The Language of Fashion - 1939 Fashion Dictionary

The Language of Fashion is an exhaustive dictionary of fashion terms, published in 1939. It contains instructions for pronunciation, brief explanations, and lists of synonyms for thousands of fabrics, styles and accessories.

Lace identification guide and illustrations, and I – Lambskin

Wow. It amazes me how many different kinds of lace there are, and this fashion dictionary goes thru the pains to illustrate and describe some pretty obscure types! I hope that this is helpful for modern lace identification on vintage clothing and miscellany.

Types of heels to Hug Me Tights – Fashion Dictionary Scans

Here are more pages from The Language of Fashion dictionary. Of most interest to me was the illustrated and defined types of heels. In 1938, it looks like what I think of as a “stiletto” was called a Spanish Heel. I hope it helps with your identification of vintage and modern shoes!

Different types of hats, illustrated and defined.

Among other things, these next 10 pages define and illustrate the different types of mens and womens hats. Special emphasis seems to have been placed on the types of hats that were fashionable for women in 1938 (including the halo, mushroom, skimmer, profile, sailor, Chou, cartwheel, and bumper brim hat styles).

Different types of fancy dress and other pages from the Language of Fashion

Here are 12 more scans from The Language of Fashion, a fashion dictionary published in 1939. I found the “different types of fancy dress” most interesting in these pages, and funny that it includes a Disney drawing of a dwarf (from Snow White) to illustrate and define a Dwarf Costume.

Décolletage, dots, Types of dresses, and other fashion definitions

These pages contain many useful fashion terms and definitions! Illustrated is a directoire costume, Dolly Verde Costume (1870), different types of dots (differentiating between those applied chemically, woven, or embroidered), and more.

Twill Weave to Yarns

Twill Weave to Yarns

This entry is part 2 of 21 in the series The Language of Fashion - 1939 Fashion Dictionary

Almost at the end of this fashion dictionary! I’m a bit relieved but also a little sad. I’ve learned SO much about vintage clothing identification and fashion terminology, but this is one of the most boring things ever to scan, because it’s like… reading and scanning a dictionary 😛 When I finish with this self imposed project, feel free to call me a total weirdo.

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timeline of Historical Fashion silhouettes thru the ages – Types of Satin continued

timeline of Historical Fashion silhouettes thru the ages – Types of Satin continued

This entry is part 5 of 21 in the series The Language of Fashion - 1939 Fashion Dictionary

I find this fashion dictionary’s timeline of silhouettes thru the ages to be interesting, because people in certain eras interpret describe history differently than at other times. History is subjective, to a degree, if only because of the process of curating and deciding what to include or exclude in a synopsis. It’s interesting to see what a fashion expert writing this dictionary thought was important, and the descriptions they used, as compared to more modern historical perspectives.

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Nets thru Robe de Style, and information about Rayon

Nets thru Robe de Style, and information about Rayon

This entry is part 7 of 21 in the series The Language of Fashion - 1939 Fashion Dictionary

As I’m recovering from my wonderful New Years celebrations last night… I’m posting 18 more scans from the 1938 fashion dictionary, The Language of Fashion. These pages cover nets (continued) to Robe de Style, with several informative pages between, including a lengthy and informative page about Rayon. Did you know that (in 1938) there are four different processes for making Rayon …

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Different types of Coats illustrated – from The Language of Fashion

Different types of Coats illustrated – from The Language of Fashion

This entry is part 15 of 21 in the series The Language of Fashion - 1939 Fashion Dictionary

Different types of coats, illustrated and defined. These include the Box Coat of the 1930s, the Blouse coat of the 1920s, coachmens’ coats, 17th century buffcoat, coolie coat, Balmacaan, Duster early 1900s, Raglan coat, Women’s Cutaway Coat, MacFarlane, and more types of coats.

These pages also cover different types of coifs and collars, including the Bertha collar of the 1920s, the Chin Collar of 1916, and the Buster Brown collar.

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