<i>1950s Fashion</i> offers an overview of the lively and vibrant fashions of the 1950s. More than a footnote to the Second World War, or a forward to the youth-obsessed exhilaration of the Sixties, the Fifties were a thrilling decade devoted to newness and freshness. The British people, rebuilding their lives and wardrobes, demanded modern materials, vibrant patterns and exciting prints inspired by scientific discoveries and modern art. Despite the influence of glamorous Paris couture lead by Dior, home-grown fashion labels including Horrockses and the young Queen Elizabeth's couterier Norman Hartnell had an equally great, if not greater impact on British style.