Figure 1.--These two American boys in about the 1910s have been dressed in identical sailor suits with below the knee bloomer pants and long stockings. Note the bangs on the younger boy. |
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Some parents like to outfit all of the children or at least some of them in identical or similar sailor suits. Sometimes only the younger children would wear sailor suits, in other instances it might be the older ones. Some times there were combinations of sailor dresses, tunics, and suits or other styles depending on the age or gender of the children. Many parents liked to dress their children in identical fashions and sailor suits were particularly popular choices. This was in part due to the range of styles that were suitable for children of different ages and genders. Families dressed in various combinations of sailior dresses, tunics, and suits have been noted by HBC.
Boys would frequently be dresses in the exact same sailor suits. Almost always when brothers were dressed identically, mothers chose traditional styles. Some mothers might style the younger boy's hair in a more juvenile fashion to highlight that he was the younger brother. Often boys of similar age would be dressed in the exact same sailor suits. Some times there was considerable difference in the ages. Perhaps no other garment was so consistently used to dress brothers and sisters in idebtical outfits. Certainly no garment was more commonly used to dressed mixed groups and brothers and sisters than the sailor suit. In these insances skirts were substituted with pants for the girls. We note countless portraits of brothers waring identical sailor suits. This was the case throughout Europe and North America. While thids convention was common in many countries, perhaps no where was it more common than in Germany.
Some parents like to outfit all of the children or at least some of them in similar sailor outfits. Sometimes only the younger children would wear sailor suits, in other instances it might be the older ones. The varying ages and gender of the children caused some of the variations. Other times, it was just a matter that the different suits had been purchased at different times and perhaps the idential style was not available. Another problem was getting the same suits in the same style. Sometimes sailor suits might not be available fir the younger boys who might have to wear sailor tunics. We note several images with the entire family in sailor suits, rather like the Austrian Van Trap family in the 1930s. Here we see an American family, probably in the 1920s. (figure 1). We also note a German family, probably in the 1930s.
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Some children were dressed in combinations of sailor tunics, and suits or other styles depending on the age or gender of the children. Many parents liked to dress their children in identical fashions and sailor suits were particularly popular. Some mothers liked the idea of outfitting the younger boys in tunics. Other mother would have liked to have had all thevchildren in tunics, but could not find large sizes for the older boys. I'm not sure to what extent girls wore sailor dresses.
Some times the children were combinations of sailor dresses, tunics, and suits or other styles depending on the age or gender of the children. Usually it was girls wearing the sailor dresses, but some younger boys also wore them.
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