Quarter Life

Image via the New York Public Library

The peplum resurrection looks like it’s going to last much longer than its reappearance in the spring/summer 2012 collections. But forget the horrors of the 80s—this fashion feature has a long history beyond that very bedazzled decade.

The 1880s

Image via Wikipedia. Circa 1883, Paris.

To understand the peplum in the 19th Century, one must first understand the extensive undergarments of the time. Skirts featured several layers of fabric and could be quite bulky—and that’s before you add in the Gone With the Wind-style hoop skirts that must have felt like wearing a barrel under your dress.

Dresses could easily be designed to accommodate wide skirts and underpinnings, but what if you wanted to wear a jacket or coat on top of such a voluminous garment? Peplum (the word goes back to Greek and Latin words for tunic or robe) provided an answer; by adding a panel of fabric, a tiny waist could still be featured. Peplum allowed for both comfort at the waist and also a more pronounced hourglass figure.

As the new century began, silhouettes became more narrow until the height of androgynous fashion: the 1920s.

The 1930s

As the boyish, straight looks of the 1920s waned into the 30s, peplum started to appear again. But in the United States, the Great Depression was raging and women were buying fewer new garments. The New York Public Library has an extensive collection of sketches from Andrè Studios, many of which include peplum (including the image at the top of this post). But in the United States, these beautiful designs were probably only worn by the very wealthy. I highly recommend the NYPL collection—it’s an amazing fashion time capsule, and it’s free!

The 1940s

Image via Wikipedia

Just when the Great Depression was easing off, World War II started. It wasn’t exactly a great time for fashion, as most resources were directed elsewhere. Everyone was obligated to help the war effort in their respective nation, and in the U.S., the second half of the war included a ration on shoes. (Imagine today if the government put limits on how many pairs of shoes we could each buy?) In France—where most of the top designers worked—there were strict restrictions on clothing. Not only was each person issued clothing purchase ration stamps, but manufacturers could not use more than a certain amount of fabric for each type of garment it made. You could draw peplum all day (using both sides of the paper and the backs of envelopes, I guess), but you couldn’t actually produce it for fear of being seen as wasteful in a time of international crisis.

When Dior’s “New Look” exploded in 1947, it was full of circle skirts and peplum. The collection drew criticism at first for its fabric greediness, but before long, the public warmed up. After all, post WWII and the baby boom was a time of excess, most of all here in the U.S. The ensemble below is the iconic image from the New Look:

Image via the Victoria and Albert Museum

The 1980s

In the late ’50s and early ’60s, clothing slimmed down again to fit development of the “mod” style (and culture). Not to mention, pants were totally in—women’s fashion culture was changing rapidly.

And then in the ’80s, someone thought this was a good idea:

Image via Etsy seller weezieduzzit

This was not a proper tribute to 1940s fashion. Peplum in the 1980s could only be considered a tribute to synthetics. I don’t even know who or what to blame, here. The recession? The Cold War? Your guess is as good as mine.

Today

Image via The Backseat Stylers

Peplum is back, but this time it’s a blend of 1940s and 1980s fashion. Garments with peplum tend to reflect to the more snug lines of the 80s, while still often evoking the proper, feminine style of the 1940s.

Peplum in separates is back, too—sort of like that jacket we just looked at from the 1880s. You see it in blouses, coats, and blazers as often as you see it on a dress. It’s a part of casual dress as much as it’s a part of evening gowns (Oscars 2012, anyone?).

The bottom line? Whether you’re trying to look like a Christian Dior model, Jessie Spano, or something in-between, peplum can help you make it happen. Enjoy it as we revisit the style in the 20-teens…or whatever we’re calling them.