Suits - Pre 1920

[herringbonekid]

Claudio, there are lots of good fitting suits on every day men in the 1920s suits thread in my opinion.
i understand what you mean though. i would agree that by the early 30s if you look at photos of a group of ordinary people their suits will probably be better fitting than the early 20s, but the teens to mid 20s was an experimental time for suits and many cuts were tried then dropped because they simply weren't flattering and didn't sell. there's even more unsightly suit ideas being tried out around 1900-1914 if you ask me.

 

[Claudio]

I honestly thought I was posting in the 1920's thread apologies there gents!

That said, still think it was royalty or actors that were looking much like the adverts rather than the everyday Joe. I guess however that is normal as there was much more generalised poverty back then so often clothes per passed one from father to son or inbetween siblings, and often enough alterations were done in-home so the overall fit of the clothes were 'rough'

 

[herringbonekid]

suits today are very generic in overall cut, so while we may find fault with things such as low-rises etc... it's unlikely that we'll see anything as risk-taking as some of the long flared skirt suits of the Edwardian era. suits today 'play it safe' and don't risk too much. while that probably makes sense for most manufacturers, it does lead to a boring standardisation. at least they were trying some new ideas out in the Edwardian - mid 20s period, even if a few of them were clangers.

 

[DamianM]

1910s-1920s suits where and are very different from what is around now.
And it is stated that the 1930s was the peak of menswear.
I have a couple 1920s pieces and they look just like so, 1920s.
Maybe you are not used to seeing these "ancient" cuts

 

[cpdv]

In my opinion the suits you see on younger middle class men seem to be cut very well. Just like with all things there are people who look terrible because they just don't care. I think this is mostly the teens and 20s fanboys vs 30s fanboys. I personally like the teens and 20s better for all kinds of reasons and some of biggest appear is how different and interesting the cuts are. I'm a young relatively thin guy and I'm all for a pinched waist with a flared skirt and high button stance. I have no urge to blend with the throng of potbellied middle aged men in their charcoal grey modern suits.

 

[Papperskatt]

In my opinion the suits you see on younger middle class men seem to be cut very well. Just like with all things there are people who look terrible because they just don't care. I think this is mostly the teens and 20s fanboys vs 30s fanboys. I personally like the teens and 20s better for all kinds of reasons and some of biggest appear is how different and interesting the cuts are. I'm a young relatively thin guy and I'm all for a pinched waist with a flared skirt and high button stance. I have no urge to blend with the throng of potbellied middle aged men in their charcoal grey modern suits.

+1

 

[DamianM]

I am not a skinny guy anymore and I still wear my 1920s suits, jackets, and pants.
Im a 42R with a 35 waist. All i have to do is find proportioned clothes to my body type and you would be fine.
This applies to all eras, vintage and modern

 

[cpdv]

Damiann I agree with you. I also like some of the 30s vintage things. It really depends on my mood that day. Now for the 40s and 50s...no thanks I don't need to look like a linebacker.

 

[Fastuni]

Lightbulbs!

 

[Claudio]

BTW wasn't refering to modern gents wearing 20's vintage suits but refering to the original pictures of the time (only 1920's): what people were wearing looked different from what the sketches and drawings suggested. But as stated, it's true that many 'ordinary Joe' pictures are of normal people who were not there to be sartorially or stilistically analised.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Well yes, the illustrators working the advertisements for clothing companies were/are promoting an "ideal" (whatever that might be) body type/look. This is just as they do now, though the modern ideal promoted (see adverts including sportspeople) is rather less extreme than the kind of stick-thin cult of youth figures of Leyendecker et al. who look more like elongated boys than men. Like a 14-year old who's had his growth spurt but hasn't yet filled out his musculature. The enlarged head is a part of this overall appearance.

There are a number of influences that drove this ideal, not least of which being the horrors of WWI; these were being marketed to young men who had probably taken part, and it can't be a coincidence that the "ideal" is what they would have looked like in the years immediately preceding the war. The marketing ploy and the driver of these styles was a naked nostalgia for those "good" years pre-WWI.

Because the clothes tried to create this long, thin, boyish ideal, for those who were too short (for example) most of the modern styles of the post-WWI era looked godawful. Probably the worst thing for a short man is a too-long jacket, and flared skirts only heighten the imbalance.

However, we always have to keep in mind that these were very much the fashionable styles and I've never been convinced that they were all that popular. Photographic evidence would suggest that the vast majority of 1920s suits were "standard" "conservative" cuts which work for most body types. Certainly most of the suits I've seen from this era have been ordinary-looking.

 

[Claudio]

:eusa_clap

agreed!

 

[Papperskatt]

A really nice 1912 dated suit that recently sold on eBay. Pretty much my size, but I didn't really have the cash available to buy it.



Please tell me that a Lounger bought it. (I'll happily buy it if it turns out that it didn't fit )

 

[Qirrel]

Here is a suit which I have posted pictures of before, but which have since disappeared. Dated 1912(?):

 

[herringbonekid]

excellent suit Q (very similar cut to the one just before it)... is it melton ?

 

[Two Types]

Q: that is a good looking suit.

 

[Qirrel]

It resembles melton, yes. It is tightly woven, very thick and with a dense, short nap.

 

[Qirrel]

The trouser bottoms are curiously wide at 20", and the jacket is heavily padded and quite roomy. I believe it to be a moderate example of the "oversize" look I've seen in many illustrations from that period.

 

[Papperskatt]

Here is a suit which I have posted pictures of before, but which have since disappeared. Dated 1912(?):

Wonderful suit. I really like the breast flap pocket.

 

[DamianM]

A really nice 1912 dated suit that recently sold on eBay. Pretty much my size, but I didn't really have the cash available to buy it.

View attachment 13599 View attachment 13597 View attachment 13598

Please tell me that a Lounger bought it. (I'll happily buy it if it turns out that it didn't fit )

That one is coming to southern California.