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Sarah Williams
Sarah Adams
RCL
11 November 2014
From 1900 to 1930: The Shift in Womens Fashion towards Independence and Equality
The Flapper awoke from her lethargy of sub-debism, bobbed her hair, put on her
choicest pair of earring and a great deal of audacity and rouge and went into battle, wrote Zelda
Fitzgerald in 1922 (Spivack, History of the Flapper, Part 1). The wife of famed author F. Scott
Fitzgerald, Zelda was one of the most well-known and iconic flappers in the 1920s. A woman of
her time, she managed to capture the image and rebellious spirit of flappers in a single sentence.
That image of fashion in the 1920s is considered classic today, but at the time of its birth it was
anything but that. The trends that came with the rise of flappers shorter hemlines and looser
silhouettes, for example were in stark contrast to the styles that previously reigned for the early
20th century. Prior to these flapper-era trends, the Gibson girl (see Fig. 1) was the picture of high
fashion; typical dress for women was S-shaped corsets meant to squeeze the waist and accentuate
the backside, full-length tailored skirts and blouses, high necklines, stockings and long sleeves.
Figure 1: The classic image of a Gibson
Girl

Source: Gibson, Charles. The Day Dream.

Digital image. Kate Chopin. N.p., 2009.
Web. 10 Nov. 2014.

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This sartorial shift that occurred in womens fashion from the early 1900s to 1930 was a
dramatic one, made even more remarkable by the fact that the shift itself occurred in only about a
decade. This shift was facilitated by the profound social and political changes that were
occurring in America during this time, like the passing of the 19th Amendment and the Equal
Rights Movement, and both reflected and encouraged the growing independence of women.
Fashion of the early 1900s, referred to as Edwardian fashion, was typically very refined
and conservative. One of the most defining characteristics of early 1900s fashion in America was
a corset that gave women an S-shaped silhouette (see Fig. 2). These corsets pushed up the breasts
and emphasized the backside. Over those corsets, women typically wore tailored suits or blouses
and skirts (Womens Clothing). The hems of these suits and skirts fell at the ankle or lower,
keeping with the modest style of Edwardian fashion (see Fig. 3). Skirts during this time period
were full and often layered and the blouses were long-sleeved (1910 to 1920).

Figure 2: Silhouette of Edwardian

corset (right) compared to that of
Victorian corset (left).

Source:
Coronet Corset Co. Digital image.
Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia, 26
Apr. 2009. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.

Figure 3: Typical dress of early 1900s

Source:
Women's dress of the 1910s. Digital image.
Smithsonian.com. Smithsonian, 5 Feb. 2013.
Web. 5 Nov. 2014.

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The 1920s, however, saw a completely different sense of popular fashion, one in which
women in general took more liberties in the way they dressed. Hemlines began rising until the
reached their high point (of the time) of the knee in 1926 and waistlines dropped to high hip
levels while dresses lost their tailored looks (see Fig. 4) (1920 to 1930). Instead of wearing
corsets to achieve the S-shaped silhouette of the early 1900s, women in the 1920s desired a
boyish and straight silhouette. If a woman had natural curves she wore undergarments (similar to
the Spanx some women wear today to alter their shape) made by brands like Gossard that gave
her a unisex and androgynous shape (Spivack, History of the Flapper, Part 3). This was almost
the exact opposite of how it was only years earlier, where women with a naturally straight shape
used corsets to give the impression of curves.
Figure 4: Models outside the fashion exhibition at Holland Park in London wearing comtemporary
dropped waist dresses.

Source:
Twenties Glamour, 1925. Digital image. MyDaily. N.p., 10 May 2012. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.

The most iconic embodiment of 1920s fashion in America is undoubtedly the flapper. The
flapper was a woman who adopted not only the new fashions of the 1920s, but also many new
behaviors. For example, flappers often in smoked in public, drank despite Prohibition, and
danced (often the Charleston and the Fox Trot), and they were more open about their sexuality

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than women in times before them had been. Flappers had a great deal to do with bringing bobbed
hair into fashion during the 1920s, often time choosing to cut their long, feminine hair as a
rebellion against the typical image of how a woman of her time should look (Spivack, History
of the Flapper, Part 4). Additionally, flappers wore makeup in much bolder styles than women
did in the early 1900s. Pre-1920s, good girls typically did not wear makeup; prostitutes were
often the ones who wore noticeable makeup before this time. As an act of rebellion against this
idea, flappers wore makeup that was meant to be noticed: pale powder, dark kohl-lined eyes,
bright red lipstick and heavily rouged cheeks (see Fig. 5). Wearing their makeup like this helped
to demolish the Gibson girl image of what women should look like, as was the goal of many
women during this time, flapper or not. The flappers rolled their stockings and wore the loose,
knee-length dresses of their time (see Fig. 6). While not every woman who adopted the new
trends of this time period was a full-fledged flapper, it is the image that has continued to exist
and thrive as a symbol of the Roaring Twenties.
Figure 5: Typical heavy/dramatic 1920s makeup.

Source:
Spivack, Emily. Joan Crawford, 1928. Digital image.
Smithsonian.com. Smithsonian, 7 Feb. 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.

Figure 6: Rolled stockings.

Source:

Spivack, Emily. Rolled stockings, 1926. Digital image.

Smithsonian.com. Smithsonian, 19 Feb. 2013. Web. 10
Nov. 2014.

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The 19th Amendment was the greatest political change of the time, which
contributed greatly to this new era of fashion. The 19 th Amendment to the United States
Constitution, passed by Congress on June 4, 1919 and ratified on August 18, 1920, allowed
women the right to vote, leaving many women feeling empowered (19 th Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution). This feeling of empowerment then proceeded to carry over into the ways women
acted and dressed, leading to the increased popularity of the flapper fashion. The loose and short
styles of the 1920s reflected the liberation many women were feeling in response to finally
gaining the right to vote.
The 1920s were also a time of great social changes in America, many of which lent
themselves to the birth of the flapper-era fashion. Women began attending college and driving
automobiles, as mentioned earlier; they were taking greater social liberties than they ever had
previously (Spivack, History of the Flapper, Part 1). In 1923, Alice Paul proposed the Equal
Rights Amendment, which stated rather simply that men and women should have equal rights in
the United States (Francis). There was a great push for equality for women during this time, and
breaking the idea that women should dress a certain way (e.g. in Edwardian style, specifically)
was a large statement that many women supporters of the Equal Rights Movement were making.
The androgynous silhouette that became popular during this time served to blur the distinction
between men and women, further attempting to promote equality between the two sexes. The
emergence of jazz music in the 1920s also influenced womens fashion; dancing to this music
became a popular pastime, especially for flappers, and shorter hemlines and looser dresses made
dancing much easier than it would have been in Edwardian-style clothing.
World War I also had a great impact on the shift in fashion from Edwardian to
androgynous. When the U.S. entered WWI in 1917, a large number of the workingmen were

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drafted to fight. With so many men gone and a need for workers still present, many women left
being homemakers to join the workforce and take over jobs that the men left behind, often jobs
in factories. The restrictive Edwardian style of dress did not lend itself easily to physical labor, so
this called for new clothes that allowed women to move and work. The basics of the new style,
such as the shorter hem and looser fit, that may have arisen from women filling mens jobs
during World War I were perpetuated after the end of the war by women who felt empowered by
wearing them.
When men returned from World War I and reclaimed many of their jobs, many women
werent willing to give up the new independence they found in working or the more comfortable
clothing styles (Spivack, History of the Flapper, Part 1). Many of them wanted lives that
consisted of more than just being a homemaker after having a taste of what it was like, and they
wanted to keep the freedom to continue dressing comfortably. In response, millions of women
began joining the white-collar workforce in greater numbers and driving automobiles, which
required them to keep some of their new clothing styles (History.com staff). Women were taking
control of their lives more than ever, so it was only natural that they take control of what they
wore as well. This, in part, began the prevalence of the shorter hems and looser fits of the 1920s.
Emerging designers of the time, like Coco Chanel, also played a role in bringing the
fashion of the 1920s to light. Coco Chanel is highly cited as one of the leading pioneers of the
bob haircut. Chanel and another designer Jean Patou were credited with popularizing the
androgynous, less constricting silhouette classic of 1920s dresses, which helped to further
encourage women to forgo their binding corsets for more free-flowing garments (see Fig.7).
Though Chanel and the other European designers who had a part in birthing these haute couture
trends began presenting them in Europe as early as 1910, they didnt make their way to America

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until the 1920s, accounting for part of the reason why these trends experienced such popularity
during this time in America (Spivack, History of the Flapper, Part 5). When they did reach
America, these trends were seen as being very high fashion because of their European origin and
the well-known designers backing them. While being a flapper was not necessarily seen as being
in high fashion, wearing knee-length dresses that had a rectangular shape to them was. This
helped spread the 1920s fashion to women who separated themselves from the flappers in the
way they behaved; women could choose to not be associated with the provocative behavior of
flappers and it would still be acceptable for them to wear styles of clothing as similar to those of
the flappers.
Gone were the walls separating the working class from high fashion when R.H. Macy &
Co, known today as Macys, expanded into a full-fledged department store in 1877. By 1922,
the company had begun to open regional stores (Macys, Inc. History). These stores brought
the higher-end trends, like those popularized by Chanel and the like, to the masses. This, in turn,
encouraged the trend to grow exponentially in prevalence. In conjunction with the growing
department stores carrying the new fashions, catalogs for these stores helped to spread the trends,
most notably the Sears catalogs (see Fig. 8). Once department stores such as Sears started
carrying the new trends of the 1920s, sending their catalogs featuring the clothes to millions of
Americans across the country helped the fashions reach women living in suburbs and small
towns as well as in major cities. The Sears catalog also prominently featured the bob, bringing
the iconic 1920s hairstyle as well as the fashions to women across America. (Spivack, History
of the Flapper, Part 5).

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Figure 7: Women wearing
Chanel knitted suits with
the boxy silhouette.

Source:
Chanel Knitted Suit.
Digital image. Urban
Edge Fashion.
Wordpress, n.d. Web. 10
Nov. 2014.

Figure 8: Sears catalog

featuring 1920s fashion.

Source:
Sears catalog, 1926.
Digital image. Art Deco:
Celebrating the Jazz Age.
Blogspot, n.d. Web. 10
Nov. 2014.

There were numerous elements at play in the shift form Edwardian fashion in the early
1900s to the fashions of the flapper era in the 1920s. Political changes such as the passing of the
19th Amendment in conjunction with social changes such as the Equal Rights Movement, women
joining the workforce, and the beginning of the Jazz Age brought about shorter hem lines, looserfitting garments, and, most notably, the flapper. Together, these elements gave the fashion of the
1920s its longevity. Traces of these trends are still present in our popular fashion today; it is not
uncommon to see a celebrity sporting 1920s-esque fashions on the red carpet and the
androgynous silhouette of this time period is still often worn today, especially on high fashion
runways. The looks of the 1920s are still, today, a recognized symbol of womens empowerment
and their right to choose how they want to dress. With all the significance behind the fashions
that arose in the 1920s it is likely that the looks, such as the knee-length hemline and the boxy
silhouette, will retain their timelessness and be classic looks for years to come.

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