New Look
The post-war silhouette: narrow waist, rounded shoulders and a full skirt.
Christian Dior showed his first collection in February 1947. An editor exclaimed that it was a new look, and the name stuck.
After the war and rationing, the large skirts were a provocation to some and a liberation to others. The silhouette shaped the fashion of the 1950s.
Materials: Wool and silk, with a great deal of fabric in the skirt
Manufacture: Haute couture, with built-in corsetry and padding.
The narrow waist and the padded hips.
The skirt with many metres of fabric.
The contrast with the sparing clothes of the war years.