The Roaring Twenties held a place on the runways for the spring of 2013 , but not without learning from a few mishaps of last year.
Spring 2012 was all about Gatsby Glamour , as it celebrated the remake of the 1920’s classic novel, The Great Gatsby; with beaded dresses, dropped waistlines, fringe, fur and lace accessories.
Ralph Lauren managed last year, to combine the romance and silhouette of the era with a modern and more suited look.
Ralph Lauren Spring 2012. Photo courtesy of RalphLauren.com
Ralph Lauren collection spring 2012
However, just like the delay of The Great Gatsby’s release, the trend was seen only scarcely throughout the racks and hangers of nearly every ready-to-wear clothing store.
Being one who thrives off of discounted fashion, I scoured clothing stores like H&M, Forever 21 and Joe Fresh, searching desperately for the Flapper look that I love so much.
I still remember what I found: about two dresses with dropped waistlines that hung in the back of Forever 21. That was it.
A beginner blogger of sewing patterns, Sandy Smith says that the revival of the twenties trend was a business decision more than anything else.
“With the average women sitting at a 10-14 range it’s no surprise that the 20’s didn’t become a hit in stores,” says Smith. “The current zeitgeist is pushing towards models with a more womanly shape, which definitely doesn’t blend with the hard to pull off silhouettes of the 20’s. Quite simply, no one wants to bind their boobs these days.”
As Smith had pointed out, fashion for women during the ’20’s was all about the boyish figure, showing that women could, “hold their own with the boys,” as she puts it.
While style nowadays is moving away from the typical tall, thin and flat models, and more about accepting our bodies as they are, the former silhouettes of the twenties are no longer considered the ‘norm.’ Corsets just don’t have a place in women’s closets anymore.
My theory is that the roaring twenties can thrive in haute couture, because those designs are made more specifically for the body, whereas ready-to-wear clothing mind as well be, “one size fits all.” Ready-to-wear clothing stores would be taking a gamble, making hundreds of straight dresses for an audience that wouldn’t be able to pull high-necked and low-waist lines over their busts and hips.
However, to put a silver lining on an otherwise dreary reality, there are some aspects of the style that can shine with the right twist of modernity.
Fringe dresses popped up throughout the runways for the spring of 2013, with dresses from designers such as Alberta Ferretti and Bottega Veneta.
While Ferretti stuck to the boyish silhouettes, Veneta made fringe dresses for an hour-glass figure, in an array of colours.
Photo courtesy of http://www.bottegaveneta.com/
Photo from http://www.albertaferretti.com/en
Ready-to-wear clothing stores such as Forever 21 took aspects of the roaring twenties and made modern casual pieces.
Using chiffon and pleats, this royal blue dress, which hangs just above the knees, combines two 20’s trends with the high-collar that is so-well loved this year.
Photo from http://canada.forever21.com/ $33.80
And of course it isn’t the 20’s without fringe.
From forever21.com $29.80
Although designers are learning that this just isn’t the time to turn the clocks back to the jazz age, the 1920’s can still be incorporated into our closets.
With chiffon, pleats, lace or a little bit of fringe, anyone can look like a girl of the Jazz Age.
The Dress Revolution 