1900–09 in fashion

Fashion in the period 1900–1909 in the Western world continued the long elegant lines of the 1890s. Tall, stiff collars characterize the period, as do women's broad hats and full "Gibson Girl" hairstyles. A new, columnar silhouette introduced by the couturiers of Paris late in the decade signaled the approaching abandonment of the corset as an indispensable garment.

With the decline of the bustle, sleeves began to increase in size and the 1830s silhouette of an hourglass shape became popular again. The fashionable silhouette in the early 20th century was that of a confident woman, with full low chest and curvy hips. The "health corset" of this period removed pressure from the abdomen and created an S-curve silhouette.

In 1897, the silhouette slimmed and elongated by a considerable amount. Blouses and dresses were full in front and puffed into a "pigeon breast" shape of the early 20th century that looked over the narrow waist, which sloped from back to front and was often accented with a sash or belt. Necklines were supported by very high boned collars.

Skirts brushed the floor, often with a train, even for day dresses, in mid-decade. The fashion houses of Paris began to show a new silhouette, with a thicker waist, flatter bust, and narrower hips. By the end of the decade the most fashionable skirts cleared the floor and approached the ankle. The overall silhouette narrowed and straightened, beginning a trend that would continue into the years leading up to the Great War.

An early 1910 survey of wealthy high school senior students at a private New York City girls' school found that each spent an average of $556 ($14,291 today) annually for clothing excluding undergarments, and would have spent four times that amount with an unlimited budget.

Women moving out of the Victorian era and into the Edwardian era were starting to dress for a more active lifestyle. The evolving times brought a new fashion trend known as the “New Woman”. Active lives required less constricting clothing and required simpler and more streamlined clothing. The new woman was highly encouraged by women’s suffrage. Women that identified with this fashion movement were the type of women that were beginning to venture out of the domestic circle that they were told to maintain and beginning to pursue higher education, office jobs, and participating in active outdoor sports. The new and improved fashions allowed for women to swing a tennis racket, whack a golf ball, but the ideas of “proper” feminine attire reduced the progress of more practical sportswear.

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