1920s-1930s

The dominant silhouette of the 1920s was short and loose for both day and evening wear. Dresses were cut away from the body to highlight a straight and lean figure, but as fashion scholar Lauren Downing Peters observes, the tubular style effectively “eliminated the body underneath the dress.” The more “generous” nature of the loose-fitting silhouette allowed a ready-to-wear plus-size industry to flourish for the first time. Then referred to as “stout wear,” it was pioneered by retailer Lane Bryant.