The women of Mad Men have two distinct styles. The career women tend to wear tight pencil skirts, fitted sweaters, and sheath dresses, which more than likely are worn to attract attention from the men in the office. The suburban housewives wear motherly pouf – style dresses in public. The men wore slim suits, slim – fitting white shirts, skinny ties, and pocket squares.
Image credits: Dolce & Gabbana Fall '08 from Style.com
Image credit: http://bbright.blogspot.com/2010_11_01_archive.html
Both Mr. Som and Michael Kors have based runway collection on Mad Men. Michael Kors said, “The wardrobes are exquisite and the attention to detail is beyond forensic.” It is surprising how the style of the 1960’s is coming back into fashion. The love of Mad Men fashion has trickled down from high - end fashion lines to stores where the average American would shop. Banana Republic had Mad Men themed displays for its stores and even offered a lucky fan a walk on role on the show. Mad Men has revolutionized how we look at 60’s fashion. It has brought the look of the 60s back to the forefront of fashion. There is evidence of 60’s fashion everywhere you look. In magazines, runway shows, and billboards. Tory Burch and her design team have utilized Mad Men for inspiration for her highly popular silk tunics, dresses, and other products. It was a huge surprise to Mad Men’s costume designer, Ms. Bryant that the show’s fashion would take off like it has. I may just go out and buy myself some Mad Men inspired clothes.
Citation: Smith, Ray A. "A Style-Setting Show." The Wall Street Journal. 7 Aug. 2009. Web. 13 Feb. 2011.
Besides noticing how different some of the clothing on Mad Men are to modern clothing, many people probably do not pay much attention to the costume designs on the show. As you pointed out, it is very interesting to see how each character is dressed and how that helps define their role within the show. One thing you didn't mention, that I think is interesting, is how they dress Helen Bishop much differently than the wives on the show who are not divorced. She is almost always shown wearing pants and never seen in the extravagant dresses the other wives wear. Ultimately, it is a huge compliment to the costume designers on the show that there are so many famous contemporary designers who say that they look to the show for fashion inspiration. The striking similarity between current runway trends and the 1960’s style is quite evident in the picture of Betty's outfit compared to the runway model.
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