A Short History on Mens Dress Shirt

Dress shirt is much more then accessory, it is the symbol of refinement and elegance. A shirt, before coming in its modern avatar has gone through a long history of makeovers.  Dress which was earlier considered as undergarment was worn by commoners, generals and even by emperors. It is still worn by the people of every walk of life but the way it was seen has changed. From undergarment it has come in front. During earlier centuries shirts were manufactured without collar and cuffs.  A hem was provided that can be tightened or buttoned.  Made from the fabrics of linen and silk, they were not seen as underwear by 1700 century.

When the shirt was seeing makeover, collar and cuff become part of it. They were seen as more elaborate and new trend of shirts in market. When the shirts were initial stage of makeover, they were manufactured in larger size and were hand stitched but with the industrial revolution, place of hand stitched shirts were took over by factory made shirts and size also diminished. Although the beauty and quality of hand tailored shirts were more cherished but factory made shirts were available to more people as they were manufactured in numbers. From handmade to factory made, major change in the appearance of shirts started during World War II with antiques of buttons running in front.

If you were born on sixteenth century your shirt certainly had embroidery, occasionally it may also had frills or lace at the neck but during eighteenth century neck frills or jabot were considered fashionable. It was nineteenth century when colorful shirts were come into existence. First series of paintings were dedicated to many famous historical figures and mythological characters. Painted shirts were considered as casual wear for lower class workers for instance during eighteenth century a gentleman couldn’t think himself in a sky blue color but in early nineteenth century it was considered as standard wear and around 1980’s it become the most commonly worn shirts.

The period of 1930’s saw the revival of fixed collars and around 1950’s rayon shirt came in fashion with daring short sleeves. Later decade saw the appearance of breast pocket, the reason behind this was decrease in vests wearing under coat. Women’s too started wearing shirts during 1860’s but that was more fashionable in approach and were not accepted by the large section of society. Now American and European women’s are commonly seen in this attire, in many styles of it.

By the end of the twentieth century, tremendous varieties have been added to a dress shirt. Now it comes in many shapes, styles and designs. In the era of fast changing fashion sense among people, this very elegance piece of attire has succeeded in maintaining its place.