1940s Land Girls : The Uniform

Ok, ok...I know...with the premier of Season 5 of Mad Men, I should be gushing with 1960s Mad Men-inspored posts.  But, I'm still enamored with the show that was supposed to be my "filler" until the return of Mad Men - Land Girls.  In honor of my finishing season 3 of this lovely BBC series, I'm taking a closer look at that iconic uniform!

WLA Dress Uniform




Women joining the Women's Land Army were issues a simple uniform consisting of 2 green sweaters, 2 pairs of brown breeches (either twill or corduroy), 1 pair of brown overalls, 6 pairs of brown long woolen socks, 3 shirts, a green tie, a pair of shoes, a pair of ankle boots, a pair of tall boots, 2 overcoats, 1 raincoat,  and a brown floppy hat or beret. 

Some images of the Australian WLA uniform

The iconic floppy brown hat


Happy Land Girls!

The WLA uniforms were often ill-fitting and/or weren't appropriate for the season or the work to be done.  Many of these crafty women altered their clothing.

Breeches into shorts

Those who worked for the Women's Land Army were not paid any enlisted services benefits following the war and only received recognition from the Queen in August 2009. Courtesy Brighton Museum.

3 comments:

  1. wasn't that series great! I blogged about it too as I was completely ignorant of these fine ladies before I watched it...I love the shots where they were all lined up in the their sweaters and leather belts, awesome! it also made me want to learn 1940s hairdos....

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  2. what didn't we learn more about these women in school?! how inspiring it would be to girls to hear the stories of these women in addition to those of "rosie the riveter". those 40s hairstyles...so glam, even in the field!

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  3. My Mum was a landgirl and would have so loved to have seen the series. I heard many hilarious, funny and sad stories of her days on the Land and she told me it was THE best time of her life xx

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