American look

   A fashion look that emerged after World War II that captured the American lifestyle of wearing casual, easy pieces, which was a sharp contrast to Europe's more structured silhouettes. Designers who pioneered the look in the 1940s and 1950s included Claire McCardell, Bonnie Cashin, Tina Leser, Hattie Carnegie, and Anne Klein and, in the 1960s, Bill Blass, Geoffrey Beene, and Donald Brooks. This fashion look not only gave American designers credibility as fashion leaders, but it also changed the way the world viewed fashion and its natural adaptation to lifestyles of the times. Travel by air meant lighter and more versatile clothing with all of the key components one expects of designer clothing. The in-tuitiveness of the American designer, together with unbridled talent, turned Seventh Avenue in New York City into Fashion Avenue, as it is known today.

   See also Lifestyle-dressing; Lord & Taylor; Pope, Virginia; Shaver, Dorothy; Snow, Carmel White; Sportswear.