1930s Fashion: The Definitive Sourcebook

From the turbulence of the 1930s emerged the Golden Age of Glamour.

Framed by two world-changing events the economic crash of 1929 and the outbreak of the Second World War the 1930s saw new looks emerge and thrive, despite economic and social uncertainty.

This was the decade of the bias cut, the statement shoulder, the puff sleeve, the tea dress, the fur shrug and the floor-length evening gown. It was also the era that saw Hollywood challenge Paris's fashion crown and its stars become fashion icons, signalling a new grown-up direction in womenswear design.

Packed with over 500 original photographs, illustrations and sketches from the decade, this is an essential guide for any fashion historian, student or vintage enthusiast. These classic images have been selected from popular fashion publications of the day, mail-order catalogues and Hollywood studio press shots, including material from Chic Parisien, Harper's Bazaar, Sears, La Femme Chic and film studios Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Paramount.

Authored and edited by renowned design historian, Charlotte Fiell, this volume also contains an authoritative introduction by fashion historian, Emmanuelle Dirix, as well as the biographies of the key designers and fashion houses of the period.

Charlotte Fiell is a leading design historian who has written numerous bestselling books on all aspects of design. She studied at the British Institute in Florence, Camberwell College of Arts in London, and later trained at Sotheby's Institute, also in London.

Emmanuelle Dirix is a highly regarded fashion historian and curator. She lectures on Critical and Historical studies at Winchester School of Art, Central Saint Martins, the Royal College of Art and the Antwerp Fashion Academy. She regularly contributes to exhibition catalogues and academic volumes. Recent projects include the exhibition and book Unravel: Knitwear in Fashion, 1920s Fashion: The Definitive Sourcebook and 1930s Fashion: the Definitive Sourcebook.

This sourcebook is a season-by-season appraisal of the fashions of the 1930s, with over 600 photos and illustrations. Includes analysis of the significance of the fashions, and the key designers and fashion houses. Out of the turbulence of the 1930s emerged a fashion revolution. Framed by two world-changing events, the economic crash of 1929 and the outbreak of the Second World War, unparalleled ingenuity and inventiveness from haute couture to the home-seamstress saw new trends emerge and thrive. Despite economic and material constraints, many of the silhouettes that emerged from this decade still inform how we dress today. This is decade of the skirt suit, sportswear-as-daywear, jersey fabrics and trousers. In Hollywood, the silver screen was filled with icons with slinky satin gowns, marking a new and overtly sensual direction within women's fashion design. Many of these original, never-seen-before images in this fabulous collection have been selected from popular fashion publications of the day, mail-order catalogues, and Hollywood studio press shots, including material from Chic Parisien , Harper's Bazaar , Sears, La Femme Chic and top film studios Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, RKO and Paramount. Fashion Sourcebook 1930s is an essential guide for any vintage enthusiast.

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