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Fashion of the 1920s
Fashion of the 1920s was changing rapidly. Women were becoming more independent, and had their own money to spend as they were now an important part of the workforce. Clothes became more practical and boyish, a trend led by the daring
Coco Chanel
, one of the first to cut her hair, wear trousers, and sunbathe on the beach in a bathing costume.
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Corsets were dispensed with, and clothes were freer and more comfortable. Hemlines got shorter and shorter, but then longer again by the thirties. Everyone still wore hats, but these were now worn tight over the head with a narrow brim – the ever popular Cloche shape - great for cycling or open top motoring. But all this practicality did not mean that clothes were less glamourous. The 1920s were the Golden Age of Fashion with incredible competition and intrigue among the top Fashion houses of Paris and London such as
Paul Poiret
, Jean Lanvin, Chanel and Schiaparelli. With the growth of advertising and magazines, the woman in the street also wanted the glamour of the top end houses, and demand grew for ready to wear ranges of the newest styles that were affordable for all. New and cheaper fabrics meant that this became reality and the working girl could be as chic and elegant as her richer sisters.
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It was the age of accessories, with the daring flappers smoking and putting on
makeup
in public. Every girl had to have her makeup, her compact, her cigarette case, and her beaded handbag dangling from one arm. Lots of
jewellery
was worn, either diamonds and platinum if you could afford it, or the cheaper materials like chrome and
bakelite
if you couldn't. Long
beads
and lots of bangles, brooches, dress clips and long earrings completed the look.
If you love the fashion of the 1920s, you will adore The House of Eliot. My all time favourite costume drama, it has clothes to die for. The story of two young women, left penniless, who start out making their own clothes and finish up running a prestigious London fashion house competing with the best of Paris haute couture. Like the best of BBC dramas, the historical accuracy is excellent, and we see the development of fashion in the 1920s as the story in the three series unfolds. The storyline is compelling, with the scandalous love lives of the protagonists, the gossip in the workroom and the real life dramas on the streets and in the pubs. When Bea and Evie go to New York, I wished I could have jumped onto that ocean liner with them. They dance the night away to the latest jazz in the most daring flapper outfits yet. The episodes in Paris are so beautifully filmed, you feel like you've been transported to the Golden Age of Paris Fashion. As well as the haute couture glamour of the elite, we also get a feel for the lives of the working woman of the 1920s, the strikes, the poverty, but also the optimism of the times.
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Whether you've seen it before or not, The House of Eliot stands the test of time and is as fresh now as it was in the 1990s when it was first shown. If you've never seen it, you have missed a gem, and if you have, it is well worth a second visit. The clothes, the hats, the jewellery - all the history of the fashion of the 1920s - with decor, scenery, cars, furniture, all evoking that fabulous Art Deco Golden Age of Fashion. I shall keep the DVDs on my shelves for many years to come.
