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English mail order catalogs offer a very useful time line on changing fashion trends. English mail order catalogs and newspaper ads provide great detail on fashion trends. Schoolwear was an important part of many catalogs. We note a Trutex Schoolwear add from 1969. Trutex was one of the primary manufacyurers of schoolwear in Britain.
We do not yet have any informatio on caps.
Collared shirts are done with rather large collars done in different styles.
There were sets for younger boys with matching or coordinated shirts and pants. The sets were with both short and long pants. This was a common convention for younger boys. We note that they are sometimes referred to as suits, meaning that the material and color of the pants and shirt are the same. Boys in the late 1960s and 1970s might wear these sets for occassions in which suits were once worn.
We notice bow ties and already tied ties for younger boys.
Sweaters are a perenial favorite among British boys. We note both "V" necks which were worn for school as well as crewnecks, turtlenecks, and cardigans.
We notice range of cold weater coats for boys.
We see both single- and double-breasted suits inn 1969 catalogs. The single-breasted jackets were the most common, in part because many suits were bought as school suits. Outside of schools, mostly private schools, boys did not wear suits as commonly as earlier. Suits were much more commonly worn in the 1950s. Some schools used suits rather than blazers and some schools had both suits and blazers. Thus many od the suits in a 1969 catalog woyld have been bought as a school suit. This is especially true of grey suits. We see both short and long pants suits. Here schools had various rules.
We notice both flared long pants and short cut continental-style short pants. The short pants, except for school shorts, or only for boys up to 7-8 years of age. We only have the Fall-Winter catalog. Apparently short pants were seen as acceptable for winter wear for younger boys. Presumably the Spring and Summer catalog carried casual/play shorts for boys over 8 years old.
British school uniform styles are very influential. Schoolwear often was an important part of many English mailorder caralohs. This is because many English schools required uniforms and thus a substanyial part of a child's clothing purchases involved school uniform items. This was a little complicated. English school wear included many traditional styles such as grey shirts for everyday schoolwear. One noticeable shift in the late 1960s was the increasing popularity of continetal short pants, cut much shorter than the shorts previously worn by British boys. Many schools had very specific items such as ties, jumpers (sweaters), and knee sovks in the right-colored trim. This as a result required local purchases. Other items such as overcoats, grey or white shirts, and grey shorts were fairly standard and thus could be purchases through mail order catalogs. Some schools were more flexible about items that did not match perfectly than others.
Boys underwear included singlets and T-shirts and Y-front pants. (In Britain pants referred specifically to underpants nd was not used for trousers as in America. Colord underwear in bright colors including orange and red were popular with boys.
We note both ankle and kneesocks being offered. The kneesocks were increasingly for younger boys and exceot for school often not done with turn-over tops. Even for dressy outfits the boys like the boys in the Freemans catalog did not always wear kneesocks.
A British reader tells us, "This page brings back memories when I was a lad in the [late 1960s and ] 1970s. I was 6-12 and my mum always bought my shorts and grey knee socks from Freemans catalogues. As to why mum chose to buy my shorts and socks from catalogues, I think they were cheaper than in the stores. My mum was able to get my blazer and sweater from my frends. Her frends had boys older than I was. There was other catalogues at the time: Kays, Littlewoods as well as stores over here like Woolworths and Ethel Austin. They always had adverts and sections in their catalgues with back to school fashions."
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