1928 flappers 

Women's Fashions of the 1920s

1920 daywear

The 1920s in America were times of great change. Coming out of the horror of the First World War, the Twenties saw women voting for the first time, prohibition, and an incredible burst of affluence for the middle class. Automobiles and electric appliances made people's lives easier and gave them more leisure time. The incredible, rapid change that struck the country is clearly illustrated by women's fashions of the decade.

The main features of women's clothing in the 20's were short skirts and dropped waistlines. The silhouettes of the earlier part of the decade were long and cylindrical, with the skirt falling 7" to 10" below the knee. Despite the relatively simple silhouette, the wide variety of detail was astonishing. Even inexpensive, ready-to-wear clothing from catalogues and chain stores such as Sears portrayed an imaginative range of cuts and trims.

It was in evening wear that the innovations of twenties style first appeared. By 1926, women who grew up in a world that barely acknowledged knees were very nearly wearing their dresses above them.

Another, very obvious fashion feature of this time period was "bobbed" hair. First introduced during World War I and popularized by Irene Castle (among others), bobbed hair created a sensation. The popular media of the time was filled with jokes, stories, cartoons, songs, theatrical skits, newspaper articles, and short movies, about bobbed hair. Complementing bobbed hair was the cloche hat. The fabrics used were silk, cotton, linen, and wool, in varying combinations. The twenties were also the dawn of the first man-made materials, rayon most notably.

As the decade reached its end, fashion reverted to a longer silhouette, and waistlines started to make a tentative reappearance. The fabrics and cut clung more closely to the body. The look we regard as 'the Flapper look' only lasted about 3 years, from 1925 to 1928.