35 Elegant Photos of the ’50s Women in Their Dresses

The 1950s were a time when fashion exploded into new directions, new colors, and new silhouettes.

During the 1950s, women wore dresses like we wear t-shirts and jeans today. A vintage 1950s dress was a closet staple and came in a wide variety of colors and two primary silhouettes.

Shoulders were narrow and soft. The waist had to be tiny and pulled in — a “wasp” waist. A tight bodice came to the natural waist or slightly higher, where the skirt took over.

The skirt is where the two silhouettes of the 1950s emerged. The full swing skirt and the tight pencil skirt. They were complete opposites but both were worn equally by women in the 1950s.

These elegant photos captured portraits of women in their dresses from the 1950s.