Why were the dresses controversial?

They used huge amounts of fabric after rationing

Dior New Look Quiz: The 1947 Bar Suit and Full Skirts

After years of wartime rationing, a Paris designer sent out cinched waists and huge skirts, and this Dior New Look quiz explains why it caused a sensation. Play an interactive set of 10 questions on February 12, 1947, the Corolle line, Carmel Snow's comment, the Bar suit, yards of fabric, protests, Coco Chanel's critique, 30 Avenue Montaigne and Yves Saint Laurent.

Start Dior New Look Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Date
When did Christian Dior present his first collection?
Name
Who coined the phrase New Look?
Line
What was the official name of the collection's line?
Suit
Which outfit became the symbol of the New Look?
Waist
What shape defined the New Look?
Fabric
Why were the dresses controversial?
Protest
How did some women react?
Chanel
Which designer criticized the New Look?
House
On which Paris avenue is Dior's historic house?
Successor
Who succeeded Dior after his death in 1957?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: When did Christian Dior present his first collection?
Answer: February 1947
It was shown in Paris.
Q2: Who coined the phrase New Look?
Answer: Harper's Bazaar editor Carmel Snow
She praised it after the show.
Q3: What was the official name of the collection's line?
Answer: Corolle
It referred to flower petals.
Q4: Which outfit became the symbol of the New Look?
Answer: The Bar suit
It had a cream jacket and black skirt.
Q5: What shape defined the New Look?
Answer: Cinched waist with full skirt
It celebrated an hourglass figure.
Q6: Why were the dresses controversial?
Answer: They used huge amounts of fabric after rationing
Some skirts used many meters of cloth.
Q7: How did some women react?
Answer: Protesters tore at models' skirts
Not everyone welcomed the extravagance.
Q8: Which designer criticized the New Look?
Answer: Coco Chanel
She preferred freer clothing.
Q9: On which Paris avenue is Dior's historic house?
Answer: Avenue Montaigne
Number 30.
Q10: Who succeeded Dior after his death in 1957?
Answer: Yves Saint Laurent
He was only 21.

Dior New Look Quiz – The 1947 Bar Suit and Full Skirts

Christian Dior presented his first collection in Paris on February 12, 1947. Its official name was the Corolle line, but Harper's Bazaar editor Carmel Snow declared it a new look, and the name stuck.

The style featured rounded shoulders, a tightly cinched waist, padded hips and long, full skirts. The Bar suit, with its cream jacket and pleated black skirt, became its symbol.

After wartime rationing, the generous use of fabric seemed shocking, and some protesters tore at models' skirts. Coco Chanel criticized it, but the New Look restored Paris as fashion's capital. Dior worked at 30 Avenue Montaigne, and after his death in 1957 Yves Saint Laurent succeeded him.

What This Quiz Teaches

Fashion fans will enjoy these questions.

When the New Look debuted
Who named it
What it looked like
Why it was controversial
Who followed Dior

Did You Know?

Dior's career as a couturier lasted only about ten years.
Petticoats helped skirts hold their shape.
Corsetry returned with the style.
The look influenced 1950s fashion worldwide.
Dior also launched the perfume Miss Dior in 1947.