September Fashion Alert: What About The Pantsuit?

By Amy Russo of Vienna’s Grace

I am sure most of us would agree that there is nothing more perfect than a man in a great suit! This, and of course functionality, must have been the allure for the 1930s androgynous look of Marlene Dietrich. Photographs of her in a trouser suit by Coco Chanel began to make some fashion waves during this time. The style was quickly embraced throughout the Hollywood Scene, with Lauren Bacall and Lucille Ball as some of the high profile stars to sport the new popular trouser suits. But no other comes to mind than that of Katharine Hepburn, with her casual trousers and matching jacket, from which we start to see the first signs of feminine tailoring in the women’s pantsuits.

During World War II, when men were called to war, all the men’s suits left hanging in the closet sent women to their sewing machines, altering and darting in waistlines to create a working women’s suit. They sported this new fashion with pride for the men defending their country and with pride in themselves for changing the workforce forever.

In the 1960’s, two styles of the pantsuit hit the fashion designer scene. Andre Courreges created what was thought of as a space-like pantsuit. The close fitting design, with collar and sleeve variations, was made in the newest stretchable fabrics. I think this look later evolved into the women’s leisure suit. Although it is not my favorite fashion look, this did serve a purpose for the style evolution of the women’s pantsuit. Then in the 1960’s, Yves St. Laurent hit the disco fashion scene with the femme fatale look of the Le Smoking suit, a men’s classic tuxedo designed for a women’s body. No doubt, the well-known tuxedo scene in Flashdance owes some credit to Yves St. Laurent.

Here are some of the pantsuits that have hit the recent runway, some with bold prints, and others classic in design. There is something so flattering to a women’s silhouette in a suit jacket and trousers. I guess that is what has sent women through the last 90 years, in search of the perfect fitting pantsuit.

Etsy treasury for individual listing links

(reading left to right)

1. Kinseysue-Simplicity 6193 2. Finickypatternshop-Simplicity 9215

3. Fancywork-Simplicity 2395 4. Sutlerssundries-Butterick 6929

5. Retromonkeys-Hollywood 899 6. JFerrariDesigns-Butterick 4202

7. ThePatternSource-Vogue 2956 8. CloesCloset-Vogue 8491

9. Vogue 1326 10. Patternshop-Simplicity 6104

11. MantueMakerPatterns-Simplicity 8866 12. Paneenjerez-DuBarry 6038

13. ErikawithaK-Vogue S4640 14. DesignRewindFashions-Butterick 3916

15. Sewbettyanddot-Vogue 1428 16. Allthepreciousthings- Vogue 8519