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Sailor suit detailing depends on the style of the sailor or middy blouse. The standard sailor blouse was the V-front middy blouse with a striped detailing on the collar and back flaps. There were blouses that were done in other styles, but they were less common. There were middy blouses that did not have the standard V-collar. These normally did not use stripe detailing. The V-front middy b;ouses were much more common. Detailing elements of middy blouses varied. Some blouses did not have stripes. The basic three stripes were, however, by far the most common, but the number of stripes could vary. Traditional suits, meaning the outfits most closely following naval uniforms, had three stripes. The three-stripe stripe detailing is a Royal Navy style adopted by the U.S. Navy. Some American blouses had stars added to the corners back flap. This was a specificically Amerivan innovation. Often the collar stripes were repeated on the cuffs. Thuis might be done with contrasting cuff colors. White suits normally had dark blue detailing and colored (mostly blue suits) white stripes. Sometimes the stripes were repeated on the dickey, but this varied. Some dickies were solid colors or had embroidered designs. Blouses also sometimes had rank insignia. We also notice a thin horizontal stripe on the left sleevce. We are not sure yet what that signified.
The V-collar was the major stylistic feature of the sailor suit. It was destinctive an easily recognizable. Sailor suit detailing depends on the style of the sailor or middy blouse and this is primarily based on the collar. The best known sailor collar is of course the V-collar. The standard sailor blouse was the V-front middy blouse with a striped detailing on the collar and back flaps. This is the blouse style that comes to mind when most people think of middy blouses. There are, however, other options including plain V-collars. There are also other collar types, although they were less common.
The dickey was an optional item. It might be considered a part of the collar. It was usually detachable, although some middy blouses had sewn in dickies. Often the the detailing on the collar was repeated on the dickey. stripes were often on the dickey, but this varied. Some dickies were solid colors or had embroidered designs.
The detailing on the collar was often repeated on the sleeve cuffs. This might be done with contrasting cuff colors. Blouses also sometimes had sleeve rank insignia. Here insignia varied, but we are talking about enlisted ranks. This is often a way of identifyying American boys because they were often, but not always, realistic replications. We also notice a thin horizontal stripe on the left sleevce. We are not sure yet what that signified.
The body of the middy blouse did not have much detailing. The detailing was mostly on the collar or to a lesser extent the sleeves. One exception was the breast pocket that some middy blouses had.
Sailor Suit Country Related Pages:
[Return to the Main U.S. middy blouse characteristics page]
[Return to the Main U.S. middy blouse page]
[Return to the Main U.S. individual sailor suit garment page]
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