The Old Hollywood Outfits Edit: Five Lessons in Dressing Like the Studio Is Paying

I can spot a bias cut from across a restaurant within approximately three seconds, and I can tell you whether the satin is charmeuse, a crepe or just shiny polyester having a big night. I notice the hem, the seam and the way the skirt keeps moving a beat after the woman stops. I have no shame about this.

 

But somewhere between the red carpet recaps, the black-and-white film clips and the fifty-step glam tutorials, the whole Old Hollywood look has gotten a little loud. We are told to wear the gown, the gloves and the fur, and also to look like we did not try. We are told it is a costume and also a perfectly reasonable Tuesday. My verdict is that it is neither, if you edit.

 

Which brings me to Madeleine Vionnet. The French designer draped fabric on a three-quarter-size mannequin instead of sketching, and the Met says her expanded use of the bias cut took advantage of the elasticity and fluidity the cross-grain cut gave to whole garments, allowing them to flow over and move with the body. Meanwhile Adrian moved from New York to Los Angeles in 1925 to work in film, stayed at MGM until 1941, and the Met notes that his bias-cut silk gowns became Jean Harlow's signature look. One diagonal cut of fabric, and a whole genre of glamour followed.

 

Some of what I found made me want to buy a gown for no reason at all. Some of it made me want to lie down on a chaise and be photographed. And some of it, the shoe and little bag history especially, made me see why this look keeps coming back.

 

So, here are five lessons in Old Hollywood outfits: the cut, the glove, the pearl, the point and the bag.

I used to think the magic was in the satin. It is mostly in the angle. Vionnet's bias cut let a garment flow over the body instead of sitting on it, and Adrian carried that idea to MGM, where it became a signature look for Harlow. Everything in this edit starts there.

 

Picture her coming down a staircase in Victoria Beckham gathered satin gown, nothing on the neckline, all the drama in the fall of the skirt. Sportmax Cilen layered satin and silk bustier gown does the same with more structure on top. Giuliva Heritage Gioia satin maxi in burgundy is the warm option, and Aaron Esh open-back gathered silk-satin halterneck maxi is for a person who wants the back to make the entrance. Sportmax extra darted stretch-satin midi gets a similar give from the fabric itself, which is a fair shortcut for a shorter hem. Taller Marmo Butterfly draped satin gown in army green is the one I would take to a dinner where everyone else wears black.

 

Here is the test. Hold the skirt up to a window, let it fall, and watch whether it hangs in one long unbroken line or breaks into stiff folds. The long line is the Old Hollywood outfits answer.

 

What I would skip: a heavy lining under satin that is supposed to move. It fights the whole idea.

 

Although if the dress is good enough, a stranger will ask where you got it before you reach the coat check.

Gloves and wraps are the fastest way to borrow Old Hollywood glamour without buying a second gown. Vogue notes that Emily Post once held that gloves should only be worn with formalwear, and then adds that the new generation has upended the old rules. I like that both things are written down in the same article.

 

For the glove itself, Agnelle Opéra satin gloves and the Agnelle Opera leather gloves are the two obvious black pairs, one soft and shiny, one matte. Khaite Remo Long leather gloves sit somewhere between the two. Alaïa velvet gloves in chartreuse are the loud cousin, for a black dress that needs one surprise. The wraps do the shoulders. Valentino Garavani feather-trimmed velvet wrap is the dramatic one, The Park Marie cashmere and silk-blend wrap in white is the soft one, and Loro Piana Maria cashmere wrap is the quiet black one. Nour Hammour shearling shawl is a real-animal piece, so choose it by your own comfort. Fur stoles reigned in Hollywood, as Smithsonian puts it, and synthetic piles called Orlon and Dynel arrived in 1948 and 1950, so the fake stole has a history of its own.

 

Here is the test. Put the gloves on, reach for a glass and see whether you can still hold it like a person.

 

What I would skip: gloves and a wrap in the same dramatic texture. Pick one to shine.

 

Although I will admit that opera gloves make everything you say sound slightly more final.

Pearls are the easiest Old Hollywood style signal there is, and the one most people overdo. Chanel is quoted in Vogue as saying that a woman needs ropes and ropes of pearls, and also that costume jewelry is not made to give women an aura of wealth. In 1924 she designed a pair of faux pearl earrings, one white and one black, according to the ASU FIDM Museum. So the pearl was never meant to be solemn.

 

Mateo 14-karat gold pearl necklace and Mikimoto Morning Dew pearl and diamond necklace are the two ways to go if the neckline is open. Loren Stewart Poet pearl and tourmaline earrings and Sophie Bille Brahe Lucia pearl earrings are the drop-earring answer for a higher neckline. Suzanne Kalan diamond earrings, Bottega Veneta Candy Drop earrings, Jennifer Behr Judy crystal earrings and Simone Rocha Floral Drip crystal earrings are for evenings when you want sparkle without the pearl.

 

Here is the test. Stand at a mirror in the dress and cover one hand over the necklace. If the outfit looks better, wear the earrings only.

 

What I would skip: a long pearl rope and a statement drop earring on a plunging neckline. Choose the one that points at your face.

 

Although a single strand with a gown is allowed to be as long as your mood.

Shoes are where the Old Hollywood story gets very precise. The V&A credits Roger Vivier with creating the stiletto and notes that he is the only one of Dior's collaborators permitted a credit on the final design, so his name sat beside Dior's inside every shoe. Vogue is more careful and says it is unclear who invented the stiletto, but it points out that the slender shoe was the right punctuation for the 1950s. I side with the punctuation.

 

The black pumps are the anchor. Jude Fame 105 leather pumps and Gianvito Rossi 95 patent-trimmed pumps are the sharp ones, and the same house's Gianvito 105 suede pumps in beige make the leg look longer. Jimmy Choo Amita 45 pearl-embellished slingbacks in ivory are the one for people who do not want a tall heel. Aquazzura Linea 85 suede pumps in emerald, Amina Muaddi Anok 105 patent pumps in red and the Alexa 105 metallic pumps in gold are for the color-forward version of Old Hollywood style.

 

Here is the test. Walk the length of a hallway and listen. The shoe you want makes the dress look intentional from behind.

 

What I would skip: a pump with a heavy platform under a bias-cut hem. It breaks the line you worked on.

 

Although a red pump with a black dress is a very old idea, and it works every time.

The last lesson is a short one. Van Cleef and Arpels registered an initial patent for a box-nécessaire on July 25, 1933, and that precious little case became the ancestor of the evening clutch. The idea was that an evening bag should be small enough to hold lipstick and a promise, nothing more.

 

Victoria Beckham Dorian East-West clutch comes in a croc-effect leather and a black calf hair, which is the version I would take to a very long dinner. Liffner Pushlock velvet clutch in brown and Demellier Vancouver leather clutch in dark brown are the plainer, more architectural choices. Cult Gaia Eos Lungo pearl-effect resin clutch is a joke about the pearl lesson, in the best way. Hunting Season Opera suede clutch in black and the Hunting Season Small Soft leather clutch in navy are the ones for people who want the bag to disappear. Amanu Egypt embellished suede clutch in chocolate is the one that does not disappear, so give it the plainest dress you own.

 

Here is the test. Fit your phone, a lipstick and one card, then close it. If it does not close, the bag was never an evening bag.

 

What I would skip: a shoulder strap. The point of an Old Hollywood outfit is a free arm and a clean line.

 

Although I have never once regretted leaving something at home.

Five lessons in, the whole look comes down to a few small decisions. A cut that moves, a glove with a reason, a pearl that is allowed to be playful, a pump with a point and a bag that fits a lipstick. That is Old Hollywood outfits without the costume. I went deeper on a related idea in The Christmas Outfits Edit: Five Lessons for Looking Festive Without Dressing as the Tree.

 

I will still be tempted by a second wrap, because I am a person with a pulse. I will still stand at a mirror and do the staircase walk in the kitchen.

 

If someone asks what I am wearing, I will say it started with Vionnet and a diagonal piece of cloth. I will not say how long I spent on the hem.