See my vest! More on wartime underwear
Further to my recent speculations about what went on under British women’s clothes during the 1940s, I came upon this enlightening entry in Private Battles. Pam Ashford, starchy Scottish spinster, writes disapprovingly of a colleague:
Dorothy Lamberton is ill with a chill caused it is said by wearing no vest. Comment on Dorothy has been galore. To my surprise I learned that this last winter [1944-45] many people have been wearing two pairs of knickers and two vests as the only way of counteracting the thinness of underclothing now being sold… Oh, these French knickers… they should engrave a pair on [government rationing head] Hugh Dalton’s tombstone, or rather on the tombstones of all the people who blame Hugh Dalton for illness caused by draughts up their legs. The manufacturers just won’t put elastic around the knees.
That Dorothy. What a hussy.
Obviously, wearing plenty of underwear was a more commonly accepted fortification against the British climate in those days than it is now — I wear thermal underwear of one sort or another for most of the winter, but I’m definitely in the minority. That’s a little strange, because until recently, the vest played a significant role in Britishness. A sober, insulating mid-layer worn for “health” rather than aesthetic reasons, it represented prudence, hygiene and respectability.
So invaluable was the vest considered that the folk saying “Cast ne’er a clout till May be out” (trans.: “Don’t take off any clothes until you’re REALLY sure winter is over”) is still interpreted to refer to vests specifically. To wander around without a vest was to court illness, even sin — hence the office gossip about Dorothy. British audiences in 1934 probably got an extra frisson of taboo from watching Clark Gable’s bare torso emerging from a shirt in It Happened One Night.
So what was a vest? It’ s what Americans call an undershirt on Don Draper or a wife-beater on this guy. Men wore cotton or wool vests (also known as singlets) or string vests under their shirts; women wore long, close-fitting thermal vests, presumably over bra, panties and girdle (and under slip?). All the 1940s vests I’ve seen referred to by that name are wool knit:
Bestway vest pattern, for sale at Sew Retro UK
Old-skool vests and other sensible underwear are still available to buy at British clothing shops serving older people, like Woods of Morecambe, but have otherwise nearly vanished from the modern radar, to be replaced by… nothing. This is understandable — the vest probably wasn’t considered sexy even back in the day — but kind of foolish, as despite the introduction of central heating, the British climate hasn’t changed much since the days of poor Dorothy Lamberton. Winter still demands plenty of insulation, especially under a skirt. The most London women can do is put on a pair of synthetic tights. Whoopty-do. That won’t make your filmy cotton blouse any warmer.
I for one would appreciate some draught-excluding knickers on a day like today. I’m wearing a skirt and stockings, and my keister is freezing.
I have a few thin wool jumpers from Uniqlo which were badly stored and are now horribly motheaten
However! They make really awesome vests (particularly the short-sleeved purple one I have on today) provided they, or at least the holey bits, are covered by what I’m wearing over the top. Today I have the purple one under a flowery short-sleeved cotton blouse bought at the tail end of the summer (i.e. about two days before it got ARCTIC) and can thus be stealthily warm.
ha! I started humming the Simpsons song before I even read the rest of the post.
I love that book! (Private Battles). Make sure you read all three. I’m sure there’s an enlightening bit in one of them where Pam Ashford talks about how she thriftily made lots of pairs of knickers out of left-over black-out material.
Have you read ‘Period Piece’ by Gwen Raverat? It’s way before the second world war (it’s about her Victorian childhood), but there’s a hilarious description of the huge amounts of clothing that women used to wear. Gwen shares a room one night with a very proper young lady, and in the morning she peeks from below the covers in order to record the layers and layers of underwear and clothing that the girl puts on. It’s something like three combinations, drawers, two vests, two petticoats, a skirt, a blouse, a collar, etc etc.
I love Period Piece! I’ve quoted that exact inventory of underwear before — see my post here:
http://cargocultcraft.com/2008/09/25/cowboy-dirndl/
Oops sorry, I knew I’d read it on someone’s blog before! Should have checked more thoroughly. It’s such an awesome book
I wonder how everyone in the British isles has come to dress as if they lived in the Carribean all year round. How did the tradition of the vest and warm knickers disappear? Strange…
Try Cuddle Duds http://www.cuddlduds.com. Or silk long underwear. Both work well under office wear. Waiting for Spring…..Riva
It’s definitely cold here!! I always wear thermals during winter….but now I really want a vest
This is great. I think about 2 years ago I discovered the ‘vest’ and I thought I had adopted something completely outdated and ridiculous (specifically the wool kind with the eyelet pattern and ribbed waist-love it!). All with whom I had shared my discovery of and elation regarding a wool (yikes! to most, awesome to me) camisole thought me crazy. I pretty much do a whole suit of thick wool tights (Sternlein, highly recommended) paired with a sleeveless or sometimes long sleeved wool ‘vest’. I am probably in the contemporary minority when I say I love wearing wool against my skin.
Anyway, I’m so glad to hear that this is just a normal thing in the UK. In fact, up until now, I assumed you could not get these things anywhere and have only a collection culled from various thrift stores. I had never thought to just look for them, I’ll have to get on that. Oh to find a lot of deadstock ladies wool vests…
…made of real gorilla chest?
Oh, duh, it’s linked at the bottom of the post.
I’m in Denmark (winter temps usually -2-+2 C, give or take wind chill, but this winter has been waaaay colder). This winter I’ve had great success wearing wool tights, or regular tights (black) over my long underwear + socks (also black). I tell myself that the black, opaque, woolly look is very Edwardian. I’ve managed to stand around train stations in -8C in a skirt without getting cold legs.
I love information like this! Thanks so much, I adore your blog.
Well, I’m in the USA, but it gets PLENTY cold here, even below zero and I wear what are known as leggings here. Longer (though I cut them skirt length) close fitting knit pants that have been popular in decades past to wear under long tunic length sweaters ( I think the Brits call them jumpers?). If I am very cold I cut a thin skirt of cotton on the same pattern as my outer skirt, and use elastic or a waistband as desired. ( I’m not a fan of six layers of elastic at once to I’m careful not to wear to many garments that use it at once. this skirt is worn under my skirt and over my leggings/knickers. I don’t put elastic in the legs of my leggings since they are knit and close fitting, but I can keep my house at around 60-70 depending on the wind outside and still feel comfortable. Now I want to know where to find Long wide leg knee high socks that aren’t thick to wear with all this. LOL Kitty