Overalls

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Overalls
PalmercarpenterA.jpg
A construction worker wearing overalls
Typeprotective clothing

Overalls or bib-and-brace overalls, also called dungarees in British English, [1] are a type of garment usually used as protective clothing when working. The garments are commonly referred to as a "pair of overalls" by analogy with "pair of trousers". [2]

Contents

Overalls were originally made of denim, but they can also be made of other materials such as corduroy, chino cloth, or leather. Overalls were invented in the mid to late 1890s by Grace Howard and Jacob W. Davis at Levi Strauss & Co., but they went through an evolution to reach their modern form. [3] Initially created to serve as protective clothing during physically demanding work, they have since also become a fashion garment. [4] Many high-fashion brands have released their own spin on overalls. [5] Today, overalls can still be found in some workplaces, while also being worn casually by all kinds of people.

A 1920 advertisement for Over Alls, published in the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Journal, depicts railway workers adjusting track. Railway workers in 1920 overalls advertisement.jpg
A 1920 advertisement for Over Alls, published in the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Journal, depicts railway workers adjusting track.

History

Beginnings

The exact beginnings of the wearing of overalls are unclear, but they are mentioned in literature as early as 1776 as protective working garments commonly worn by slaves. [6]

The first evidence of overalls being mass-produced are those made by Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis in the 1890s. The first "jeans" they invented were actually "waist-high overalls", consisting of denim pants with suspenders attached with buttons, but without a bib. [3] From the beginning, denim overalls were popular workers' garments due to their durability. In fact, Levi Strauss & Co.'s slogan in the 1880s-1890s was "Never Rip, Never Tear". [7]

In 1911, Harry David Lee made the first bib overalls, made of pants with pockets with a bib and straps over the shoulders. [3]

In 1927, Lee's developed a "hook-less fastener" and created "button-less" overalls. Zippers replaced buttons. [3] Soon after, suspender buttons were traded in for belt loops to attach over-the-shoulder straps. [3]

The Overalls Movement of 1920

In 1920, groups of "Overalls Clubs" formed around the United States. They took overalls as their symbol to protest the rising cost of clothing, and profiteering in the garment industry. [8]

The Great Depression

In the 1930s, the poorest segments of the American population wore overalls: farmers, miners, loggers, and railroad workers. [9] They were most commonly worn by men and boys in the Southern and Midwestern United States. They can be seen in many of Walker Evans's photographs. [7]

Modern history

Diesel Black Gold Fall/Winter 2010 Collection Diesel Black Gold Fall-Winter 2010 112.jpg
Diesel Black Gold Fall/Winter 2010 Collection

Bib overalls (in different colors and textiles) became popular garments among American youth from the 1960s onward. [10]

Overalls were especially popular among hip hop artists during the 1990s.

In the 21st century, overalls have evolved into high-fashion garments. Designers such as Stella McCartney include them in ready-to-wear collections for men, women, and children. McCartney's children's overalls sell for as much as US$138 in the US. [11]

Brands

Levi Strauss & Co. and Lee were not the only companies making overalls in the late 19th and 20th centuries.

Garments adapted from overalls

Salopettes for a motorcycle rider Motorkleding Salopette.JPG
Salopettes for a motorcycle rider

Shortalls (a contraction of the words "short" and "overalls") are with the lower part adapted into shorts. [8]

Salopettes is the French word for bib-and-brace overalls. The word is used in English for a similar garment to overalls worn for sailing, skiing, diving, and other heavy-duty activities. They are made of wind-and-waterproof trousers, traditionally with a high waist reaching to the chest and held up by adjustable shoulder braces. [12] [13]

Historically, military "overalls" were loose garments worn in the 18th and early 19th centuries over soldiers' breeches and gaiters when on active service or in barracks. After 1823, the term was replaced by "trousers" in British Army documents, but it survives to the present day in reference to the tight-fitting garments strapped under the instep, worn as part of the mess dress and full dress uniforms of cavalry regiments. [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apron</span> Outer protective garment

An apron is a garment that is worn over other clothing to cover the front of the body. They may have several purposes, typically as a functional accessory that protects clothes and skin from stains and marks. However, other types of aprons may be worn as a decoration, for hygienic reasons, as part of a uniform, or as protection from certain dangers such as acid, allergens or excessive heat. It can also be used at work stations to hold extra tools and pieces or protect from dust and unwanted materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeans</span> Pants/trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth

Jeans are a type of pants or trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with the addition of copper pocket rivets added by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and patented by Davis and Levi Strauss on May 20, 1873. Prior to the patent, the term "blue jeans" had been long in use for various garments, constructed from blue-colored denim.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denim</span> Warp-faced textile

Denim is a sturdy cotton warp-faced textile in which the weft passes under two or more warp threads. This twill weave produces a diagonal ribbing that distinguishes it from cotton duck. Denim, as it is recognized today, was first produced in Nîmes, France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leotard</span> One-piece garment that covers the torso

A leotard is a unisex skin-tight one-piece garment that covers the torso from the crotch to the shoulder. The garment was made famous by the French acrobatic performer Jules Léotard (1838–1870). There are sleeveless, short-sleeved, and long-sleeved leotards. A variation is the unitard, which also covers the legs. It provides a degree of modesty and style, while allowing for freedom of movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belt (clothing)</span> Worn band or braid, usually around the waist or hips

A belt is a flexible band or strap, typically made of leather, plastic, or heavy cloth, worn around the natural waist or near it. The ends of a belt are free; and a buckle forms the belt into a loop by securing one end to another part of the belt, at or near the other end. Often, the resulting loop is smaller than the hips. Belts come in many lengths because of the variety in waist sizes, and most belts can be adjusted at the buckle to suit the wearer's waist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shorts</span> Garment for the lower body ending above the knee

Shorts are a garment worn over the pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" because they are a shortened version of trousers, which cover the entire leg, but not the foot. Shorts are typically worn in warm weather or in an environment where comfort and airflow are more important than the protection of the legs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skirt</span> Clothing worn from the waist or hips

A skirt is the lower part of a dress or a separate outer garment that covers a person from the waist downwards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Levi Strauss & Co.</span> American clothing company

Levi Strauss & Co. is an American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's brand of denim jeans. It was founded in May 1853 when German-Jewish immigrant Levi Strauss moved from Buttenheim, Bavaria, to San Francisco, California, to open a West Coast branch of his brothers' New York dry goods business. Although the corporation is registered in Delaware, the company's corporate headquarters is located in Levi's Plaza in San Francisco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Breeches</span> Clothing with coverings for each leg

Breeches are an article of clothing covering the body from the waist down, with separate coverings for each leg, usually stopping just below the knee, though in some cases reaching to the ankles. Formerly a standard item of Western men's clothing, they had fallen out of use by the mid-19th century in favour of trousers.

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Western wear is a category of men's and women's clothing which derives its unique style from the clothes worn in the 19th century Wild West. It ranges from accurate historical reproductions of American frontier clothing, to the stylized garments popularized by Western film and television or singing cowboys such as Gene Autry and Roy Rogers in the 1940s and 1950s. It continues to be a fashion choice in the West and Southwestern United States, as well as people associated with country music or Western lifestyles, for example the various Western or Regional Mexican music styles. Western wear typically incorporates one or more of the following: Western shirts with pearl snap fasteners and vaquero design accents, blue jeans, cowboy hat, a leather belt, and cowboy boots.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Workwear</span> Clothing that is worn in the exercise of a service profession, a craft or an engineering profession

Workwear is clothing worn for work, especially work that involves manual labour. Often those employed within trade industries elect to be outfitted in workwear because it is built to provide durability and safety.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stone washing</span> Technique used on apparel for after wash effects

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trousers</span> Clothing for the legs and lower body

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References

  1. "dungaree" . Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press.(Subscription or participating institution membership required.) 2, 3. Quote: "dungaree, n.: 3. In plural. Originally British. A type of overalls consisting of trousers with an extra piece of cloth covering the chest, held in place by a strap over each shoulder; (later also frequently) a casual garment resembling this, usually made from denim, corduroy, or heavy cotton, and typically worn by women or children. The usual sense in British use and in most varieties of English close to British English. In North America known typically as bib overalls or overalls, and in Australia as overalls."
  2. "Walton & Taylor "The History of Overalls (Jeans)"". www.waltontaylor.com.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Kyi, Tanya Lloyd (2011). The lowdown on denim. Hanmer, Clayton. Toronto: Annick Press. ISBN   978-1-55451-415-1. OCLC   825770364.
  4. "Christian Dior Fall 2017 Ready-to-Wear Collection – Vogue". www.vogue.com. March 3, 2017.
  5. MacDonall, Nancy (May 6, 2021). "Skinny Jeans, Move Over: Overalls Are Here (Again)". The Wall Street Journal .
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Sullivan, James (November 7, 2006). Jeans: a cultural history of an American icon . New York: Gotham Books. ISBN   1-59240-214-3. OCLC   62697070.
  7. 1 2 McClendon, Emma (2016). Denim : fashion's frontier. New Haven. ISBN   978-0-300-21914-2. OCLC   930798077.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  8. 1 2 Goldman, Jonathan (2020). "The New York City Overalls Parade, 1920". The Gotham Center for New York City History.
  9. 1 2 Gunn, Douglas; Sims, Josh; Luckett, Roy (2012). Vintage menswear : a collection from the Vintage Showroom. London: Laurence King. ISBN   978-1-78067-203-8. OCLC   866622270.
  10. Batchelor, Bob (2008). American Pop: Popular Culture Decade by Decade, Volume 3 1960-1989. Vol. 3. Greenwood Press. p. 72. ISBN   978-0-313-36416-7.
  11. "Stella McCartney – Designer RTW, Bags & accessories, Lingerie, Adidas by Stella McCartney, Fragrances, Kids". Stella McCartney – Designer RTW, Bags & accessories, Lingerie, Adidas by Stella McCartney, Fragrances, Kids. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  12. "the definition of salopettes". Dictionary.com. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
  13. "Une histoire de salopette". La Parisienne (in French). May 24, 2010. Archived from the original on March 27, 2018. Retrieved March 27, 2018.
  14. Carman, W.Y. (1977). A Dictionary of Military Uniform. Scribner. p. 97. ISBN   0-684-15130-8.