1912 Illustrators Answer How Future Women Can Dress Better

Hello!  Is it really Wednesday already?

Today I’ve got a really great little article to share from McCall’s Magazine from August 1912.  I think you’ll get a kick out of this article as much as I have.  Some of my favorite illustrators of the Edwardian era are answering the question of women’s dress in “How Can the Woman of Tomorrow Dress More Becomingly.”

Click on either image for a larger version you can read.

Since we are people of the future (nearly 100 years since it was originally published) do you agree with their ideals or ideas?  I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Do  keep in mind, though I shouldn’t even have to say it since I know most of you are vintage/history buffs and are well aware, that this was written one hundred years ago, when ideas about women, cultures, and society as a whole were very different than how we think today.

If you’re not familiar with the artists you can find out more about them and their work by following these links:

Harrison Fisher at http://www.harrisonfisher.com/

Arthur I. Keller at American Art Archives

John W Alexander at Wikipedia

William M. Chase at Wikipedia

James Montgomery Flagg at American Art Archives

Alonzo Kimball at U.S. Artworks

9 Comments on 1912 Illustrators Answer How Future Women Can Dress Better

  1. athene
    March 7, 2012 at 12:06 pm (12 years ago)

    My favorite observation:
    “I believe the tailor-made suit is to blame. A tailor-made woman so rarely blushes!”

  2. h.s.
    March 7, 2012 at 12:25 pm (12 years ago)

    That was so interesting! I like how most of the men did mention choosing styles that were suited to your particular figure and not just the trend (something I think everyone should still do! Skinny jeans don’t look good on everyone, lol). But how funny is it to see a ladies magazine with commentary from men on corsets and how they thing they should be done away with? I’m sure most woman were nodding their heads to that!

  3. mala_14
    March 7, 2012 at 2:29 pm (12 years ago)

    Wow! Harrison Fisher was pretty good at predicting what the “Woman of Tomorrow” would wear. I love how diverse these opinions are. Funny thing is that they’re all the opinions of men. I wonder what the “Woman of (their) Today” would think.

  4. ThirtiesLady
    March 7, 2012 at 4:17 pm (12 years ago)

    How interesting! I like Harrison Fisher’s take best, and in many ways, it looks like he was the most accurate. Seems that Keller was the most old-fashioned one. I was shocked that he considered the fashions of 1845 to be most flattering, but back in 1912, I suppose it was something like a man in 2012 preferring the fashions of 1945. (In terms of length of time; obviously, the styles of 1845 and 1945 couldn’t be more different!)

    William Chase’s notion of collecting Brazilian moths and butterflies to use as color inspiration was brilliant.

  5. Shona van Beers
    March 8, 2012 at 2:44 am (12 years ago)

    I loved how mostly they wanted women to look more natural. Thanks for sharing!

  6. Lorna
    March 8, 2012 at 2:07 pm (12 years ago)

    A very enjoyable look into the past, I love the fact that no women artists were represented in this article, even though there were women artists in the Royal Academy :) soon the war would come and the world of women’s fashion changed in a way that these gentlemen couldn’t even imagine!

  7. PepperToast
    March 10, 2012 at 3:32 pm (12 years ago)

    Well well, Harrison, you are my kind of guy. Notice how they mostly all preferred the natural woman’s form and natural beauty. That’s good news, now why haven’t we women every really believed that?

  8. petavefapu
    March 16, 2012 at 3:14 am (12 years ago)

    Also, even with the circumstances given in the book, I had trouble comprehending how he children could have complex thoughts. The company is offering a lifetime warranty for its Colibri lighters. The growing craze of taking events online for reaching out to a large number of people has brought major changes in the event management trends over the past few years. The zip-out changing station keeps changing pads neat and easy to access. Pouring ourselves a cup of hot coffee from our flask while we’re cruising down the expressway at 60 mph is not a good idea, it is likely to cause a crash and involve us in a traffic jam, the very event we seek to avoid! homothallism

  9. Mimi O
    March 18, 2012 at 7:23 am (12 years ago)

    I truly was amazed at what Harrison Fisher had to say in regards to women and the “throwing away” of the corset for a more natural line. KUDOS to him…a man ahead of his time!

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