The Bee's Knees

As long as I can remember I have had a fascination with the 1920s. This decade was quite an extraordinary period of history. A war had just been won and our country was celebrating, high on easy credit and moonshine. Freud was rediscovering our sexual natures as human beings. Women's fashion was also extraordinary at this time. Skirt hems became so short that they not only exposed the ankle but occasionally even the bare knee. Women tossed aside their corsets and embraced the sensual androgyny of drop-waist gowns and cut their long locks in favor of bobbed hairstyles. They were no less womanly for setting aside these feminine conventions, instead they felt free to embrace their vital sexuality in a way never before seen.

While I was perusing Life According To Celia (the highly enjoyable blog of my former wedding gown client) I came across some images that capture the themes of this era so strongly and beautifully from the book Jazz Age Beauties: The Lost Collection of Ziegfeld Photographer Alfred Cheney Johnston. This work is definitely one I will be adding to my collection.

It is especially fitting now as the last of the Ziegfeld Follies girls, Doris Eaton Travis, passed away just a week ago on May 12, 2010 at the age of 106. She had this to say of being one of Ziegfeld's Girls:

“It was beauty, elegance, loveliness,” Mrs. Travis recalled in an interview with The New York Times in 2005, “beauty and elegance like a French painting of a woman’s body.”

Victorian Ball

Last night I was able to attend my first Grand Victorian Ball since before I had my children. I was a wonderful evening full of costumes, dancing, friends, laughter, and lemonade. Getting my ballgown done in time was a little stressful, but I got it done and was overall very happy with the results. (But I won't lie... there were definitely several safety pins where hooks, bars, and snaps were supposed to be!)

I did have a dilemma with my hair since mine is much to short to be Victorian. Rather than wear a wig, I decided to try to pass mine off as best as possible by pin-curling most of it and styling the front into a pompadour. I added in some jeweled hairpins and a sort of fascinator and I felt very pleased with the effect.


If you think period costumed gatherings might be an adventure you would like to try, the Social Daunce Irregulars, Friends of the Engilsh Regency, Victorian Tea & Dance Society, Mikal Sandoval's Speakeasy, and Club Cicada are just a few of the many options available to folks living in the Los Angeles area.

Mad about Mad Men

I realize that I have been very absent from the blog lately, but my husband and I have been obsessively watching the hit AMC series Mad Men on DVD. We don't have cable, so we always catch our shows after they have hit the air, but we like it that way because we don't have to wait a week between episodes. We have made it through the first two seasons and are totally hooked. Even our three-year-old twin boys love the show!

Let's just pretend for a moment that the writing isn't spectacular, that the acting and direction aren't outstanding and that the art direction isn't impeccable... the costumes are absolutely to die for! I would watch it for that reason alone, but I am pleased that the show is a complete package!

The gorgeous and accurate costumes for this amazing period show are designed by Janie Bryant, the creative mind behind the equally impressive costumes of HBO's Deadwood. The second season Mad Men DVD contains an excellent mini-documentary about the fashions of the Sixties narrated by Bryant and is definitely worth checking out if you get the chance. The fashions of the Sixties, just like the Sixties themselves, were revolutionary and reflected the incredible historical changes that took place in this era.

A few of my favorite things about the costumes for this show:
1) the men, even the less attractive ones, look delicious in gray flannel suits and slicked down hair.
2) the show recognizes that curves are sexy!
3) characters wear the same outfits more than once, just like people do in real life.
4) the hairstyles

You know, this list could just go on all night, so I'll leave it at that!

30 in 30

In just 30 short days, I will be turning 30 years old! To celebrate this exciting and momentous occasion, I will be spending an evening soaking in vintage glamor at Club Cicada in historic downtown Los Angeles' Oviatt Building. I will be wearing this David Meister dress and will be styling my hair something like this cropped curly 'do from 1953, but probably with some gardenias thrown in, and maybe a birdcage. Or maybe I'll just go with the fascinator. I'm open to suggestions!: