Colour, has been a part of the natural
world since the beginning of time. It is used to convey emotion, visually
communicate, symbolize ideas and represent our cultures. There is no doubt that
colour and fashion works together. It proves the history of colour and its big
impact for fashion industry.
All fashion history can be simply separated
into colour periods. Starting with 1890s it was like "The Revolt against
Things Victorian". Nature pallets and shapes were fighting between harsh
maroons, purples and blacks of the Victorian period. The the golden age came of
Chanel’s and Patou’s "Black, White and Silver" in 1920. They both
used mainly neutrals including black, white and beige, often highlighted with
sequins and feathers for evening. The Thirties was all white to bright. A
suntan became essential to look stylish on the beach and to enhance the look.
White bathing suits and evening gowns became a rigor.
Later, in The War year’s
Strong colours in fashion including red, yellow and navy were morale boosters
during the gloom of the early war years. Although the colours became muted and
chalky as textiles and dyes were later rationed. In fifties the success runaway
story was Hot Pink introduced by Jacques Fath in 1951. The colour which was
promoted by Vogue led to a highly successful Revlon cosmetics campaign,
"Paint the Town Pink". Within six months of introduction, this colour
was already available in sheets, towels and other home furnishing fabrics. The
“Flower Power” was alive when the ethnic look was the overwhelming fashion
story of the sixties and blue jeans were designed to fade, very soon it became
a classic worn by all ages and both sexes. The "nude look" was
accented by dark kohl eye makeup and red henna hair. The new catch phrase which
was 'Black is Beautiful' was off and running.
In the very beginning of
seventies Earth tones reigned supreme in fashion, makeup and design but by the
end of this decade, the natural colours seemed a bit passé. Red, royal blue and
turquoise were the new fashion colours. Glitter in fashion and eye makeup,
along with stretch fabrics in neon bright, were seen on the disco dance floor.
The fashion industry has encountered problems throughout the eighties. Designs
ranged from the street punk look for the youth market to costumes adored by
café society. The average woman who had a job needs were ignored and sales
suffered accordingly. However, the fashion industry fared much better with
their colour palette. The hot pinks, purples, teal and lime greens showen in
the fall '89 collection had an immediate impact on the home furnishing market.
Grey, along with black and white were widely accepted by people as the new
neutrals in both contract and residential design. A return to nature in ‘90s was
seen through the use of greens and warm beiges.
Colour plays a big role in fashion because
it is like a sign from which you can distinguish between decades and features
of it, especially in timeline where fashion is just unpredictable, diverse and
repetitive. Colour lets us to mark a decade or a period of time with its
suitable initials and got recognized by people who are not all into it. Colour
forms the stereotypes in this industry that helps to know fashion in a much
easier way and get a common opinion about particular time that you are
interested in.
Kisses,
Ernesta
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