Fashion on the Ration: Style in the Second World War, Profile Books, London, 2015
From the young woman who avoided the dreaded ‘forces bloomers’ by making knickers from military-issue silk maps, to Vogue’s indomitable editor Audrey Withers, who balanced lobbying government on behalf of her readers with driving lorries for the war effort, Julie Summers weaves together stories from ordinary lives and high society to provide a unique picture of life during the Second World War. As a nation went into uniform and women took on traditional male roles, clothing and beauty began to reflect changing social attitudes. For the first time, fashion was influenced not only by Hollywood and high society but by the demands of industrial production and the pressing need to ‘make-do-and-mend’. (blurb)
The book of an exhibition (ended 31 August 2015) at the Imperial War Museum, London. Janet Wilson reviews the book for Honest History. A review in the London Telegraph and another from Herald Scotland.