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depicts the Comtesse d'Haussonville, wearing a dress.]] In . {Link without Title} At its simplest, a skirt can be a Draped Garment made out of a single piece of material (such as Sarong s or Pareo s), but most skirts are fitted to the body at the waist and fuller below, with the fullness introduced by means of Darts , gores, Pleat s, or panels. Modern skirts and dresses are usually made of light to mid-weight Fabric s, such as Denim , jersey, worsted, or poplin. Skirts and dresses of thin or clingy fabrics are worn with Slip s to make the material of the skirt drape better. The Hemline of skirts and dresses can be as high as the upper Thigh or as low as the ground, depending on the whims of Fashion and the Modesty or personal taste of the wearer. Some medieval upper-class women wore skirts over 3 metres in diameter at the bottom. At the other extreme, the Miniskirt s of the 1960 s were minimal garments that may barely cover the underwear when seated. DRESSES AND SKIRTS IN THE 19TH CENTURY During the Nineteenth Century , the cut of women's dresses in western culture varied more widely than in any other century. Waistlines started just below the bust (the Empire Silhouette ) and gradually sank to the natural waist. Skirts started fairly narrow and increased dramatically to the Hoopskirt and Crinoline -supported styles of the 1860s ; then fullness was draped and drawn to the back by means of Bustle s. Dresses were generally one-piece garments from 1800 through the 1840s ; after that it became common for a dress to be made as a separate skirt and bodice, and many dresses had a "day" bodice with a high Neckline and long sleeves, and an "evening" bodice with a low neckline ( Decollete ) and very short sleeves. Throughout this period, the length of fashionable dresses varied only slightly, between ankle-length and floor-sweeping. See also : Victorian Fashion , Artistic Dress Movement , Victorian Dress Reform . DRESSES AND SKIRTS IN THE 20TH AND 21ST CENTURIES .]] Beginning around 1915 , hemlines for daytime dresses left the floor for good. For the next fifty years, fashionable skirts became short ( 1920s ), then long ( 1930s ), then shorter ( The War Years with their restrictions on fabric), then long (the New Look ), then shortest of all during the 1960s , when skirts became as short as possible while avoiding exposure of Underwear , which is considered Taboo . Since the 1970s and the rise of Pants as an option for all but the most formal of occasions, no one skirt length has dominated fashion for long, with short and ankle-length styles often appearing side-by-side in fashion magazines and catalogs. Styles of dresses and skirts of the Twentieth and Twenty-first Centuries include: Dresses Basic shapes:
Fads and fashions:
Skirts Basic shapes:
Fads and fashions:
HOW SKIRTS AND DRESSES ARE WORN TODAY In Europe and America skirts and dresses can be worn by females of all ages when they are not wearing Pants . A skirt may be worn as part of a Suit . Skirts or dresses are the garments of choice for many women in formal situations, such as Wedding s and Geopolitical Summit s. In cold climates, girls and women may wear trousers or Long Underwear for warmth and/or modesty, with a skirt or dress on top to mark their femininity or other reasons (for instance, since they happen to be "in-fashion" at the time). In traditional societies, such as in many countries in Africa , the Middle East and Central and South America , it is considered inappropriate for girls and women to wear trousers rather than a skirt or dress. A disadvantage of skirts and dresses that contributes to many girls and women preferring trousers and Shorts is that they may be either too long and therefore limit freedom of movement such as when climbing ladders, or too short, in which case one, because of Modesty will need to take the trouble when sitting down, such as crossing legs, to avoid exposure of the Underwear . Dresses however can be cooler and less confining than many trouser styles, and they are still very popular for special occasions such as Prom s or Wedding s. MEN IN SKIRTS Skirts, dresses, and their like are still considered primarily women's garments in many parts of the world, and the wearing of them by men is sometimes considered Cross-dressing . Exceptions include:
There are two recent movements to legitimize the wearing of unbifurcated garments by men in Western society. One is an effort by companies such as Utilikilt to sell and promote a line of "masculine" unbifurcated garments. They are called kilts, but have several differences from the traditional Scottish kilt. The other is an effort by certain fashion houses such as in New York City . {Link without Title} UNDERWEAR Skirts and dresses are, like other outer clothing, usually worn with Underwear . Wearing no underwear may have a sexual connotation, playing with the boundaries of Modesty , motivated by mild Exhibitionism . Also, often the Kilt is worn without underwear; the uniforms of several Scottish military regiments mandate wearing no underwear with the kilt except at specified occasions. SEE ALSO REFERENCES Oxford English Dictionary Brockmamn, Helen L.: ''The Theory of Fashion Design'', Wiley, 1965. Picken, Mary Brooks: ''The Fashion Dictionary'', Funk and Wagnalls, 1957. (1973 edition ISBN 0308100522) Tozer, Jane, and Sarah Levitt: ''Fabric of Society: A Century of People and Their Clothes 1770-1870'', Laura Ashley Ltd., 1983; ISBN 0950891304 EXTERNAL LINKS
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