1940s Street Style 2 women victory rolls-Vintage Photo Tuesday

Many of the online searches that find their way to my blog is for “1930’s-1950’s Fashion ideas”. So I thought for this week’s Vintage Photo Tuesday, I would find some well dressed “regular folks” images from the 1940’s and share them with all of you. Then future VPT’s will focus on the other timelines ( Scroll to the end of the post to see new posts).

Let’s check out the 1940’s Street Style!

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBay, are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Note: If the item you clicked on is no longer available, just do a search for like items. There are loads of vintage items being added to Etsy and eBay daily!

1940s Street Style

The Vintage Photos

I have a blog post I did for VPT that is all about people taking photos in front of their houses. This is another great vintage of a very stylish let’s assume husband and wife in 1940s fashions.

1940s vintage photo of a couple in 1940s fashions posing in front of their house. — Source: Etsy

What a stylish group of Black Women in their various 1940s dresses, skirt suits, blouses and skirts. Also look at their lovely 1940s hairstyles?! Love this image.

1940s vintage photo of a group of stylish Black Women in 1940s Fashions and 1940s Hairstyles. Beautiful 1940s dresses, 1940s skirt suits and 1940s blouse.

Source: Etsy

The man’s casual 1940’s look is something that never went out of style (my grandfather in his 60s and 70s was sporting this look). And the stylish woman beside him’s top is so pretty! Love the design to breakup a simple skirt and top took.

1940s vintage photo of a couple posing in front of a car wearing 1940s fashions. — Source: Etsy

What an adorable woman! 1940s Peacock brooches are always a good choice to brighten up a standard black jacket.

1940s vintage photo of a pretty young Black woman wearing a jacket with a peacock brooch and peep toe shoes. Fantastic 1940s hairstyle and 1940s fashion. — Source: Etsy

1940s vintage photo of a group of very stylish young women singing a song maybe at a wedding shower, or special gathering. The shoes, the hair and the perfect 1940s dresses are wonderful!

Source: eBay

I’m having serious 1940s vintage hair envy with this young lady taking a moment to look at a window display, and that is why she is in this collection.

Further Reading: Vintage Photos of Fashion Window Displays of the 1940s & 1950s

1940s vintage photo of a young woman with 1940s hairstyle looking at window display. — Source: Etsy

I admire a man who can wear swim trunks with seashells and seahorses on them and look good while doing it. These are pretty awesome and totally deserve to be on this list. -1940s vintage photo-

1940s vintage photo of a man in a 1940s swimsuit posing in the summer time. — Source: Etsy

What a HAT! I have a 1940s hat, that has one big black feather on the top as well. The streamlined coat with the big buttons is also very stylish.

1940s vintage photo of a stylish woman in a 1940s coat wearing a 1940s hat with feathers in the hat. — Source: Etsy

Vintage photo of two friends at Cannon Beach, Oregon, 1940’s. These ladies are really sporting classic 1940s looks, from the top of their head (love our one woman hairscarf to protect her hairstyle) to their lovely outfits…drool!

Vintage Photo of Two Friends at Cannon Beach, Oregon, 1940's vintage photo. The image showcases fantastic 1940s fashions. — Source: Etsy

Never leave home without a hat! This pretty woman made the list for her fantastic 1940s shoes and put together look that included a string of pearls.

1940s vintage photo of a woman in a 1940s dress, wearing a hat and fantastic 1940s spectator style shoes posing in front of a water fountain. — Source: Etsy

The man in this image may have a hurt hand but I can’t stop looking at the cool “woods style” that these 3 finely dressed folks have. They look very bad ass.

1940s vintage photo of 2 women and man posing in the woods in 1940s fashions. — Source: Etsy

1940’s winter style: 3 woman in fur coats with hair scarfs to keep their heads warms. Fancy!

1940s vintage photo of 3 woman in fur coats and wearing hair scarfs psoing together for a photo. — Source: Etsy

Thelma Porter, Miss Subways New York City, 1948. Thelma was the first woman to integrate a beauty contest in America and became the first African American Miss Subways in April, 1948.

1940s vintage photo of Thelma Porter, Miss Subways New York City, 1948. Thelma was the first woman to integrate a beauty contest in America and became the first African American Miss Subways in April, 1948. — Source: Pinterest

What a super one piece jumper complete with the biggest butterfly brooch/pin I have ever seen. Yes to this look!

1940s vintage photo of a young woman in a one piece jumpsuit with a giant butterfly brooch or design on the chest area. Super 1940s fashion. — Source: Etsy

A handsome sailor during WW2 with his beautiful mother all dressed up for the night (see the gloves?).

1940s image of sailor with his mother posing together. The mother is all dressed up in eveningwear. — Source: Etsy

Another outstanding hat partnered with a well dressed man at the world famous Leon & Eddie’s in NYC.

1940s vintage photo of a couple in a restaurant. The woman is a wearing a 1940s hat with a bird in it. Fun 1940s fashion. — Source: Etsy

We now have come to the end of this weeks post, but due to the fact that I found so many images for this weeks post, I will most likely do a part 2 in the future (exciting!).

Question Time: What photo was your favorite look from above? Share in the comments below.

Further Reading:

Liz

Today’s post is about my Eaton’s Catalogue Fall/Winter of 1940-1941 that I picked up at the Toronto Vintage & Antique show last year. The catalogue was in great shape, considering it’s age and is filled with many wonderful images.

1940s vintage cover of an Eatons Catalogue 1940-1941 Fall Winter featuring a woman in a 1940s winter jacket and winter hat.

Some background information about this specific catalog:

What is interesting about this catalogue as you are about to see, is that at the time of the creation of this book Canada has been involved in the war now since Sept of 1939, so we are moving into year 2. However when you look inside the book you would NEVER of know there was a war on expect for some teeny tiny little hints (which I will be showing you).The catalog is filled with furs, silk, every piece of machinery you can find, rubber tires etc. etc. etc.

Why was it like this?

Well after some poking around I found out that Canada did not start coupon rationing till 1942 (we did have in place a system called ‘Honour Rationing‘ at the time of the creation of this book. How Canadian of us), and clothing items like Silk started to be rationed in the later part of 41’ so it would make sense that the Eaton’s catalogue would carry on like it always had because nothing had really changed at this point.

Now onto the shopping!

Canadian Eaton’s Catalogue, Fall/Winter 1940-1941

Our first grouping of ladies are sporting ‘that better-dressed’ look at an in-expensive price’. I would love the second last 1940s dress on the right.

1940s vintage photo of a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue featuring a collection of women's 1940s dresses. Fantastic 1940s fashions.

We do stumble upon a mention of the war with the bolero jacket dress description and the interesting colour choice you can have the dresses in called: ‘British Navy’. I’m wondering if it was changed from ‘Navy Blue’ to reflect our British ties?

1940s Fashion: A 1940s bolero jacket dress description as seen in a Eatons Catalogue 1940 -1941 Fall Winter Edition.

The Junior section is always where I tend to see of the cutest dresses like the plaid one on the right. She is ‘Mad for Plaid!’. PLUS you can clearly see the militant look that came into vogue during this time in the two dresses on the left.

Further Reading: Plaid…A Fall Fashion Trend. The Vintage Edition

1940s Fashion: 1940s Women's Dresses, one being in plaid as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

It’s always a treat when the catalogue posts some of their items for sale in colour. Look at those wonderful patterns and dress designs!

1940s Fashion: Women's 1940s Dresses in various patterns as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

More lovely 1940s dresses! Oh my…….I would like an order of all 3 please! Once again dress 2 & 3 are in the military style, and their hats are fantastic!

1940s Fashion: 1940s Women's Dresses, 1940s Hats and 1940s Jacket with skirt as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

As I stated above rationing was not really mandatory in Canada, so seeing a full ad for ‘Silk Hose’ was still 100% okay. -1940s vintage advertisement.

1940s Silk Hosiery Advertisiment as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

Your outfits are NOT complete without smart-looking 1940s shoes, that are moderately priced.

1940s Fashion: late 1940, early 1941's womens fall winter shoes ad seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

Even women’s dancing shoes are featured.

Further Reading: Time To Dance! Vintage Instructions To Get You Dancing In No Time

1940s women's dance shoes illustration as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

Lets also not forget that this is the Fall/Winter CANADIAN Catalogue, so take your pick of the warmest, classiest winter footwear on the block.

1940s Fashion: late 1940, early 1941's womens fall winter shoes as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

And now for most amazing shoes in the book. ‘Sled’ Heels!! WOW! Those are absolutely stunning!

1940 Fashion: A women's shoe with a cut out in the heel as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

1940s Hats Hats Hats! Here is a small selection of what was posted in the catalog. I’m a huge fan of the ‘Sideliner’.

1940s Fashion: Late 1940, early 1941 women's fall winter hats as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

Interesting find alert!, # 4 ‘The Crepe Topper‘. I have honestly never heard of this idea but now that I have, I want one…badly. According to the description below it’s “Finely pleated rayon crepe, encircling the neck and tying about the waist. It allows you to lend variety to a plain dress”. How cool!

1940s Fashion: Women's Earl 1940s Boleros, Jacket, Crepe Topper and blouse as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

Don’t worry men, Eaton’s has stuff for you as well. Monogrammed ties, that go with any of the shirts featured are perfect for everyday wear.

1940s Fashion for Men: Late 1940, early 1941 Men's vintage shirts and ties as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

I love how the men socks below in their vibrant colours and patterns are also very popular right now with the gentlemen of today. Good style never goes OUT of style.

1940s Fashion: Late 1940s, Early 1941 Men's socks and women's hosiery as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

Other items you can purchase…Accordions!

1940s Accordions for sale in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

Power Tools and Accessories for the home craftsman.

1940s Power tools for sale as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

Beautiful 1940s Jewelry like, fruit necklaces (very popular with the vintage crowd right now).

1940s Fashion: Early 1941 vintage fruit necklace as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

And hair tools for the ladies. This page is always a favorite of mine, especially since I’m into vintage hairstyles and it’s fun to see the items I use today being sold 70+ years earlier.

Further Reading:

1940s Hairstyle: 1940 - 1941 women's hair styling accessories as seen in a Eaton's 1940-1940 Fall / Winter Catalogue

And that was the last image for this post today. I will be doing a part 2 soon featuring other catalogues during this time period. Will the Eaton’s Catalogue change as Canada gets deeper into the war, or will it remain the same as we have seen here? Stay tuned!

Question time: Do you have a favorite item featured above? If you do please share.

Note! As of Nov 15th, 2023 there was a copy for sale on eBay, which you can find HERE.

Would you like to own a vintage 1940s fashion item (or a replica of one)? Then take a look at the items for sale in my 1940s Fashion Etsy collection page (updated regularly), found HERE.

FURTHER READING:

Liz 🙂

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy & eBay, are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Tag: 1940’s mens fashion

Vintage Photo Tuesday: 1940’s Street Style

1940s Street Style

The Vintage Photos

Highlights of a Canadian Eaton’s Catalogue, Fall/Winter 1940-1941

Canadian Eaton’s Catalogue, Fall/Winter 1940-1941