1945–1960 in Western fashion

[2] A succession of style trends led by Christian Dior and Cristóbal Balenciaga defined the changing silhouette of women's clothes through the 1950s.

Urban professionals in Asia and the Middle East, for example, might wear Western style suits with indigenous headgear such as the Astrakhan, fez or keffiyeh.

In India, the traditional Sherwani was adapted into the Nehru collar business suit,[5] while women frequently wore sarees in the workplace.

Meanwhile, the Red Chinese developed the unisex Mao Suit in green, blue and grey to promote socialist values of equality.

[6] Due to their minimalist, modern design, both types of suit would later be adopted by mod and British invasion trendsetters during the 1960s and 70s, especially The Beatles and The Monkees.

[11][12][13] Social changes went hand-in-hand with new economic realities, and one result was that many young people who would have become wage-earners early in their teens before the war now remained at home and dependent upon their parents through high school and beyond, establishing the notion of the teenage years as a separate stage of development.

[10] Teens and college students adopted skirts and sweaters as a virtual uniform, and the American fashion industry began to target teenagers as a specialized market segment in the 1940s.

[15] Jack Kerouac introduced the phrase "Beat Generation" in 1948, generalizing from his social circle to characterize the underground, anti-conformist youth gathering in New York at that time.

The term "beatnik" was coined by Herb Caen of the San Francisco Chronicle in 1958,[16] and the stereotypical "beat" look of sunglasses, berets, black turtlenecks, and unadorned dark clothing provided another fashion alternative for youths of both sexes, encouraged by the marketing specialists of Madison Avenue.

The Editor-in-Chief of Harper's Bazaar, Carmel Snow, strongly believed in the couturier's talent, which she had already noted in 1937 with the Café Anglais model that he designed for Robert Piguet.

A correspondent from Reuters seized upon the slogan and quickly wrote it on a note that he threw from the balcony to a courier posted on Avenue Montaigne.

I accentuated the waist, the volume of the hips, emphasised the bust, In order to give my designs more hold, I had nearly all the fabrics lined with percale or taffeta, renewing a tradition that had long been abandoned."

The first outfit was worn by Marie-Thérese and opened the show during which the audience saw 90 different creations file past, belonging to two principal lines: En Huit and Corolle.

[22][23] Meanwhile, in Israel, simple Biblical sandals, blue cotton shirts and utilitarian, khaki military-inspired dress remained popular choices for many women due to ongoing economic austerity and the need to feel prepared for war.

Dior's nostalgic femininity of round shoulders, full skirts, padded hips and tiny waists replaced the boxy style of the wartime period at WWII.

[25] Dior's 'New Look' collection brought back the boned intimate apparels for women, even the young one, in order to create the feminised silhouettes that embrace feminity.

The sugar-pink cotton velvet trimming was a particular feature of the range, and some were woven with Christian Dior's initials in the elastic panels on the side..." (Lynn, 2010, p. 106).

Underwire brassiere design re-entered the market as it helped to uplift the shapes of the breasts to form the trendy curvy silhouette with big busts in the 1950s.

In 1958, Yves Saint Laurent, Dior's protégé and successor, debuted the "Trapeze Line," adding novel dimension to the chemise dress.

[33] Women who had worn trousers on war service refused to abandon these practical garments which suited the informal aspects of the post-war lifestyle.

[34] Casual sportswear was also an increasingly large component of women's wardrobes, especially the white T-shirts popularized by Brigitte Bardot and Sandra Milo between 1957 and 1963.

[37] High waisted Bikinis appeared in Europe and the South Pacific islands,[38] but were not commonly worn in mainland America until the late 1950s.

By mid-decade hats were worn less frequently, especially as fuller hairstyles like the short, curly poodle cut and later bouffant and beehive became fashionable.

The front panel of this maternity undergarment was composed of a high degree of elasticity so in extreme stretched conditions, the woman could still feel comfortable.

Savile Row introduced the "New Edwardian Look", featuring a slightly flared jacket, natural shoulders, and an overall narrower cut, worn with a curly-brimmed bowler hat and a long slender overcoat with velvet collar and cuffs.

[46][47][48] This was the style commandeered by the Teddy Boys, who added bright socks and a bootlace necktie, achieving a "dizzy combination of Edwardian dandy and American gangster.

By the later 1950s, a new Continental style of suit appeared from the fashion houses of Italy, with sharper shoulders, lighter fabrics, shorter, fitted jackets and narrower lapels.

49er jackets, originally worn by hunters, miners and lumberjacks, were a popular cold weather coat in America and Canada, and would later be adopted by the teenage surfer subculture.

[50][51] On the West Coast many men, including Howard Hughes and Ricky from I Love Lucy,[52] favoured two color gabardine Hollywood jackets with belts and Old West inspired detailing,[53] often in black, white, cream, beige, burgundy, air force blue, mint green, sky blue, chocolate brown, dusky pink, or grey tweed cloth.