The Spring-Summer 2013 collections may have just ended, crowning trouser ensembles and ultra-feminine dresses as that season’s principal sartorial heroes. But as much as novelty rules fashion, historical antecedence always guides it in some form or another season after season.
Telephones became increasingly easier to operate over the years and inventions such as the Beoton telephone amplifier allowed office workers to type and make a phone call at the same time
Jerry Sorbara’s mink jacket. Photo by George Chinsee
Barbara Bui – fall 2012-winter 2013
Fashion Wheel game
Popular culture is fashion’s most potent aphrodisiac and ringleader, and in recent years AMC’s Mad Men has done much to revamp post-modern style from décor to wardrobe. This mid-century look, exemplified by Knoll furniture and short dresses is, itself, influencing the greater fashion picture.
AMC’s Mad Men is redefining the concept of secretarial style
It’s not hard to see where Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant looked to source inspiration for Joan Holloway’s costumes on the show.
Dennis Basso’s lynx and lace vest. Photo by George Chinsee
Lois Maxwell played Miss Moneypenny in 14 James Bond films
The British newspaper, the Daily Mail, recently did a feature on the many looks of secretaries overtime and some of their iconic ‘features’; their misogynist objectification wasn’t lost on anyone, but what really typified the post-modern transitional style was the movement in the length of their garments.
ca. 1930, Berlin, Germany — Albert Einstein dictates a scientific paper to his secretary in his attic flat in Berlin. © Austrian Archives/CORBIS
With conical bra and cinched in waist, this Sixties secretary shows just how much women’s silhouettes – and fashions – have changed over the decades
A secretary exposes some thigh as she mans the phone at an advertising agency in Soho, London
Yes, shorter hems not only embraced the youth culture of the 1960′s, they reinvented how women wear types of garments altogether. And today, that same ideal is back at the forefront….even in fur silhouettes. Shorter furs are becoming much more prevalent in recent seasons than they have been ever before.
1965 mod-woman red dress at office files. © Ewing Galloway/ClassicStock/Corbis
Gabby Applegate’s rabbit tunic-coat. Photo by George Chinsee
As spring-summer 2013 collections testified, casual dressing is becoming a little more formal and formal dressing is becoming more democratic. Sportswear is going back to its roots, so to speak, and re-launching easy-to-wear pieces that are like fashion “master keys” that can work with almost everything.
Appropriate attire? A teenage girl gets to grips with the office equipment in a tiny skirt and white go-go boots
Gilles Mendel for J. Mendel’s mink jacket. Photo by George Chinsee
Short furs share that same versatility. They go with almost everything from eveningwear to jeans and t-shirts classics, regardless of age and social preconceptions. This style is also a great sartorial ally when it comes to remodeling an older fur.
Michael Kors’ fox jacket. Photo by George Chinsee
Zac Posen’s chinchilla and fox jacket. Photo by George Chinsee
Brandon Sun’s mink coat. Photo by George Chinsee
SOURCE furinsider.com