor were they on size fits all like you see at shops today.

 

[Edward]

I'm another one that doesn't hook into a specific era. For me, it varies depending on the type of clothing i want to wear... I love the look of the 30s and forties, especially the war period, for lounge suits. For formal day and evening wear, it's the thirties and forties. For something a bit more relaxed (what would be by 2008 standards "smart casual"), I'm liking WW2 era, for complete casual, jeans etc it's the fifties for me. I also like some Victorian and even Regency period nods in a goth context; I've also been known to give some serious nods to Westwood and inspired styles from the late 70s. I like having a whole range of choice and not pigeon-holing myself into one thing, though I find as I buy new things I'm increasingly more motivated to go vintage than anything modern.

 

[BegintheBeguine]

It's no secret that, while I admire all of the proffered decades' styles, I prefer 60s suits for men.

 

[Shaul-Ike Cohen]

I prefer an early-to-mid 1930s look for myself, but I prefer a 1950s look for women. Go figure.

If you had said 20s for men, 50s for women, I'd have thought you mean "Go, figure!"

 

[Rathko]

I like anything from about 1790 and the styles inspired by the English riding habit to the outbreak of WW2. I much prefer very structured and 'tailored' coats and lose interest when things get all loose and drapey.

As for inspiration regarding everyday attire, I suppose I'm most influenced by the whole English country house look from about 1910 to 1935.

-JAMES

 

[resortes805]

Young men's clothing from the 1930's, 1940's and 1950's. I'm not into "classic style," give me the outfits that look dated!

 

[ratpack66]

My favorite era is from 1942 -1960.Even though I wasn't born then.To me those clothes epitomized coolness and style.But I must give a slight nod to the 30's
because of Cary Grant and Clark Gable.I just wish people had style now like they did back then.

 

[flat-top]

I'd say my favorite era is the late 40's to mid 50's. That was THE time for "Hep Cat" fashion!