Schiaparelli often used shoulder pads in her structured jackets, an early glimpse into the decades later, when the wartime chic look would dominate fashion. Before that, however, Adrian Adolph Greenburg, widely known by his first name, brought shoulder pads to the silver screen in his designs, broadcasting the strong-shouldered look to a wider audience in the '30s. His relationship with Joan Crawford was especially instrumental in this, as shoulder pads became a defining feature of her signature style.
In the film, Crawford plays a determined woman who, after her husband leaves her, decides to create her own financial success and raise her two daughters on her own. The choice to outfit her in shoulder pads reflects the style's connection to shifting gender roles, which was happening in the real world as women began entering the workforce during World War II. With women taking positions in new professions, they needed a new look to fit in with the male-dominated industries. During this time, the slinky s fashions made way for much more utilitarian, military-inspired styles, providing an opportunity for shoulder pads to become a fashion staple.
The broad-shouldered silhouette created a way for women to assimilate into their male-dominated surroundings. Two decades later, the broad-shouldered look made a comeback in a major way.
Shoulder pads became a defining feature of fashion in the s. From political figures to Hollywood celebrities, everyone was sporting the look. Just like the keystone in an archway, the shoulder locks the other pieces of the coat in place, determining its silhouette and drape. Shoulders come in a dizzying array of varieties and permutations. They can be lightly or heavily padded, soft or structured, straight, concave and even convex.
The construction of the shoulder should also compliment the build of the wearer. A man with square shoulders would do better with less padding than a man with sloping shoulders. A gentleman with a narrow frame and a round midsection may want to extend his shoulder line slightly to create the appearance of a more angular physique. By contrast, someone with an athletic build—a trim torso and broad upper body—may opt for softer, less defined lines for his suit. For individuals in between the extremes, the world is your oyster: there is a time and place for almost every style.
Although roping is more of a feature rather than its own distinct shoulder style, it is still worthy of being mentioned and considered. Roping implies that the sleeve attachment is slightly raised in relation to the shoulder, forming a ridge. The higher it is, the more imposing the shoulder line appears. Although some credit the Italians with the roped shoulder, it is more common on Savile Row jackets and the French Ciffoneli.
In general, roping imparts a more formal look upon its wearer. As the cut of a jacket shoulder is often idiosyncratic to its maker, there is no universally accepted lexicon for the differing styles. We have nevertheless attempted to categorize the different shoulder styles in general terms that can be applied to the majority of coats you will encounter.
While this is perhaps the most common of shoulder styles outside of Italy and England, it has the least accepted nomenclature. This article goes to prove that shoulder pads are back in style and they look nothing like their 80's counterparts.
The obvious brand that comes to mind is Balmain, the king of ultra luxe, tight tailoring, and perfectly padded jackets, but there are certainly more affordable brands that deserve to be acknowledged when there's no room for a Balmain blazer in the budget.
But, if you did want to find a brand new Balmain blazer on sale, there's an award-winning App and website to help you do so. It's called Shop It To Me. Shop It To Me collects info from all of your favorite online retailers Intermix, Saks, Bergdorf Goodman, Shopbop, Farfetch, and many more and then it brings what you check off your sizes, the brands you want to see, etc to your screen, so you can easily shop from many stores at once, comparing, contrasting, whatever.
No need to hop from site to site. Sign-up to browse the latest sales and get a curated list sent to you as often as daily, 1x per week, or never. It's like a personal shopper, but better. So now that you know how we find our Balmain jackets, with their strong shoulder pads that the brand is known for, on sale, know that we also use Shop It To Me to find our other favorite brands on sale, too.
You'll see how amazing it is when you sign-up. This blouse is the equivalent of a power suit, minus the suit.
0コメント