Black patent leather wingtip slip-on shoes or pumps were worn with evening attire.
From winter to summer, there was a hat for every occasion. For a more formal fashion, men were most likely to wear a black top hat. Winter fashion brought men the wool newsboy or the felt fedora. Summer months yielded the classic straw hat or straw boater. In the early s, male fashion was characterized by high-waisted trousers. Trousers were narrow and straight legged, with no taper and worn rather short so men could show off their socks.
This is also when the fashion of trousers cuffed or turned-up at the bottom came into style. Oxford bags or wide-legged trousers became the fashion in By the s, trousers tapered at the bottom were finally accepted, and made iconic by Hollywood stars including Fred Astaire and Cary Grant. The twenties was a time of great variety for pant styles. Another type of trouser commonly associated with the 20s were knickerbockers. These were loose fitting trousers worn in casual settings such as for golf or other sports.
The knees were gathered, and they were typically worn with some kind of bright sock. Popular with golfers, they allowed for more freedom of movement when playing the sport. Overall, American style preferred baggier trouser styles, whether full length or the shortened knickerbockers. Men in the workplace had no need for casual golfing style, but they still preferred baggier full length trousers.
These had plenty of material through the hip and thigh. Many institutions banned plus fours and knickerbockers in an effort to reign in the casual styles of fashion.
Even the colors became brighter and more casual. Previously, solid or muted colors were most of the choices for men, but with the popularity of sports styles, patterns like stripes and checks as well as lighter colors became popular. This was attributed to the rise of the middle class, and the affluence of society in the post World War I age. One huge change that happened in the 20s was the emergence of color in shoes.
Previous styles had been single color shoes, but in the 20s we see the wingtip style so associated with the jazz age. Shoes could be two tone, with white and brown or black being the most popular colors. Wingtips made an entrance. Although patent leather was still the only formal style shoe available, men began to wear this style with a perforated flap over the lace.
This lent shoes an air of artsy design, and signaled that a man was part of the jazz age. With cars becoming more popular, and more affordable, it was only fitting that fashion would reflect a particular fascination with the automobile. Buying a car meant being part of modern times, and the fashion industry was quick to step in. Clothing created specifically for driving included flat tweed caps, meant to hug the head close and stay on even when driving with an open top.
They also wore driving gloves, hold overs from riding gloves, but vented for comfort. This was also the perfect time for men to wear the new leather jackets made fashionable by Charles Lindbergh. They often included a white scarf as an accessory. The 20s saw some relaxation of formal dress rules for the upper and middle class. This style was influenced by the required uniforms of sports stars. This included sweaters in clean colors such as white or navy, and cable knits.
For casual pants, men paired these sweaters and knit shirts with the knickerbockers or plus-fours mentioned above. A note on plus fours: The style popular among male golfers of the s, allowed for easier movements on the course. They featured a four-inch lower drop below the knees in comparison to knickerbockers. Players wore them alongside argyle socks, which featured a classic diamond pattern. Gentlemen also paired the look with dress shirts, sweaters and silk neckties.
The casual and loosely fitting style came about after Edward, Prince of Wales made a diplomatic trip to America in Clean, close shaven looks dominated the 20s, and hair was still widely influenced by military style. Men usually wore their hair parted to the side with some kind of pomade to hold it in place.
The pomades made the hair glossy, and the hair stayed slicked. Aside from hats, which were required in fashion, other accessories included suspenders in brighter colors, and around this time waist belts became more popular. As pants slimmed, men preferred these belts to hold them in place. Other accessories were round framed glasses and sunglasses. Often worn while driving, men frequently paired them with straw hats for driving style. For more formal wear, and for some of the upper class, bow ties were the ruling fashion.
Men combined this style with pocket squares that lent a pop of color. Men could also wear skinny knit ties in addition to the bow tie. This new style was more casual, and occasions that required semi-formal wear were perfect for this accessory. It featured larger arm holes for ease of movement. For many it was a prosperous era when clothes and image were important. It was also the era of Consumerism and mass advertising and, although men were reluctant to wear the new fashions, women wanted to see their men in modern, fashionable clothes that reflected their prosperity and position in society.
What was Men's Fashion like in the 's? The 's was a time of great change in America. It was a time of prosperity for many, mass advertising and Consumerism. Men's fashion became diverse with formal evening clothes, day clothes and sports and leisure wear. The individual items of clothing that reflected Men's Fashion in the 's are detailed below. Who were the 's Fashion Icons for Men? The publicity given to Prohibition gangsters like Al Capone also made them 's fashion icons for men.
What were 's Fashion trends for men that characterized the era? The main 's Fashion trends for Men were: The following fact sheet contains interesting facts and information on 's Fashion. The clothes worn in Hollywood movies, the rise in Consumerism and mass advertising during the prosperous period of the Roaring Twenties saw a fashion boom in America. Men's hairstyles in the 's featured short, shiny, slicked back hair that was parted on the side or down the middle. Pomade, a greasy or waxy substance, was used to style hair making it look slick and shiny.
Vests were almost always worn with suits prior to the s. During the late s, double-breasted vests, often worn with a single-breasted jacket, became fashionable.
The single-breasted peaked lapel jacket was highly fashionable in the Roaring Twenties. Turn-ups were a popular addition in the Roaring Twenties. Oxford bags were a loose-fitting baggy form of trousers named after students at the University of Oxford. The avant-garde style of knickerbockers were loose-fitting breeches gathered at the knee and were popular for informal outdoor wear or for sportswear, especially golf.
Plus-fours was popular with golf players and reached down a further 4 inches below the knees than knickerbockers hence the name and were designed to allow more movement. Plus-fours frequently worn with argyle socks, which were characterized by a diamond style pattern as shown in the picture on the right. Plus-twos were particularly fashionable at shooting parties in England 's Men's Fashion Fact 9: Casual sweaters were introduced for informal day wear.
s Mens White Tie Formal Wear s Men’s formal wear guide- white tie. An evening out to the opera, getting married, dancing at a formal ball, or attending a lavish dinner party meant it was time for men to dress in their finest. Although most men think of a s suits and suspenders when recalling the fashions of the day, there was much more to it than that. There was a style for nearly every activity, including work, parties, sports events and formal affairs. s Men’s fashion s Men’s Suiting. Neutral suits were popular, but the colours that a man would elect to wear reflected more than just his tonal preference. The colour of suiting typically indicated social status and wealth. The lighter the suit, the wealthier the wearer.