1950s Fashion: Iconic Trends, Style Icons and How to Wear It Now
Full skirts, pencil skirts, cat-eye glasses and red lips. Here are the iconic 1950s fashion trends, the stars who wore them and how to get the look.
Tiny waists. Huge skirts. A red lip you could see from across the street. Honestly, the 1950s knew exactly what they were doing.
It was the decade of Marilyn and Audrey, of poodle skirts and pencil skirts, and of women getting dressed up just to go to the grocery store. Seventy-odd years later, we’re still borrowing from it, whether we realize it or not.
So here’s a look at what 1950s fashion actually was, the pieces that defined it and how to wear it now without looking like you’re on your way to a costume party.
How the 1950s Look Began
It all started a little early, in February 1947, when Christian Dior showed his very first collection in Paris.
After years of wartime rationing, when women had been wearing boxy suits and saving every scrap of fabric, Dior sent out padded hips, nipped-in waists and skirts that used yards and yards of material. His famous Bar suit, a fitted cream jacket over a full black skirt, became the look everyone wanted.
Harper’s Bazaar editor Carmel Snow reportedly told him his dresses had “such a new look,” and the name stuck. The New Look shaped pretty much the whole next decade.
Not everyone loved it at first. Some people thought all that fabric was wasteful so soon after the war. But women wanted to feel glamorous again, and the hourglass shape won.
The Two Big 1950s Silhouettes
If you remember one thing about 50s fashion, make it this: it was all about the waist. Almost every outfit was built around showing it off, in one of two ways.
The full skirt
This is the one most people picture. A fitted top, a cinched waist and a big, swishy skirt that hit around mid-calf. Women wore petticoats underneath (sometimes more than one) to make the skirt stand out even more.
Swing dresses, circle skirts and shirtwaist dresses all fall into this camp. It’s playful, it’s pretty and it’s perfect for dancing.
The pencil skirt
The other side of the decade was much sleeker. Pencil skirts hugged the hips and narrowed toward the knee, usually paired with a fitted sweater or a tailored jacket. Add a pair of heels and you’ve got instant bombshell energy.
The wiggle dress took the same idea and made it a one-piece. It was so fitted that you literally had to wiggle to walk in it, hence the name.
Key 1950s Fashion Pieces
These are the pieces that showed up again and again:
- Poodle skirts, the felt circle skirts with an appliqué (often an actual poodle) that teenagers loved
- Twin sets, a matching sweater and cardigan, usually worn with pearls
- Capri pants and cigarette pants, slim and cropped just above the ankle
- Shirtwaist dresses with a button-up top and a full skirt
- Peter Pan collars
- Saddle shoes and ballet flats for teens, pumps and stilettos for everyone else
- Cat-eye sunglasses
- Headscarves, gloves and structured handbags
Prints were big too. Polka dots, gingham and florals were everywhere, and so were soft pastels like mint, baby pink and powder blue.
And let’s not forget the guys, or at least the rebels. James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause made a white T-shirt, jeans and a red jacket look impossibly cool in 1955, and plenty of teenage girls copied the denim-and-tee look too.
1950s Hair and Makeup
The makeup was polished and pretty. Think flawless matte skin, defined brows, a sharp winged liner and, most importantly, a red lip. Pink and coral were popular too, especially for younger women.
Hair was short to medium and set in curls. The poodle cut, the bouffant, soft pin curls and Audrey’s cropped pixie with baby bangs were all huge. Teens loved a high ponytail tied with a scarf.
Love vintage hair from other decades? Check out our guide to 1920s hairstyles.
1950s Style Icons
Marilyn Monroe
You can’t talk about the 50s without Marilyn. That white halter dress blowing up over a subway grate in The Seven Year Itch (1955) is one of the most famous fashion moments ever. It was designed by William Travilla, who dressed her in a bunch of her films.
Audrey Hepburn
Audrey was the opposite of the bombshell look, and just as iconic. Slim black cigarette pants, ballet flats, simple black dresses and that cropped hair. Her long friendship with Hubert de Givenchy, who dressed her in Sabrina (1954) and Funny Face (1957), basically invented the idea of a designer and his muse.
Grace Kelly
Grace Kelly was pure elegance, with tailored skirts, pearls, gloves and perfectly set blonde hair. Her 1956 wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco, in a lace gown by MGM costume designer Helen Rose, is still one of the most copied wedding looks in history. Hermès even renamed one of its handbags the Kelly bag after her.
Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor brought the drama. Fitted dresses, sweetheart necklines, cinched waists and those famous violet eyes framed by dark brows. She made old Hollywood glamour look effortless.
Who Wears 1950s Style Now?
The 50s never really left the red carpet.
Dita Von Teese has built her whole look around it, with victory rolls, red lips and perfectly fitted wiggle dresses. Taylor Swift has been a fan for years, too. Back in 2014 she stepped out in New York in a pastel 50s-inspired outfit, complete with a full mint skirt and daisy clips in her hair.
How to Wear 1950s Fashion Today
The trick is to pick one or two vintage pieces, not ten. Here’s how:
- Wear a full midi skirt with a plain fitted tee or a cropped cardigan.
- Try slim cropped trousers with ballet flats and a striped top, very Audrey.
- Add a belt to almost anything to get that cinched 50s waist.
- Go for a red lip and a little winged liner, even with jeans.
- Throw on cat-eye sunglasses or a silk headscarf.
- Pick a gingham or polka dot dress for summer.
Keep the rest of your outfit modern and it’ll look like a style choice, not a costume.
1950s Fashion FAQ
What did women wear in the 1950s?
Mostly dresses and skirts. Full skirts with petticoats and slim pencil skirts were the two main looks, worn with fitted tops, twin sets or tailored jackets. Capri pants became popular for casual days, and gloves, hats and pearls were common for going out.
What was the New Look?
It was Christian Dior’s first collection, shown in Paris in February 1947. It brought back a curvy hourglass shape with a cinched waist and a very full skirt, and it set the tone for the whole decade.
What colors were popular in the 1950s?
Soft pastels like pink, mint, lemon yellow and powder blue were huge. Red, black and navy were classics for evening, and prints like polka dots and gingham were everywhere.
What shoes did people wear in the 1950s?
Women wore pumps, kitten heels and the newly popular stiletto. Teens loved saddle shoes, loafers and ballet flats, usually with ankle socks.
Final Thoughts
The 1950s gave us some of the most feminine, put-together fashion ever, and a lot of it still works today. You don’t need a petticoat or a poodle skirt to get the look. A full skirt, a belted waist, a red lip and a little bit of attitude will get you most of the way there. Marilyn and Audrey would approve.
