The twenties was a time of fun and craziness among the young generation. The fashion fads of the time created a path for the fashions of today. Before the twenties women wore ankle-length skirts, corsets , and other restricting garments, men wore ovewrcoats that fastened in the front, double breasted coats, and long pants. Then the twenties came and that all changed. Hemlines went up, makeup was worn in abundance, hair was chopped off, and for the first time a flat bosom was what every stylish woman wanted.
Men’s basic attire became the business suit. These styles gave way to the fashions of today. Today women wear iniskirts, panty hose, short and long hair, makeup, and dyed hair. Men still wear business suits, but only for work or special occasions. The styles of the twenties created a new frontier in men and women’s fashion. Searching for information on twenties fashion was a fun experience for me. I did not find it very hard to do, because I had a lot of information about the history of costume already at home.
My best find was an actual magazine from the twenties. My family and I were out at antique stores when I found it. I was looking through through old magazines trying to find a Life magazine with the Gone With he Wind cover, when I saw the Vogue with a girl dressed in flapper costume. I was very excited about this find because I was worried that I would not find a magazine source. The toughest part of my research was finding someone to interview.
I remembered that my great aunt was really old, but I did not know what year she was born. When I found out what year she was born I was very happy that I found someone old enough to remember the twenties. Then I had to talk my parents into letting me call long distance to Missouri, which was easy as long as I did not talk longer than thirty minutes. I think the best part of researching was getting to know my great aunt a lot better.
Women’s fashion changed dramatically in the twenties, mostly due to social change. More practical attire evolved from the more “liberated lifesyle” women began to live. Petticoats and corsets disappeared, making way for elastic girdles. A “boyish silhouette” was the figure that sylish women strove for (Tierney 12). Some young women would tie rags around their breasts to try and flatten them (Todd int. 4:20PM). I could not understand why a woman would try to stunt her growth for the sake of fashion.
