The New 'It' Era

On the high fashion runways of the last couple of seasons it has been all about the 1980's. Now the 1940's is being heralded as the decade dujour. Both the 1980's and the 1940's were heavy on dramatic shoulders but where the 80's was often flamboyant, the 1940's was subtly sophisticated.

The September issue of US Vogue has a great shoot, styled by the uber talented Grace Coddington, that celebrates the 1940's and highlights the designs that will no doubt be knocked off and mounted in many a shopping mall window display soon.


Karen Elson looks very Joan Crawford here and utterly gorgeous.

These Balenciaga floral frocks are both a little bit 1940's and a little bit 1980's. Prints are definitely the business at the moment, and how did we survive before booties were in vogue?

It is quite fitting that model Karen Elson was chosen for this shoot as she is a big vintage fan, often seen out and about in unique pieces. She even co-owns a vintage store in Nashville, Venus & Mars.

For inspiration on how to wear genuine 1940's fashion, Fleur de Guerre is a UK model, event-planner and all round 1940's style obsessive and her blog, Diary of a Vintage Girl, is seriously worth checking out.