The history of the ladies blouse

Past and modern trends of a wardrobe essential

Coco Chanel once said that ‘Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening’.

At Salamander we like to inspire our customers by sharing our knowledge and love for fashion, which is reflected in the design and manufacture of our shirts. Fashion continues to find inspiration in past trends and yet it is constantly undergoing radical changes. Here we outline some of the main trends in the ‘history of blouses’ and link these to contemporary trends.

In the early days, a blouse was mainly worn by workmen, peasants, artists, women or children. The blouse was in a loose design and gathered at the waist by a waistband or belt. Today, the term usually relates to a woman’s shirt, providing that its style is loose.Until 1890 blouses were seen as rather unfashionable. 

From practical workwear to evening chic

After the 1890s a blouse became a part of the normal working women’s outfit as practical informal wear. The standard dress code for women employed in an office was a plain skirt with a simple blouse. Blouses ornamented with lace or embroidery, known as ‘lingerie blouses’, were becoming extremely chic between 1900 and 1910. The ‘Gibson girl blouse’, which was designed with tucks and pleats, was very fashionable.

The blouse became a daytime and informal evening staple. With the popularity of blouses growing, not every occasion required women to wear a dress – a combination of skirt and blouse was already popular. It was comfortable and easy to wear, allowing a woman to create different outfits by matching together various colours and styles.

Well-cut simplicity

The blouses mostly had long sleeves with cuffs at the wrists, but you also had 3/4 sleeves, bell shaped or short sleeves. The silk jumper blouse and the low-cut V-neck shirt were very fashionable in the 1920s. The jumper blouse was made of silk or cotton and had a sailor collar, usually accessorised with a belt or a sash, falling to just below the hips. The 20s fashion gave us knitted long sleeve shirt with rounded collars, tank blouses, silk jumper blouses and low-cut V-neck shirts. However, the decade’s trend in blouses was more about simplicity compared to the explosion of colours that would follow.

Art Deco inspiration

Shortly after the 1920s there was a significant change in fashion. The Art Deco era influenced everything from interior design to clothes. The style of blouses changed from plain to extremely colourful, incorporating various geometrical prints and designs with embroidery. 

Silk Blouses made from crepe-de-chine that came in different shades of colours became more fashionable. The delicate fabrics embroidered with beautiful beadwork and lace collars added visual impact and femininity. Fascinating changes also took place with collar designs. Blouses had huge collars in the 1930s, which eventually diminished in size by the 1950s.

The blouse gets trendy

The 70s made space for more synthetic fabrics such as polyester, which was also used for the design of wide blouse collars such as the sausage dog collar or rounded collar.

The 80s trend was about thin and shiny synthetic fabrics, such as the federal collar and concealed-button fly. The double cuffs, wide pointed collar or belt around the waist are 70s or 80s trends that are still seen today. Designs with folk, Egyptian or Far East art added intricate detail as did crochet work.

High quality blouse design from Salamander

At Salamander we have specialise in exclusive blouse designs in high quality, natural fabrics . 

Whilst our designs mirror contemporary trends,  we find inspiration in the past. If you are inspired to explore our designs inspired by the past,  please see part of our vintage collection here

Blending the elegant past with contemporary style

Salamander Shirts take inspiration from the past and carefully blend it with the latest contemporary fashions giving a unique and stylish range to choose from.  Always in easy-to-wear styles ours is a unique and distinctive collection. We have learnt during the years of designing and manufacturing blouses that a beautiful and elegant blouse is a perfect basis for stylish dressing.