Test Your Fashion I.Q. - 1956

Are you a brilliant fashion plate? or a dowdy mouse? do you dress mostly for other women? or mostly for men? or are you still dressing to please your mother? Here's a quiz from 1956 planned to tell you whether you are taking fashion too seriously or not seriously enough....or whether you're perfect. Click on the test to enlarge the image. Total up the number of times you say "yes". Answers at the bottom of this post.


Here, a look at the new high-waisted trend popular for Fall 1956. Dress and jacket by Chestnut Hill. Leopard bag and scarf by Winter Furs.

Remember, this test is from 1956, so the scores have little relevance today, but it's fun to see what attitudes toward fashion were.

If you answered "yes" to 18 or more questions, you are a

CLOTHES HORSE: You're a woman who dresses almost too well; may take fashion too seriously. Women admire your clothes, but men may be scared off by your icy, perfectly groomed appearance. Watch out. Be a little more flexible; a little less anxious. You'll look better if you dress for your own, not fashion's sake.

If you answered "yes" to 12-17 questions, you are a

FASHION PLATE: You're in good company; most well-dressed women fall in this category. You have a lively interest in what's new in fashion - even though you're probably not the very first to buy it. If the man you love gets hysterical when you talk about cutting your hair...then you don't, even if it's the new style. However, you won't let a man talk you out of a really marvelous hat - one of the new furs ones, say.

If you answered "yes" to 5-11 questions, you are a

DOWDY MOUSE: You're afraid of fashion. Even though you may like exciting new clothes on other women, you're happier wearing something perfectly safe and unspectacular yourself. You may have a reputation for looking sweet, but people are not likely to remember what you looked like at a party last week. Maybe you're still dressing for your mother; perhaps your beau is ultra-conservative. don't be cowed. They both might love you in a bright red dress.

If you answered "yes" to 0-4 question, you are a

REAL SQUARE: You aren't just timid about fashion - you work against it. You not only avoid wearing new fashions yourself; but probably don't like to see them on other women. You might be a show-off. There's no better way to call attention to yourself than wearing clothes that are out of (or never were in) fashion. You don't have to change - but maybe you're robbing the world of a pretty woman.

How did you score?