Thank you to  Carolyn Greenwood from Aspinall London provided the following text and media.

Women’s Workwear Styles:  Surviving the Past 100 Years

From the androgynous waistlines of the twenties all the way up to Ally McBeal’s microminis, the history of women’s workwear gives us a unique perspective on the events of the twentieth century as well as the changing role of women.

Which iconic styles have stood the test of time?

1920s

• Women were given the vote and afforded the same political rights as men and won some educational and professional improvements.
• Women ditched the corset, embracing their post-WWI freedom with relaxed shapes and dropped ‘flapper’ waistlines.
• Prosperity of the roaring twenties mirrored in opulent fabrics like silk and velvet.
• Straight, androgynous cuts and short hairstyles.

Iconic Twenties: The cloche hat.

Celebrity Fan: Cara Delevigne

1930s

• The Depression era saw the decadence of the flapper look give way to a new conservative, sophisticated style.
• Simple dresses and neat separates dressed up with carefully-chosen accessories.
• Small, embellished hats worn at an angle.
• The wool suit with shoulder pads and fluted, knee-length skirt epitomises 30s workwear chic.

Iconic Thirties: Gauntlet gloves    

Celebrity Fan: Adele

1940s

• The “waste not want not” era of the Second World War meant clothes were produced with minimal fabric, pleats and trimmings.
• Trousers were adopted by women working on war service out of practical necessity.
• Decorative patterns, florals and polka dots.
• Makeup, curled hair and homemade accessories injected glamour into austere looks.
• Button front blouses and belted jackets.

Iconic Forties: Victory rolls paired with red lipstick.

Celebrity Fan: Gwen Stefani

1950s

• Following the austerity of wartime, the fifties were all about startling silhouettes and full-on ladylike glamour.
• Accessories took centre-stage as women matched their hats, gloves and handbags to their chosen workwear look.
• Skirts were either full or fitted.
• Formal suits in conservative colours with nipped in waists and sloping shoulders.

Iconic Fifties: The Stiletto

Celebrity Fan: Dita Von Teese

1960s

• Jackie Kennedy’s iconic look was everywhere in the early sixties – short boxy jackets were worn with stiletto heels and prim headwear.
• Shift dresses as immortalised by Twiggy.
• Pussy-bow blouses and wool skirts.
• The swinging sixties were all about young people. For the first time, new fashions –     
• like mini skirts – were designed specifically with young buyers in mind.

Iconic Sixties: The pillbox hat.

Celebrity Fan: Carla Bruni

1970s

• As more women joined the workforce, the feminist debate took its toll on seventies workwear – some felt women should wear trousers and others thought that was wrong because it represented wanting to be seen as a man.
• Manmade fabrics
• The iconic jersey wrap dress – perfect for the office or disco.
• Silhouettes: tight on top, loose on bottom.
• Layering was key

Iconic Seventies: The wrap dress

Celebrity Fan: The Duchess of Cambridge

1980s

• By the eighties, we had our first female prime minister and power dressing was in: women proclaimed themselves as equals in the workplace by dressing more seriously.
• Bigger was better – hair, makeup, jewellery and shoulder pads were amped up to extremes.
• The power suit with its huge shoulder pads as seen on the likes of Joan Collins and Margaret Thatcher.
• Bright colours.
• Money, money, money: Expensive clothes ruled all.

Iconic Eighties: The power suit

Celebrity Fan: Beyonce

1990s

• Power dressing was still in for much of the nineties.
• Late nineties saw a return to minimalism in line with the advent of grunge music, with more relaxed styles and muted colours.
• Floral print dresses
• Mary Jane shoes
• Approaching the millennium, things went more conservative with pinstripe tailoring and slim-fit open collar blouses (Ally McBeal-style micromini optional)

Iconic Nineties: The Alice Band

Celebrity Fan: Gywneth Paltrow

Noughties and Now

–       A return to classic style and timeless tailoring.

–       Power dressing lived on through Samantha Jones in Sex and the City.

–       Accessories like statement necklaces used to express personal style

–       We are influenced by other decades and cultures now more than ever

–       Quirky accessories and vintage prints.

–       The availability of designer and high-street pieces allows today’s working woman to create a signature look that’s perfectly her and change it according to her own mood.

Iconic item: Styling up your workwear with the latest “it” handbag has become an iconic component of modern workwear.

Celebrity Fan: All of them!

Aspinal of London – Infographic Copy