Men’s Fashion – Page 2 – Old Magazine Articles

Knickers Make Their Appearance In Town
(Magazine Ad, 1919)

In our era, we don’t think it terribly odd to see someone in an art museum dressed as though they were going to go poll-vaulting standing next to someone else who is clothed as if they were intending to rope a steer. This sort of untraditional-tradition began in the twenties. The attached link will show you a magazine advertisement for men’s knickers which appeared at a time when this sort of thinking began to evolve and knickerbockers began a new life as an in-town and on-campus fashion choice. Previously, knickers were worn by young boys or strictly for men who enjoyed country sports; other examples of similar active-ware abuse in the Twenties involved the clothing of yachtsmen, hunters and tennis players. This era saw the rise of the sportswear industry.

The Side-Seam Suit
(The Stars and Stripes, 1919)

The Side-Seam suit style had it’s appeal in the early Twenties and could be found in many a magazine in the form of vests and overcoats, however the look did not survive the era and is now numbered among the Zoot Suit and Leisure Suit as one of the forgotten fads of Twentieth Century mode.

The Shirt Tuck
(Magazine Advertisement, 1921)

There is no doubt about the fact that in the 1920s, there lived a great number of men who left the world a far richer place for their having walked the earth when they did; fellows like Pablo Picasso and Bertrand Russel, to name only two. The shallow editors at OldMagazineArticles.com think that is all just ducky, but what we really want to know is how did these men keep their shirts tucked in? How could such fellows as these look so presentable when so many men before them have failed?

We did some digging around and this is what we discovered…

Men’s Undergarments: 1921
(Magazine Advertisement, 1921)

Attached is an illustrated magazine advertisement from a polite, middle class American periodical which depicts two trim bucks in the full flower of youth wearing their under-lovelies so that all the internet gawkers can get a sense of how wildly uncomfortable men’s underwear used to be.

Click here to read about the introduction of the T shirt to the world of fashion.

Tested in War: the Wrist Watch Becomes Fashionable
(The Stars and Stripes, 1918)

The following must have been some sort of creative writing project for one of the many bored World War One Doughboys, however it clearly spells out how the necessities of modern war demanded that the wrist watch no longer be thought of as a piece of jewelry adorned only by fops and fems and evolved into a useful tool for soldiers on the field and men with masculine responsibilities. The column makes it quite clear that prior to the Great War, a good many wrist watch enthusiasts would have had their noses broken if they had worn the ‘gimmick’ into certain neighborhoods.

Suits and Accessories for Summer, 1919
(Vanity Fair Magazine, 1919)

A look at the suits and fashion trends for the Summer of 1919.

Ivy League College Fashions
(Gentry Magazine, 1953) • Gentry Magazine, 1953 •

*Click here to read about the 1956 college fashion craze*

Levi Strauss and his Denim
(Coronet Magazine, 1956)

The attached piece was written in the shadows of W.W. II – a time when Levi Strauss’ famous blue jean fabric was not simply being woven for the 12,000,000 souls in the U.S. military, but also the civilian war-workers who donned jean overalls and found them ideal for the heavy, industrial labor that they faced each day.

As if this wasn’t enough to keep the factories of Levi Strauss & Co. humming happily, the American teenagers also discovered blue jeans in the around the same time and have been devoted to them ever since. The author of this article could never have known that the social revolution that made the name Levi a household word all across the globe was only nine years away.

Read About the History of the T-Shirt

An article about 1940s denim can be read here…

Shoes for Sport and Leisure
(Sears and Roebuck Catalog, 1919)

The miracle that was Volcanized Rubber allowed the well-dressed man to maintain his dashing profile even when called to compete in athletics. Two of the oldest surviving examples of a sport shoe that uses this particular style of rubber and has been in continuous production since the twenties and thirties are both made by Converse: one is the Jack Purcell tennis shoe and the other is the black canvas, high-top Chuck Taylor Basketball shoe.

From the Smartest Shops…
(Vanity Fair Magazine, 1922)

This 1922 men’s fashion article is illustrated with seven images and riddled with wise words for all those seeking information regarding 1920s backless vests, patent leather dancing shoes, madras dress shirts and kid suede gloves for semi-dress wear.

Clothing for Fox Hunters and Wall Streeters
(Vanity Fair Magazine, 1921)

A glance at the 1921 wardrobe enjoyed by those fashionable fellows who were part and parcel of that Wall Street clique who might today be called the one percent.

The reviewer also devoted some column space to classic fox hunting attire and Chesterfield overcoats,hunting tweeds,wing collars and men’s suit from the early Twenties.

Man at His Best: The Raccoon Coat
(Magazine Advertisement, 1921)

Here is a perfectly charming fashion illustration of a young man wearing a raccoon coat while abusing a tobacco product; this class of man was also prone to sitting on top of flag poles, concealing flasks and dancing the Charleston.

Click here to read about the 1956 college revival of the raccoon coat.

The Ascot
(A Fashion Manual, 1906)

Illustrated herein are the five necessary steps needed to tie the perfect ascot knot.

Up until 1974, it was believed by many of the old salts in fashion history circles that the earliest surviving example of men wearing neck-cloths could be found on Trajan’s column (113 A.D.); but then the Terracotta Army (221 B.C.) was unearthed in China which altered much of the thinking as to how old tied neck cloths actually are. Our era is one in which the future of the tie is unknown, but the attached file dates from 1906 which serve to illustrate for the average Joe, how best to tie an ascot.

THE RETURN OF THE RACCOON COAT
(Gentry Magazine, 1956)

Fads like ukulele strumming and flagpole sitting have not been seen on college campi since the 1920s – but the undergraduates in 1956 did adopt one fashion element from the Twenties – their father’s raccoon coats.

Click here to read about the Ivy League look for 1953.

THE RETURN OF THE RACCOON COAT
(Gentry Magazine, 1956)

Click here to read about the Ivy League look for 1953.

THE RETURN OF THE RACCOON COAT
(Gentry Magazine, 1956)

Click here to read about the Ivy League look for 1953.

Sensible Rules for Men’s Evening Clothes
(Vanity Fair Magazine, 1913)

This is a well-illustrated article in which the fashion journalist recalled a dinner party where the men in attendance were knowledgeable on which forks to use but cared little about the proper etiquette tailoring, shoes and jewelry required as dinner guests

History of the Necktie in America
(Men’s Wear, 1950)

This illustrated column points out a number of interesting historic facts about ties in America; most notably that up until 1865 the preferred form of neck wear in the U.S. was a pre-tied bow that fastened in the back. In the 1920s the United States became the premiere manufacturer of men’s neckties – a record that was comfortably held for some time afterword.

Click here to read about the fabric restrictions imposed on
the American fashion world during the Second World war.