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Wedding Theme Idea: 1920’s era

by Christine on November 9th, 2007

Photo credit: Elsea Chelsea

Do you like something old to add to your wedding preparation? Why not a 1920’s wedding theme? Last year at our company Christmas do, we had Bonnie and Clyde/1920’s era for our theme and the people had a blast dressing up! Perhaps your guests would enjoy that too. Apart from that, I find that most brides opt for the vintage type of wedding dresses too!

This is what Web Wedding have to say about the 1920’s:

The 1920’s heralded a youthful revolution challenging Victorian attitudes towards women; how they behaved, how they dressed and their role in society. The ‘bright young things’ of the 20’s were known as ‘flappers’ and they were demanding the freedom to live their own lives. While their elders considered such behaviour reckless and irresponsible, all they were really doing was having fun!

The 1920’s girls wore provocative make-up, showed their knees and abandoned themselves to the wild rhythms of Jazz, Charleston and the Black Bottom. They listened to the songs of Duke Ellington, Al Jolson and Fanny Brice and marvelled at the dancing of Isadora Duncan. It was an era of post war frivolity and optimism. To emphasize their new found freedom, women threw away their corsets, cut their hair, wore trousers, smoked cigarettes and drove fast cars. Life was for living.

The 1920’s also saw the development of a new elegant and sophisticated style of art, Art Deco, which was characterised by the use of vibrant colours, graphic geometric forms and simplicity, celebrating all that was modern.

Here’s some ideas for you if you do decide to go with the 1920’s wedding theme after the jump!

Invitations

* Use an Art Deco design on your invitations
* Have images of long, slender cigarette holders and cocktail glasses
* Have a picture or collage of ‘flapper’ head band with a real feather
* A photograph of the bride and groom dressed in 1920’s costume
* Design of a 1920’s luxury car
* For a gangster theme, print the invitation as an illegal entry permit to a speakeasy, complete with secret password

The Bride

* Have a dress with an intermission hemline, where the dress is shorter in the front, dipping lower at the back
* Go for a dress with a dropped waistline or a pleated skirt
* Have your dress decorated with bands of pearls or beads
* Consider having a coloured dress, pink and blue were both popular colours in the 20’s
* Wear a flat veil held in place by an orange blossom wreath
* Experiment with different headdresses such as a Juliet cap, coronet or a band of silk flowers worn low on the forehead
* Wear seamed stockings and suspenders
* Have a handkerchief skirt with a beaded hemline
* Choose shoes with buttoned straps, pointed toe and Louis heels

For accurate reproductions and inspiration look for costume reference books at your local library or contact a theatrical costumier. Well-known designers of the day included:

* Coco Chanel
* Sir Norman Hartnell
* Jean Patou
* Madeleine et Madeleine
* Worth

Hair and make-up

* Bright scarlet lipstick, in an obvious ‘Cupid’s bow’
* pale skin highlighted with rouged cheeks
* Heavily defined eyes and brows
* A classic short, neat bob cut or the shorter Shingle, which showed the back hairline and was curled at the sides

More ideas can be found HERE.

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