History
Narrow-fitting skirts have a long history in western fashion. The predecessor to the pencil skirt is the hobble skirt, a pre-WWI fad inspired by the Ballets Russes. This full-length skirt with a narrow hem seriously impeded walking.
The French designer Christian Dior introduced the classic modern pencil skirt in the late 1940s, using the term H-line to describe its shape. It is in stark contrast to Dior's full-skirted New Look in his "A-line".
The pencil skirt quickly became very popular, particularly for office wear. This success was due to women's desire for new fashions in the wake of Second World War rationing, coupled with the austere economic climate, when fabrics were expensive.
Read more about this topic: Pencil Skirt
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