SSR #2 On The Australian Women's Weekly FASHION - The First 50 years

 SSR 2: Primary Source Report on The HOME Magazine January 1934 Issue by Karla Destéfani

Image of Women's Weekly Cover on Page 13

Complete APA 7th Citation 

Thomas, Deborah, with Kirstie Clements. (2014). The Australian Women’s Weekly Fashion: The First 50 Years (pp. 1-29). National Library of Australia.

Key Words

Fashion, 1930s, Magazine, Women's Weekly, dress, style, images, hem, economics, fabric, makeup, workwear, modern woman

Brief Overview

The book, written by an ex-editor of the Women's Weekly from 1999-2008, covers fashion from the 30s through to the 70s. Celebrating the impact the magazine has had on fashion viewing it as an "important chronicle" of information on how Australia developed its national style as it "continually reflected the changing face" of Australia. It covers the development of the Women's Weekly, first published in 1933, across time and heavily uses imagery to support and convey its points. 

Summary of Key Points

• This magazine is a mirror of our times and features fashion alongside important Australian events (building of the Sydney Opera House, Second World War etc..). 
• The women's weekly was released in midst of the great depression, nonetheless, it thrived with a circulation of 400,00 copies per week in 1939. 
• The magazine heavily supported the arts. 
• In 1929 the fashion industry's immediate reaction to the Wall Street crash  was marked by rejection of the flamboyance and decadence of the 'roaring twenties.'
• Fashion became more practical and accessible as designers stopped using costly embellishments in favour of more simple designs. Additionally, more synthetic fabric were being produced such as rayon, viscose and crepe.
• The change in the economy changed what women, particularly those who were wealthy, required from their wardrobes - obtaining more practical garments.
• Australians preferred to buy British, but only the wealthy class was capable of doing so. 
• Hats and hairdos which appeared within issues in the 1930s imitated the American socialite Wallis Simpson - a leader trendsetter. 
• Fashion was most commonly displayed through illustration instead of photography.
• Schiaparelli - Fur was often used for collars, responsible for popularising the zipper as well as bold colours. 
• Mid 30s wide shoulders and narrow waists made regular appearances on the fashion pages of The weekly. hemlines dropped to mid-shin for day and full length for day and full length for evenly wear due to economic constraints. Women's silhouette always pinched in at the waist and often women would adorn masculine jackets. 
• The popularity of suiting was born from the "modern 1930s woman" wanting to imitate men  and their "workwear."
• Late 1930s trousers started to be worn by women. Pants were wide-legged and sat on the waist. 
• Daywear was marked by masculine elements and nightwear was incredibly vamp - with large dips at the front and back with high hems at the front. 
• Gone With The Wind increased the popularity of large puffed sleeves. 
• The pages were commonly filled with coloured imagery however there were many dramatically lit black-and-white photographs which emulated the dramatic stills of the movie studious.
• Film heavily impacted daily wear and daily wear heavily impacted what waas seen on screen. They worked closely together and thus the masculine looks women strived for in modernity appeared on the screen and glamour accessories (tortoiseshell sunglasses and short gloves) found their way in daily wear. 
• Bags became sleek and refined (clutch instead of swing bag).
• Hats were an essential part of the female wardrobe and in1935  Schiaparelli brought back a revival of the victorian period. 
• The feminine 1930s brought back curls, emphasis on eyebrows and lipsticked mouth. 

Photo of dress demonstrating the longe hem line ideal on page 3.

Important Quotations

• "Expensive, socialite-modelled European couture of the 1930s" (p.v) description of the 1930s fashion. 
• "Reflected the current political agenda for women" (p.v)
• "From its very beginnings, the social status of women has been a recurring theme in the magazine - some decades embracing women's liberation more than others" (p.vi)
• "it is the wealth of information about the average Australia woman that makes The Weekly such a valuable source." (p.vi)
• "Above all, wether the journalists are writing about fashion ... there has to be an element of news in what they write" - George Warnecke first editor (p.vii)
• "Perhaps more than in any other century in history, fashion across every decade of the twentieth century was influenced by the rapidly changing status of women in Western society and the unparalleled roller-coaster economic events that marked the period. In no decade was this more so than in the 19230s, with its harsh financial realities" (p.1).
• "Long hemlines were typical of this period, with designers going against the economic grain, choosing to use extra fabric for longer skirts and draping - defiantly showing they would not compromise simply because fabric was expensive." (p.9)
• "Schiaparelli moved fashion away from . androgynous look .. embrac[ing] a narrower, mor feminines silhouette with an emphasis on the bustlines and the curvature of a womans waist."  "Sharp, sculptural silhouettes" 
• "It could be said that the 1930s daywear  in the 1930s  was the forerunner to the working woman's wardrobe we know today."
• The pages were commonly filled with coloured imagery however there were many dramatically lit black-and-white photographs which emulated the dramatic stills of the movie studious. (paraphrased)
• "The emergence of sportswear designers ... introduced a less formal way of dressing featuring white shorts playsuits, beach cover-ups and of course, the bathing suit." (p.25)
• "In 1933, a two-piece swimsuit appeared in The Weekly for the first time."
  "The Australian Women's weekly ... intended to become a fashion bible of the nation." (p.25)

Photo of the dress featured on page 18. 

Usefulness to Group/Individual Project

This source report focusses purely on the introduction and '30s' chapter as it will serve my project the most by providing an overview of the magazine as a whole and a "closer reading" of my specific interest.