Avery Trufelman

Cotton, gingham, denim, that kind of thing.

Not only because they were affordable.

to make dresses out of denim.

And this resourcefulness became especially useful once the United States entered World War II in 1941, because the fabrics that Americans had access to became incredibly limited.

General limitation order L85 banned fabric-hungry fashions.

No more pleats, no more French cuffs on pants.

Skirts had to be shorter and tighter, and you couldn't have aprons.

Belts couldn't be wider than two inches.

Women's slacks couldn't have belts at all.

The belted, fabric-heavy monastic dress became a relic of the past.

A lot of designers were very annoyed by all these wartime constraints.

But Claire McArdle loved them.

She thought these limitations were fun challenges.

And here's a perfect example.

And during the war, out of necessity, Claire created one of her most famous designs, a version of the wrap dress.

She was essentially recruited into it by iconic fashion editor Diana Vreeland.

Middle and upper class women were suffering because now they had to do their own housework.

The families that used to hire an immigrant girl to do all the cooking and cleaning now couldn't.

Claire herself had to learn how to cook for the first time, and she actually got really into it.

She took cooking lessons.