Vintage fashion from the late 1930s

The years between 1900 and 1939 represent an extremely turbulent time in history with two World Wars and the rise of the suffrage movement. These unstable times clearly had an impact on women's fashion.

This was seen in the rise and fall of hemlines, colour palettes and general relaxing of previously constricting clothing.

With the start of World War II in 1939, fashion became less of a concern. On Europeana we found a great collection of fashion drawings made in the late 1930s. We're highlighting some of these colourful sketches below.

Explore the full collection of the Amsterdam Museum in Europeana!

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY. Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY.

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY. Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

Fashion Drawing, 1939. Amsterdam Museum, CC-BY

All images are from the Amsterdam Museum and licensed under a CC-BY licence.