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The 1950s

Suits, sack dresses, Teddy boys

New-York, House of Dior, fall/winter 1950–51
Christian Dior · fall/winter 1950–51

The fitted hourglass shared the decade with soft suits and dresses that released the waist. Youth style added another source of influence to the changing designer silhouette.

Key styles

New-York, House of Dior, fall/winter 1950–51

New Look

Defined waist · Fuller skirt · Shaped hips and soft shoulders

Skirt suit, Chanel, ca. 1956

Chanel suit

Softly structured jacket · Matching skirt · Tweed and neat trim

Sack dress, House of Balenciaga, 1957–1958

Sack dress

Unfitted waist · Shape suspended from shoulders · Simple outer line

Teddy boys on a corner, Southam Street, Clothing makers unrecorded; photograph by Roger Mayne, 6 May 1956 (photograph)

Teddy boy

Long tailored jackets with velvet collars · Narrow trousers · Greased quiffs

Yale students leaving a university building, Photographer and clothing makers not identified in the exhibition caption, 1950s

Ivy League style

Natural-shouldered jackets · Button-down shirts · Chinos and loafers

Defining work of the 1950s

Selected examples dated to this decade.

Designers active in the 1950s

New-York, House of Dior, fall/winter 1950–51

Christian Dior

fall/winter 1950–51

Carried the New Look into the decade through sculpted coats and carefully shaped evening dresses.

Cocktail dress, House of Balenciaga, spring/summer 1956

Cristóbal Balenciaga

spring/summer 1956

Redefined couture volume, culminating in sack dresses that released the waist from a close fit.

Skirt suit, Chanel, ca. 1956

Coco Chanel

ca. 1956

Renewed her influence with softly tailored tweed suits designed for ease and practical movement.

Clover Leaf, Charles James, 1953

Charles James

1953

Engineered sculptural ball gowns through complex seaming, geometric skirts and carefully constructed understructures.

Evening dress, Madame Grès, fall/winter 1954–55

Madame Grès

fall/winter 1954–55

Turned pleated silk jersey into sculptural gowns that preserved the fabric’s fluidity.

Dress, Emilio Pucci, 1950s

Emilio Pucci

1950s

Built a recognizable Italian style around printed silk, color and clearly organized dress shapes.

Dress, James Galanos, 1959

James Galanos

1959

Applied meticulous couture construction to American ready-to-wear, including precisely shaped wool sheaths.

Dress, Norman Hartnell, 1950

Norman Hartnell

1950

Created opulent British formalwear, including Elizabeth II’s embroidered 1953 coronation gown.

The world behind
the wardrobe.

The New Look’s fitted waist and full skirt remained influential in the early 1950s, extending from couture into everyday dresses. Other choices became increasingly visible: Chanel’s return renewed softly tailored suits, while Balenciaga’s sack dress removed the tight waist altogether. At the same time, young people were shaping fashion through their own tastes and spending. British Teddy boys adapted New Edwardian tailoring into a distinctive street style, with long jackets, narrow trousers and quiffs. The decade brought both new silhouettes from established houses and a growing influence from youth culture.

Early 1950s

The New Look continues

The small waist and fuller skirt appeared across couture, ready-to-wear and everyday dress.

1954

Chanel returns

Chanel reopened her couture house and again made comfortable, practical suits central to her work.

1957

The sack dress

Balenciaga’s elimination of the fitted waist challenged the dominant silhouette and helped prepare the way for looser 1960s shapes.

Early 1950s

Teddy boys and youth culture

Young working-class men in Britain adapted New Edwardian tailoring into a recognizable street style with velvet-collared jackets, narrow trousers and quiffs.

Browse all 77 designers

Designers active in this decade. Available garment examples may come from another period; their dates are labeled.

77 of 77 shown

READ FURTHER

FIT Fashion History Timeline: 1950–1959V&A: What makes Chanel so iconic?V&A: Introducing Cristóbal BalenciagaRISD Museum: Chemise dress
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