For the past two weeks I have been getting myself in the "mood" so to speak for tomorrow's The 7th Annual Jazz Age Lawn Party being held at Governors Island. I wanted to be inspired and yes I could have watched some authentic classic 1930's films but I like to use those for my Weekend Cinema Spotlights *smile*
Films are what inspire me so I found a few modern 1930's themed movies that I hope you will find inspiring as well.
Great fun, quirky and made me want to read the book!
Each film really is a visual delight. Some were better than others but they did the job well-all of them. I am fully inspired and ready to immerse myself in the 1930's!!
The 1930's boomed with new styles of fashion because irregardless of how it was in daily life, people still wanted to look and feel good-especially women. Now I am going to start by saying that I am no fashionista and defiantly not a beauty guru but I will share some information on the fashions and beauty regimes of the time with you.
When I look at the fashion of the 1930's the first word that pops into my head is "femininity". Even the some of the simple dust bowl dresses just oozed with pretty colors and patterns. And the shape of dresses in the 1930's is undeniable. If you see it you know it was from that decade!
Daytime Dresses:
Women not only wore dresses during the day time but two-three piece outfits consisting of a blouse, cardigan, and wrap skirt. Or they would wear a sweater with a skirt with a hemline that reached mid-calf. The waist line was returned up to its normal position in an attempt to bring back the traditional "womanly" look.
Evening Dresses:
The back was seen as the "new" erogenous zone and many evening gowns and dresses were often cut low in the back.
Dress shapes of the 1930's
Accessories were vital to a women's wardrobe The most important accessory being gloves, which were worn short during the day and long for the evening. Also included were hats, scarves, capes, stoles, wraps, and handbags. Of course women would knit and crochet their accessories and clothing as well~hats, handbags, gloves, and even dresses!
The 1930's was the decade where women were able to really doll themselves up. It was almost as if they felt free enough to experiment and felt confidant enough in their femininity to go all out and glam themselves up on a daily basis. Okay, maybe not every day but you know what I mean!
I found this AMAZING article from a website called Fashion etc and the author wrote a fantastic introduction that to me just defined what makeup meant to women in the 1930's.
"The 1930s gave the world its first introduction to the power of Hollywood glamour.Max Factor,Helena RubinsteinandElizabeth Ardenbecame household names; Pan-Cake foundation, cream blush and nail polish were invented; and women everywhere said to hell with sensible hairstyles in favor of waves falling dangerously over one eye. No wonder it is considered THE era ofmakeup.
A departure from the little-girl look of previous decades, the beauty mood was all about sex, dramaand glitter. Chalk it up to that big stock market crash, prohibition, and the onslaught of slinky movie seductresses. Lips, eyes, skin, nails, hair—just about everything was buffed, polished and painted into unnaturally fabulous proportions."
This article clearly defines each aspect of beauty for this decade; hair, lips, eyes, face, and nails. I HIGHLY recommend checking this article out. The author could not have said it better than me. You can find it here.
Here are some information videos that you may find inspirational:
I hope you found all of this just as endearing and glamorous as I did. My 1930's week is coming to a head...next will be what I find inspiring about this decade and then I get to share with you all my experiences at the The 7th Annual Jazz Age Lawn Party!!!
Cinema played a huge role in relieving the masses from their unhappiness, stresses, and worries during The Great Depression. There were five major cooperate style studios dominating the film industry throughout this decade and into the 1940's. This decade is also known as the Golden Age of film.
These studios were not just in the business of creating entertainment but also creating mass amounts of money. Kind of sounds a lot like today-huh? Studios didn't just create film stars but also ran their lives, educated those who were under age, arranged lavender marriages, hid scandals, and bought and sold their stars as well.
I mean these studios literally created stars. They would "suggest" a hair lift there, a nip tuck here, dye your hair blonde, or lose weight. I am sure it is done now in Hollywood on some level but not like they did then. They were THAT powerful. And of course these studios were run by men and only men. So one can imagine the sexism and abuse of power that may have occurred. The term, "casting couch" came from somewhere...
Now I can talk about the old Hollywood studios for days on end but let us take a peak on the brighter side of Hollywood...its Stars.
Norma Shearer, Clarke Gable, Alice Faye, and Wallace Beery
The biggest stars of Hollywood were:
Clark Gable, Paul Muni, Janet Gaynor, Eddie Cantor, Wallace Beery, Mae West, Greta Garbo, Jean Harlow, Astaire and Rogers, Claudette Colbert, Dick Powell, W. C. Fields, Joan Crawford, Marie Dressler, James Cagney, Bing Crosby, Jeanette MacDonald, Barbara Stanwyck, Johnny Weismuller, Gary Cooper, Norma Shearer, Robert Taylor, Myrna Loy, Tyrone Power, Alice Faye, Errol Flynn, Bette Davis, Spencer Tracy, James Stewart, Veronica Lake, and Katharine Hepburn.
Many audiences enjoyed the juvenile company of Shirley Temple, Deanna Durbin, Judy Garland, and Mickey Rooney. There were also a number of British stars in the decade, including Ronald Colman, Basil Rathbone, Charles Laughton, C. Aubrey-Smith, and Leslie Howard.
In my opinion the most important year in film making for the 1930's or for any decade that matter was 1939! I say this because of the best films ever made were made all in that year. The best film of the 1930's and the top grossing film for that decade was Gone with the Wind (1939). It wasn't just the best film but in my humble opinion that film is sheer perfection. Honestly, if Hollywood today decided to remake this film I would literally fly out to California to protest. That is how much I mean what I say. I surely hope they never, ever do!
"Gone with the Wind" Trailer
If you have seen some of the films from the 1930's then you can imagine how much they uplifted the spirits of the viewer. A film like "Gone with the Wind", so epic and so larger than life that it literally sweeps you off your feet!
Going to the cinema was a special event where people dressed their best and really made an effort to make the most of it. The elaborate musicals (which were also very popular in the 1930's as well as gangster films), the romances, and the dashing heroes really allowed people to dream a little more and wish a little harder.
Now that is the sort of thing films should always do....move us, inspire us, and allow us to dare to dream no matter the obstacles are at hand.
The 1930's was completely dominated by The Great Depression. You wouldn't be able to guess that if all you knew of the 1930's was seen in cinema. People needed to forget what was happening and often lost themselves in cinema and music. And I can't blame them. I think with today's horrible economy in the wretched state that it is in many people are losing themselves in television, the Internet, and gorging themselves on whatever they can get their hands on-food, clothes, shoes...whatever.
With that being said, have you ever wondered what everyday living cost during this intense economic state? How did they get by? Basically, how did they all survive??
Here is a little list of what things cost during the 1930's:
Cars: An average car in the 1930's cost around $640.
Gas: A gallon of gas in the 1930's cost around .15 cents per gallon. Gas was considered expensive that time because and average income was very low.
Housing: An average price of a house in the 1930's was $7145. The cost of an acre was around $200 dollars.
Food: Here are some average food items people would eat: Bananas- 19 cents for 4 lbs Cereal box- 10 cents Loaf of bread- 5 cents Bacon- 37cents per pound Ketchup- 9 cents Potatoes- 18 cents for 10 lbs Hot Dog- 8 cents per pound Steak- 22 cents per pound Apple Sauce- 6 cents a Can Hot Cross Buns- 16 cents per dozen -But these all range depending on what state you buy them in.
Clothing: New materials that were cheap to process had been made during this decade to replace more expensive materials to spark the economy. -Shirt- $2.50 -Jeans- $20.00 dollars - Coats- $16.00 dollars - Socks- .10 cents - Underwear- .50 cents
Furniture: Some Examples of Furniture: Mattress: $15.98 Desk: $9.95 Couch: $23.75 Floor Lamp: $12.95
Don't you wish some of those things were priced that way today!!?? Although it was difficult to afford the good things in life and it was extra challenging especially for those with larger families but people did pull together. Something I wish people would do more of today.
Some grocers couldn't bare to see their friends and families go without food even though they themselves were struggling. Many of these people lost their stores. But the point is that people stuck their necks out for one another.
Women who couldn't afford milk for their newborn were helped out by other women by becoming a wet nurse for that woman's child. Neighbors would share food with one another or help out in each other's farms ( a time when we had a lot more privately owned farms). They would also do what we call "swap", exchanging food for items that they needed. Children worked odd jobs and would place their earnings in the family cookie jar and sometimes the older boys of a family would take up boxing to bring in a $10.00 prize.
Peoples spirits were lifted high with entertainment in the form of cinema. Some towns would have over eleven movie houses just to provide that opportunity for people to lose themselves and escape their realities.
I cannot help but compare this decades strife with the one that we are in now. Unfortunately, we have been programmed to shop til we drop and help only ourselves. I think it is high time we reprogrammed ourselves.
I know many in the vintage community who are trying to do just that. Getting back to swapping, making and mending, being more creative, and becoming wiser spenders.
I think we can all learn from the past. Think about how all of these women worked and sacrificed for their families. So many of them did without food so their children could eat. All the things they had to do without just have the little that they did.
On Sunday, August 19th I will be attending The 7th Annual Jazz Age Lawn Party which will give me an opportunity to make a dream of mine come true. Does anyone have a crush on the 1930's? I mean a deep, long-standing head over heels, mad crush?? I am sure my hand is not the only one that is up right now hehehe
I have been longing to learn more about the 1930's and longing even more to dress the part. So I decided to dedicate this week to the 1930's. My hope is that we all learn a little something more about this decade in history.
Are you as impressed with this decade as I am? Goodness there is so much history to learn. I defiantly want to take some history courses asap! Anyone care to join me??
