Women’s pant suits, slack
suits, or trouser suits, as they are also called, have taken many years to be
totally accepted by society as just another article of clothing for women.
For
too many years women had to wear fashions that were determined by and mostly
designed by, men. For centuries women’s clothing styles remained basically in
the same format – do not show too much skin, cinch the waist and create an
outfit that will not tempt men into uncharitable thoughts. Women’s pant suits would make men look where they should not, and
were definitely not acceptable for women
of good moral standing to wear.
The
1920s brought about a huge change in women’s fashion, mainly because of a young
French orphan, Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel,
who would later come to be known as a very famous designer by the name of Coco
Chanel. She started her career by designing millinery, and then expanded her
designs to include dresses, skirts and jackets made of wool jersey. She became
famous for using this stretch fabric to design clothing that up until then had
only been used for men’s underclothing. She put sexy and comfort into women’s
outfits. Coco Chanel is acclaimed as being the person who revolutionized the fashion
industry – her famous little black dress is still a must-have in every woman’s wardrobe.
Could
you imagine not being able to wear your pantsuit when it is freezing cold in
the winter and all you want to do is to crawl back under the covers? No matter
how thick the dress or skirt is, and no matter how nice the stockings, your
legs get COLD in the winter. Skirts and dresses do have a place, and many women
like wearing them, but they still like to at least have a choice in the matter!
What
really strikes me as funny though, is the fact that although women’s pants suits were basically
accepted by society in the late sixties, it took decades before women were able
to wear them to work:
1933 - Coco Chanel
designs a very mannish pantsuit for women,
which is largely ignored.
1950 – Katherine Hepburn,
a pioneer for women’s pants is told she
may not wear trousers in the lobby of the Claridges Hotel in London – she refused to change her mode
of attire, and preferred to use the servant’s entrance thereafter.
1964 - André Courrèges
designs
the miniskirt and the safari-style female
pantsuit and this is the beginning of pant suits being accepted as informal
wear.
1966 -
Yves Saint Laurent – designs the Le Smoking tuxedo suit for
women which is based on the male tuxedo but is slick and
androgynous-looking. This really allowed society to accept pants suits for
women.
1970 - Companies
such as Garwood
Mills and the Bank of New Jersey
amongst others allow female staff to wear pantsuits to work. JC Penney
allowed the office staff to wear pantsuits, but not their floor staff. Other
companies were slower in relaxing their rules.
Courts,
government offices, and some other companies only changed the rules regarding women’s pants suits years later. Midwestern savings & Loan only
allowed this in 1980! These days
pantsuits are acceptable everywhere.
