Investigating work wear and tailoring
Within men's fashion comes the ideal of power and presence. Within power and presence comes the desire to show superiority and stance. Looking back historically, men have for years asserted their authority through their dress, yet when we think of men's work wear, uniforms comes to mind. Depending on the jobs men carried out throughout history, there has always remained a set appearance for each role. European history shows men wearing canvas uniforms while serving in the Military, while American men developed denim to make protective and comfortable work wear for agriculture and industrial jobs. Over the years men's fashion has evolved to fit the current lifestyle, yet the materials and work wear silhouettes have remained prominent today. The history of uniforms and men's work wear is an elaborate global map defined by material, location, class, and fashion as a form of identification. Looking deeper into the closet of menswear we can see the influences that have made their way to the high street.
We’ve placed ourselves in uniform for thousands of years; the oldest form of working garments being made of animal skins worn by shepherds. This slowly transitioned into protective garments made during the industrial revolution. Over the years, work wear has evolved along with the changing needs of the tasks at hand. Starting as early as the 1500s and moving into the late 1700s with the Industrial Revolution, modern work wear began to reflect the move toward trades and industries that were developing in towns and cities.
Looking at the classic tailored suit, you can see the similarity between modern dress alongside a historical look into butlers and servants. While a tailored suit has a clean and crisp appearance, the uniform serves as a social statement of class and wealth, as well as a definition of power. Sharp tailored suits handmade in London from Savile Row, the street in Mayfair in which tailoring services developed drastically in order to meet the needs of the rich business men coming to buy their ideal suit. Bespoke tailor, Gieves and Hawkes has remained local to the Mayfair area for the past 200 years, for both its precision tailoring, and creation of Military uniforms. Gieves and Hawkes today holds a deep history for not only Savile Row, but British history in Men's Tailoring. “Britain has a history of bespoke. Also English style tends to be a little stricter - the silhouettes are a little more structured, the shoulders are a little bit more pronounced, the cut of the jackets are a little less forgiving - but there is something nice about that architecture and now it looks quite modern to me.” States Gieves & Hawkes Creative Director Jason Basmajian in an interview with men's magazine GQ. Savile Row became the place to buy a suit from, due to the care and intricacy that came from the skilled talents of cutting, sewing, measuring, and stitching. Although not all men today can afford or need a perfect tailored suit from Savile Row, the area is known today for the deep history of men's tailoring and suits, in which it carries the traditional form of men’s uniform still today.
Before the 1600s, hunting and agricultural jobs were the most common occupations. These jobs required garments that protected the skin from the hard work outside. Over the years the jobs became harder and more dangerous to humans, especially with the growth of the Industrial Age in the UK. Jobs for men consisted of mining, manufacturing, and the army. With these strenuous jobs came the development of materials made for clothing. The development of Denim has held a prominent place throughout both fashion, and work wear history. As early as the 17th century, denim has been used as the main fabric for upholstery, clothing, and as the material itself, due to the durability, and hard wear. The rapid increase in desire for denim over the years brought the material into light across the world. Denim served as the standard American work wear, creating jumpsuits, trousers, and jackets made from the strong and protective material. Today we use denim without thinking deep into the history. We wear denim throughout our day to day lives today, without thinking too much into the history and purpose. While the fabric today may be deemed functional and practical, the historical intention of the fabric differed greatly.
The year is 2017, where men's fashion has changed significantly, while simultaneously holding onto its past. Historically, menswear used to work as a summary of occupation, education and wealth. While this today is still somewhat a true reflection, large amounts of men's fashion has been adapted from these historical concepts into a different, less practical meaning. Men today, focusing on a young, and fashionable demographic have touched influence in their style from those created for the purpose of work wear in history. Easily accessible stores, luxury brands, and high street retailer have recently brought aspects of canvas boiler suits, denim overalls, and wool trousers, into their men's collections, in order to reach a wider demographic with the trends of today. Savile Row suits today show a sign of class, power and English Heritage, while fabrics like denim and canvas have recurred today throughout trends.
