20's convert

I'm home from my big trip to Costume College in California, and I finally have a little bit of time for blogging again.  Hooray!  I had meant to do some diaries about the outfits that I was making over the summer, but I ended up running so short on time that I had to keep myself off the computer as much as possible.

So the first new outfit that I'm going to tell you about is my early 1920's dress that I made to go along with a group of ladies who were all dressing up in prohibition-era attire.  Let me preface this by stating that the 1920's are some my my least favorite fashions ever, and I NEVER thought I'd find a 20's style that looked good on me.  The dress that I ended up with was actually my third try at making a prohibition-era costume this summer, but I am so happy that I stuck with it and kept looking for something that I could live with because I had a blast with the group, and I love the way my dress turned out!

I decided to focus on early 20's styles since I like that the waists were still defined earlier in the decade, and I prefer the fuller skirts to the more severe styles that you see later in the 20's.  So I was thrilled when I came across this wonderful vintage pattern on etsy that was in my price range.  It wasn't dated, but I am guessing from the style that it is from around 1921.

I looked around for a while trying to find some lace or net that I could use for a version like you see in View A, but when that failed, I decided to use a patterned silk crepe that had a vaguely art deco feel to it.  The underdress and sash are made out of georgette, and I used vintage ric-rack rosettes around the neckline to add a little decoration.  I didn't use the over-tunic on the blouse, but other than that, I made the pattern up exactly as it came, and it fit wonderfully with no alterations.

I think the best part about 20's fashions are the accessories, so I knew that I needed a hat to finish off the look.  Wide brim hats were more popular in the early 20's than the cloche styles that we usually associate with that decade, so I took a wide brim straw hat and stretched the crown over a hat block so it would sit further down on my head, then I cut the brim down to a more medium size.  I was wasn't really sure what direction I wanted to go with decorating this thing, but since I was running short on time, I ended up just wrapping the crown with net and adding some silk strips with vintage buttons to add some color and visual interest.  It's really random and a bit sloppy, but a lot of early 20's hats look very random and homemade, so I figured, "hey, why not?  It's period!"  I also made a reproduction of an antique anti-prohibition button that I found online.  It says "Texas - For Personal Liberty, Against Prohibition".  I thought it was cute, and I am a sucker for anything that says Texas on it.  I also wore a super-long strand of pearls that I found at an estate sale, a pair of T-strap shoes from etsy, and my Edwardian purse that goes with everything.  

This was a delightful costume to wear - especially after being in non-stop corsets for the two previous days.  I can TOTALLY see why women wore these fashions now.  They must have felt amazing after decades of more restrictive clothing.   I hate to admit it, but I think I'm a 20's convert now!  ;)