Writer: Fischer Work
Editor: Jason Shin
The roaring 1920s saw revolutionary changes both in the fashion industry and in day-to-day life. The economy was booming, the standard of living had increased, and new tech gadgets were all the rage. Vacuum cleaners, electric refrigerators, and washing machines were common in households by the end of the decade. Clothing no longer had to be meticulously hand-sewn; for the first time, fashion came from the factory. Simplicity was the name of the game, as famous designers such as Coco Chanel pushed dresses with straight lines and tubular shapes. Silhouettes streamlined, hemlines crept up, and waistlines fell. Sportswear became acceptable as daywear due to the increased emphasis on comfort and convenience, as well as the rising popularity of tennis as a women’s sport. “Put it on my tab” rang out in department stores across the country as consumers relied on credit to purchase new clothes and gadgets they couldn’t afford. Compared with 1901, the average family income had doubled, and the average expenditure for clothing had increased by 120.4 percent. However, this decade of decadence couldn’t last forever—the Great Depression brought this maelstrom of consumer spending to a screeching halt, with unemployment skyrocketing and disposable incomes drying up.
But it would take more than a national economic disaster to stop the great machine that is fashion. With designer brands and manufactured clothing out of the question for most families during this time period, those who needed clothes had to get more creative. Enter the hero of this story: the humble gunny sack. Almost a century before the Great Depression, standard shipping technology for potatoes, flour, and other foodstuffs underwent a significant renovation. Heavy, cumbersome wooden barrels were replaced with lightweight, flexible burlap sacks to lower shipping costs. These “gunny sacks” (whose name derives from the Indo-Aryan word for “coarse fabric”), were the saving grace for seamstresses throughout the Great Depression. The burlap from these bags was upcycled and reused for all sorts of household items, such as towels, quilts, curtains, and dresses.
As gunny sacks increased in popularity, a fashion conscious individual might choose their bags of flour or potatoes based on the logos printed on them for maximum aesthetic effect. To capitalize on this, companies began to print flowers, suns, and other decorations on their bags to drive sales. Companies distributed pamphlets discussing the best ways to make use of the different varieties of gunny sack cloth, and how best to dissolve the company logos to increase the amount of workable yardage. And people loved it! Sales of aesthetically pleasing gunny sacks increased as wives instructed their husbands on which brands to look for at the store so that they could use the fabric later. Some companies went so far as to print whole patterns for children’s clothes on the burlap sacks, while others stamped the bags with soluble inks to make things even easier for consumers. At least one company changed the fabric of their bags to be more suitable for dress-making and marketed them as such. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement: companies sold more bags of food, and consumers wore trendier gunny sacks.
The gunny sack remained popular long after the Great Depression, though necessity decreased as the effects of the depression wore off. Hemlines crept back down and waistlines raised as the fashion scene distanced itself from the feel of the roaring 20s. However, gunny sacks were still used for clothing until the 1950s, when food transport switched from burlap to paper and synthetic bags. The gunny sack’s historic legacy, however, was far from over.
Sackin’ in the Sixties
1960s America saw one of the strongest economies since the boom of the 1920s. Inflation and unemployment were low, corporations were merging and getting bigger, and rapidly developing digital technologies promised a bright future. People had money to spend, and as women joined the workforce in droves, disposable income further increased.
This economic boom wasn’t the only familiar face from the 1920s: fashion had also come full circle, moving away from the full length skirts of the 1950s. Hemlines crept back up, and shapes once again simplified. The 60s saw the birth of the miniskirt, as well as heavy use of acrylic and polyester in clothes as fashion trends were influenced by pop art and the space race. On the flip side, nostalgic designs also came into vogue once again. Victorian, Edwardian, and simple prairie style dresses were all the rage, thanks to a luxury designer clothing label based out of San Francisco. The label’s name? “Gunne Sax.”
Gunne Sax, named after our hero from the 1920s, gained national attention with their historically inspired dresses. They made all sorts of dresses, many direct callbacks to 1920s’ lace, gingham, and calico fashion, as well as the beloved burlap sack to which their name pays homage. But Gunne Sax dresses were similar only in style and name to their 1920s counterparts. The gunny sack had once been a sign of creativity and resourcefulness during a time of national crisis. Now, the owner of Gunne Sax (Jessica McClintock, who bought the company in 1969) made millions selling designer dresses to the upper and middle class. The art of sewing as a household chore had long since lost its status as a necessity, instead falling unattended into the realm of hobby. Consumers no longer needed to make their handmade dresses, they could buy them.
Graphic By: Meredith Whitcher
The Gunny Sack Comeback
Now back in the roaring 20s once again, the US has seen exceptionally turbulent trends in both the economic and fashion scenes. Covid-19 brought with it one of the largest global economic contractions in history, followed by a massive spike in consumer spending. Fashion trends have splintered off into smaller microtrends as a product of social media and the internet, allowing them to change faster than ever. Comfortable, bold, inclusive fashion designs are an overarching theme stretching across many smaller trends such as dark academia, blue collar, and various “-cores” (cottagecore, goblincore, fairycore, etc). This increased speed and consumer spending has meant an increase in the fast fashion industry, where companies are incentivized to keep consumers buying new trends and popular fashion designs as soon as they pop up.
However, just as fashion trends return with a vengeance, there has also been a resurgence of a focus on reusability in the fashion industry. The message of the humble gunny sack can be seen in modern art movements such as “trash fashion.” Beginning in the 1990s, trash fashion imagines a world where clothes are made entirely out of discarded materials. While not practical for everyday use, the movement brings attention to the downsides of fast fashion, and encourages companies and consumers to make more eco-friendly decisions.
Movements such as trash fashion are making a difference. Many companies are switching to eco-friendly options: brands such as Patagonia, People Tree, and Stella McCartney are all leaders in ethical and eco-friendly practices. For both ecological, economic, and fashion reasons, consumers are increasingly turning to thrift stores before buying clothes new. Rising inflation and high prices from tariffs mean second-hand clothes are often a better option, and thrifted clothes are a popular aesthetic on their own.
The gunny sack has shown itself time and time again throughout the last century both in form and in spirit. Though the gunny sack’s societal connotations and significance have drifted from their Great Depression roots, modern day consumers are reviving the gunny sack’s resourceful, creative spirit through conscientious fashion choices. Every time a consumer buys an article of clothing made from reusable materials, or stitches one together themselves, a gunny sack in heaven gets its wings.
Featured Image by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash
