1920's Dress Up

Quick update on the book:

-It's finished, as you know from my last post (we won't look at the date for that).

-It's had betas and been edited to the best of my ability, although I still tinker with little bits here and there.

-I've written the materials needed for querying after spending what seems like too much time learning to write them, such as: the query letter, synopsis, pitch, bio.

-Sent said materials out to a few agents to see how things roll. I'm already thinking about tweaking or rewriting the query letter.

I don't update this blog very often because anything I want to share or say gets put on Facebook where it's faster and more convenient. I don't have a Twitter account but have thought to open one, only because it seems to be a preferred platform for agents, writers, etc. I don't know, I'm still up in the air on that.

Last year my hometown had its sesquicentennial (150 year) celebration, and because I had written a book that takes place in the 1920's, I wanted to dress up from that era for the celebration. Many chose to dress in more Victorian era clothing or pioneer. Me, I was the only one who dressed up from the 1920's. Very few participants at the celebration actually dressed in period costume, as it was encouraged but not necessary (party poopers), and so I really stuck out in my peach dress, cloche hat, and T-strap Mary Janes. I wore a scarf around my waist as was typical then, but looking back I wish I hadn't. Oh, here's the outfit:

  

Yeah, I had to take that picture in my very narrow hallway mirror in my dimly lit apartment. I had even cut my once long, thick hair just to get the look I wanted right. It's very difficult to cram so much hair beneath a cloche hat. I have no regrets. I've never had short hair before and it felt freeing to have it all gone. Here are some other pictures:

 

The stockings are from the 1920's.

Many of the pieces came via Etsy. The hat, gloves, and dress were all handmade, and the hat and dress were made according to my measurements, so I knew they would fit. The purse and stockings are vintage from the 1920's. The dress was made by La Vie Delight.

It wasn't just about getting the outfit right and the hair bobbed, I also spent a lot of time figuring out how to apply makeup to be period correct. Well, as close as I could get it, seems as I'm not a makeup artist. A website that has been a great resource is Vintage Dancer, not only for my costuming needs but also for dressing up my characters in my novel. They point out sources to purchase vintage inspired makeup, one being Besame, which has an assortment of true vintage lipstick colors from different decades, including three from the 1920's (I have all three). They also sell cake mascara and powders. Another place, found on Etsy, is LBCC Historical, with the Etsy name Litttlebits (yes, three T's). I've purchased face powder, liquid rouge, and violet scented perfume that comes from recipes from the era, as well as an assortment of other goodies that are not 1920's specific. My favorite is the 1811 Milk of Roses face cleanser and astringent. It feels nice, smells nice, and it actually works, although it's quite pricey so I use it occasionally.

I swapped out the black laces that came with the shoes for velvet ribbon, and glued rhinestones on the ends.

I have found a few vintage clothes that date back to the 1920's, and some that don't but could complete the look with the right accessories. Most of what I've bought are new that look like they could be vintage. The coat in the top photo above is my prized vintage possession. It dates to the 1920's and is in very good condition, although the liner is starting to shatter in a few places. The picture is of me wearing it for a Christmas mixer last year for the historical society. The picture in the middle is the dress, another La Vie Delight purchase, with a scarf with black and gold beads on the ends attached by wreath pins that I made (was very difficult to do with the weight of the beads). The shoes are replicas of 1925 shoes, which I bought from American Duchess that they sadly don't make anymore. The style is called Theda. The hat is another Etsy homemade buy, and the brooch is another vintage piece purchased off of, you guessed it, Etsy.

So ever since the sesquicentennial I have been obsessed with finding articles of clothing to wear that I can piece together into a 1920's look. No, I don't always dress this way, only on occasion to turn heads. Most of the time I'm in boring t-shirt and jeans. The hardest thing about finding clothes from the era are finding ones that are in good shape and will fit. However, most fabrics are too delicate to wear and will fall apart as you wear them, such as the stockings I wore with my peach dress. Far too fragile, and I ended up wearing more holes in the feet. So now they will be used as display items and won't be worn again. They are so cute, I wish one could take them to someone who can recreate them. It's very hard to find clothing that's not beaded party flapper dresses, most of which aren't period correct. So I have spent a lot of extra time scavenging the internet picking out a skirt here, a blouse there, those shoes, that hat, to come together into an outfit that passes. Most of them are what we would consider casual or afternoon looks.

Here's a few more pictures to conclude this post.