Fashion In The 1920s

Beauty has evolved over the years. It all started with the Egyptians, who cultivated beauty in an extravagant way. Ever since then there has been a dramatic change in beauty and fashion which occurred during the decades of the 1920s, also called the era of the Flappers. It was a time where “good girls” could become worse in the evening. The 1920s was when cosmetic industries became bigger, with the help of the media. Every pharmacy and department store in the world had a makeup counter. The type of makeup women would purchase from the makeup counter were the latest powders, vanishing creams, pan stick, lipstick and mascaras. The “flappers” were the type of girls that wore all of those products and a lot of makeup. The use of heavy makeup became the fashion of the era, because of movie stars like Clara Bow and Mae Murray, who created the flapper attitude. Clara Bow was the one that started the cupid’s bow lip which became popular. It also created the image of 1920s women with their bow lip and dark eyes.

Achieving the perfect pout, also called the bow lip became easier. They started selling metal lip tracers. They would use darker lip liner to outline the cupid bow and then fill it in with the same dark color. Darkening the eyelashes with mascara was still kind of new. Mascara was led by the company Maybelline. The most important makeup item that was sold was facial powder. Facial powder only came in minimum colors of white, pink, cream and sandy tan. A powder puff was used to apply the powder. Powder also was mixed together to get the perfect shade. Some women got creative and used different colors on different areas of the face, which created

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contouring that we used today. Powder wasn't the only thing they used on the face. Rouge was applied to the cheeks to give that flushed look. Most of the colors for rouge were shades of pink. For women with sun kissed skin, an orange tint was perfect. Makeup became a tremendous part in helping women recover from World War I. It allowed women to be able to express themselves. Helena Rubinstein said, “If you can show me a woman who doesn’t want to look young and beautiful – well, I’m afraid she isn’t in her right mind. Women all want it – and we admit that they do!”
Every girl in the 1920s had identical hair, bobbed hair with fingered waves. It became the trend that every girl wanted and had to have. The ‘bob’ was consider a haircut that a wild girl would have. Daughters were getting grounded and wives weren't talking to by their husbands till it grew back. The cloche hat was another trend that went rapidly. It allowed women to hide their hair underneath the hat. Fashion was formed by events that are happening and affect by the society. After World War 1, society changed a lot which means so did fashion. Dresses were made with thinner material, had brighter colors, and were shorter than they have ever been. The lengths of dresses were rising, it started at mid-calf and then a year later it was right below the knee. Some people weren't very happy about the length of clothing and the new freedom women had. In 1922, they created a law in Washington D.C that bathing suites couldn't be shorter than 6 inches above the knees. Since dresses were shorter, stockings and shoes became important. Stockings came in any color and patterns to match with their outfits. Women would roll there stocking down to show their knees. Women would wear loose dresses during the daytime. Floral prints were a popular look, but pastel colors like nile green, sunset orange, french blue and maze were popular colors for dresses. Fashion designers wanted change and used all of these colors
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and prints to create a whole new look. Wearing an evening dress would convey that you have money. The material, beads and the accessories added to the evening dresses were elegant and also expensive. Women would wear a coat or jacket trimmed with fur over their evening dress. Some evening dresses were even trimmed with fur. Dresses weren't the only thing women wore in 1920s. One day, Coco Chanel wore a man’s sweater and wrapped a belt around her waist. She thought it was a big deal but then it became the 1920s fashion. Women were tired of the same status quo. Chanel’s clothes had a masculine look to them, which defined the fashion. She also had an obsession with black and how it flatters a woman's body. Chanel launched her black dress collection in 1926. There were still other trends that were popular. Not everything had a boyish look in 1920s. A designer named Madeline Vinnet still made dresses that show a female form. Women were still sexy, but in a different way. Coco Chanel stated “A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous,” and that is what the 1920s fashion was all about for women.
The 1920s wasn't just all about the women and their fashion trends.

Men also had their own fashion trends they followed. They would wear a hat almost all the time, but that trend wasn't very popular with the younger university men. The hairstyle was the same for all men, which was slick backed, shiny, flat and medium length hair. Brilliantine was used to give men that slick back hair looks. It was also used to smooth and flatten the hair. To be able to slick their hair back, they had to get the right length, which was five to six inches. Frequently taking trips to the barber made sure the length of the hair didn't get too long and keep sideburns high. Men would part their hair in the middle, on one side, or sometimes where is straight back. Straight hair was easier to achieve this hairstyle. Men with curly or wavy hair would straighten the hair with a hot iron or just put lots of oil on it. Keeping up with the length of their hair was important, but

they
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also kept up with a clean shave. No men had facial hair. It was seen as something unsanitary. Men in the 1920s cared what they looked like and what they wore. A man would wear a suit no matter where he went. They would wear a suit to work, parties, during the day or even at night. The only guys that wouldn't wear a suit everywhere were sport players, young teens and college men. Suits in the 1920s are different from today because they were made of thick wool with the pants are made of wool based flannel which would make the suites heavy. Men would get their suites in different kind of patterns like solid tones, big plaids, checks and thick stripes. The suits came in our browns, blues, grays and greens. The pants matched the suit coats. The pants only went to the mid-ankle which made the socks show so men would wear long socks. To be able to complete the suite, they had to have a vest. Vests were made in colors a little lighter than the suit. The biggest fashion mistake was having a men’s shirt exposed between the pants and vest. They made pants that would go to the belly button. Suspenders were attached to the pants. Underneath the vest they would have a striped or plain shirt in tan, green, pink, lilac, blue and yellow. Most shirts had a collar attached, but some did not. Wearing a shirt without a collar would make a big fashion statement. Cuffs were a very special part of the shirt. Button cuffs were worn with fancy cuff links. Some men’s cuff links were monogrammed with their initials. The neck wear was also a part of the men’s fashion by wearing a bow tie, a necktie or a neck scarf tie. These would add some color to the outfit. This style that the men wore in the 1920s impacted what men wear today. Fashion for men and women was refined because of a whole new brighter and lively lifestyle.
At the end of the 1920s, an event that brought drastic change to the United States was the Stock Market Crash of 1929. The stock market had a rapid expansion. The 20s was an “exciting”
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time full of free behavior with so many changes in attitude, dress, and clothing. Colorful was the theme! There was a rapid increase in bank loans and credit. The “Great Depression” took over the country from 1929-1939. Times had changed.
The 1920s was an exciting time full of many changes in makeup, clothing, and hair. It is an era that will always be remembered for its fun “roaring” t