Figure 1.--Here we see children playing in their backyard during the summer (August 1957). The girls are wearing romper suits. One boy is wearing short pants or perhaps a bathing suit. The other boy is wearing jeans. |
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Rompers im America seem to have largely acquired the image of a girls' style by the 1950s. For the most pasrt, boys except for infants no longer wore rompers. We see play suits for pre-school boys, but thyu were done with shirt or long opntsm no longer with romper puffed bloomer pants. The roper pnts we see were almost all for girls. This is very clear in the mil order catlogs with illustrations for the vaious garments. Play suits for the younger children were often grouoed together with illistrations for the boys and girls. The rompers for girls were done in different patterns and colors and a variety of top designs. They were done in sizes for primary (elementary) school girls. Sleeveless tops seemed popular as this was a summer play style. We also note high schools wih romper gym uniforms. The girls in many schools began weating short pants, but romper suits were maintained at some school. They were a far cry from the volunimous pre-War romper gym suits. The long stockings were gone and the rompers were cut quite short. We no longer seen middy blouses and bloomers. Rather we see one-pice romper gym suits. Girls commonly wore these romper suit style gym uniform asin the 1950s. The gym rompers as far as we know were all one color suits. Some ewere done in school colors. the ones at my high school were blue. This varied from school to school. More conservative school districts tend to have the romper gym suits. By the end of the decade short pants were becoming more common for girls gym suits. Girls also wore romper suits as casual wear and swim suits. We see romper suits becoming popular for girls play wear. While romper gym suits would for the most part disappear in the early-60s, romper playsuits for girls would continue popular for some time.
Rompers im America seem to have largely acquired the image of a girls' style by the 1950s. For the most pasrt, boys except for infants no longer wore rompers. This is important because boys general don't like dressing like girls.
We see play suits for pre-school boys, but theu were done with short or long pants, commonly on a seasonal bais, and no longer with romper puffed bloomer pants. The romper pants we see were almost all for girls. This is very clear in the mail order catlogs wand sewing ptterns with illustrations for the vaious garments. The catlogs are a littkle more useful as they are udually precisely dated, while the sewing patterns are not. Play suits for the younger chilkren were often grouped together with illustrations for the boys and girls. Bloomer pants rompers are clerly a style for girls. The boys plaus suits are done as short opnts, often bib-front or by the end of the decade, shortall styles for the younger boys.
The rompers for girls and done in different patterns and colors and a variety of top designs.
Girl rompers were done in sizes for primary (elementary) school girls.
Sleeveless tops seemed popular as this was a summer play style. The girls here are a good exmple (figue 1).
We also note high schools wih romper gym uniforms. The girls in many schools began weating short pants, but romper suits were maintained at some school. They were a far cry from the volunimous pre-War romper gym suits. The long stockings were gone and the rompers were cut quite short. We no longer seen middy blouses and bloomers. Rather we see one-pice romper gym suits. Girls commonly wore these romper suit style gym uniform asin the 1950s. The gym rompers as far as we know were all one color suits. Some ewere done in school colors. the ones at my high school were blue. This varied from school to school. More conservative school districts tend to have the romper gym suits. By the end of the decade short pants were becoming more common for girls gym suits. Girls also wore romper suits as casual wear and swim suits. We see romper suits becoming popular for girls play wear. While romper gym suits would for the most part disappear in the early-60s, romper playsuits for girls would continue popular for some time.
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