From accessories to dresses, we saw some beautiful Gatsby details and we’re sharing you with them right now because we know that the 1920s look is being re-interpreted and celebrated this year. Flap-away vintage Londoners and make sure you sparkle along the way!

Gatsby Glitter Top

We’re a little bit in love with this beautifully embellished top from the Monsoon collection. A subtle nod to the vintage glamour of the Art Deco period, for all of you out there who don’t want to be flappers head-to-toe.

Flapper Girl Dress

Shine like Daisy Buchanan is this gorgeous Gatsby-inspired flapper dress. With an Art Deco hemline, the inclusion of more subtle and gentle floral embellishment really makes this vintage 1920s art deco dress a fashion forward vintage piece.

Mini Flapper Girl Dress

How cute is this?!? An incredibly clever move from Monsoon, this 1920s flapper-esque outfit comprises a top and a skirt that would suit any little girl. Utilising a colour like seafoam green, this cute vintage style separates dress will transition perfectly from late summer into winter. Expect to see this outfit at weddings, Christmas and New Year parties!

Razzle Dazzle ‘Em

Bold, statement jewellery designed to stand out and attract attention… and who doesn’t want a bit of attention when they’re out partying? With these Art Deco / urban grunge style earrings and necklace from Accessorize, you’ll exude an air of classic elegance and still have that fashion forward edginess to your look.

Pumped Up Kicks

With these gorgeous black cut out pumps you’ll be making a mini monochrome statement as you walk through the doors of the speakeasy club.

Faux Fur Cardi-Coat

Shrug on this hybrid cardigan coat to keep you warm, but mobile. Soft to touch and warm to hold. Like the guy on your arm, while you’re wearing this number!

Hold On Tight: Clutch This Clasp

With geometrical patterns and dazzling gems, this clutch bag would be the envy of any 1920s speakeasy. Every vintage fashion enthusiast needs a vintage bag and AW13 is seeing the rise and rise of the statement bag alongside the statement necklace in some gorgeous 1920s styles. We can pretend they are real diamonds in this case…

Now all you need to know are the best vintage salons in London and the best vintage hairstyles, so you know what to ask for when you get there!

A big thank you to Monsoon and Accessorize for inviting us today!

Bettie Page Style by Who 2

Copying icons such as Marilyn Monroe or Audrey Hepburn you’ll need to carefully consider their clothing styles in order to get their look. This is tricky with Bettie because she wasn’t known for wearing many clothes!

What made Bettie so iconic was her striking hair, so if you want to look like this lady then here’s what to do:

Bettie’s Hair Colour

If you truly want to get the Bettie look then you’ll need raven black hair. You can do this yourself with a semi-permanent or permanent blue/black or jet black dye or go to your local salon if you’re not feeling too brave. If you have a pale complexion and/or blonde hair then think carefully before you dye it black. Black hair dye doesn’t fade out, you have to grow it out so you’ll have to be fully committed if you decide to change the colour.

Bettie Page Style by Sydney Stoopes

Bettie’s Bangs

Bettie’s look was all about the bangs (or fringe). Legend has it that she was told she had a high forehead and was advised to cut herself a fringe to disguise it – her short fringe then became her trademark and something she is remembered for to this day!

To get Bettie bangs you should take a photo of her into your local hair salon and ask for a fringe cut about 1/2 inch above your eyebrows and curved up in a U shape – it’s better to find a good reputable vintage salon as they really know how to create this look. Once you have your Bettie fringe you’ll need to keep it regularly trimmed to maintain the shape.

The best way to style this type of fringe is to curl it under with a hot iron so it has a slightly bevelled edge. Another way of doing this is by curling it under whilst drying it with a hairdryer, using a medium rounded hairbrush. Finish with a spritz of hairspray.

Bettie Page by Menina

Bettie’s Soft Hair Curls

To get Bettie’s soft waves you’ll need hair pins and hair mousse or setting lotion. Add the mousse or lotion to damp hair and divide your hair into 1 inch square sections. Wrap each piece of hair around your finger creating a curl that lies flat against your head – secure with two pins making an X shape. When you have finished all of your hair, wrap a silk scarf across your head to protect the curls. You can either sleep on them overnight or wait until it dries naturally. Once dry, remove the pins and brush the curls out so they are soft and natural looking. Et voila! You now have Bettie curls.

Don’t forget to add lots of hairspray to your hair to keep the curls and bangs in position.

For tips on Bettie Page fashion and makeup tips, check out our earlier Bettie Page article.

While socially acceptable for casual pursuits, the wearing of trousers by women in the workplace was a widely accepted faux-pas well into the 1980s and even into the 1990s. In fact, it was commonly written into the employee dress manuals for many corporate and governmental workplaces! There was even a social stigma against women wearing trousers to dressier events like weddings. There is still a lingering disfavour even to this day, as I routinely get chastised by elderly relatives for wearing trousers to family functions! Someday all that will pass as today’s current generation becomes society’s elders.  This is a brief history lesson for those younger women to understand the journey of the modern women.

Marlene Dietrich wearing trousers in the early 1940s. Image via fineartamerica.com.

The wearing of trousers in the Western world did not become at all commonplace until the later part of the twentieth century. Prior to that women did wear trousers for necessity’s sake in limited settings: women ranchers in the American West, during WWII for factory work, female coal miners in the early 1900s and aviators like Amelia Earhart are all examples of women wearing trousers out of necessity prior to social acceptance.

Kennedy’s at leisure in 1940. Image via LIFE magazine at Google.

So, what changed? During and after the WWII period there was a cultural shift that loosened the taboo on the wearing of trousers by women. Seeing women in trousers working in the factories and fields during the war became commonplace. Additionally, women came to see the benefits and comfort of wearing trousers. As a result, the wearing of trousers became acceptable as casual wear for gardening and other leisure activities in the post-war era. It’s important to note that trousers were still not worn in professional or formal functions at this point.

Katherine Hepburn in trousers in the 1940s. Image via suckitmartha.com.

Now, some women pushed and tugged at the boundaries of what was socially acceptable. Celebrities like Marlene Dietrich and Katherine Hepburn wore trousers regularly and it could be said that they were important elements in the cultural change making trousers acceptable for women.

Unfortunately, the 1950s in a response partly to the austerity of the WWII period saw a return to an ultra-feminine look (think Dior’s New Look), which meant most women did not wear trousers outside of the home.

After the prim and proper 1950s, in which women for the most part eschewed trousers, the 1960s saw an explosion of trouser wearing by women. The suit designs of André Courrèges and Yves St. Laurent helped things along as did the burgeoning women’s movement. Additionally, the 1960s and 1970s saw an increase in the popularity and acceptance of more casual dressing by everyone–men, women and children. As a result of all these changes, by the end of the 1960s trouser wearing for women was widespread.

Le Smoking evening attire from YSL in 1966. Image via blacktieguide.com.

Finally, even though by the 1970s trousers were widely worn by women, they were not widely accepted as appropriate attire for the workplace. It wasn’t until the 1980s and 1990s that women in the Western world saw a complete lifting of that final taboo.

Liz Claiborne designs in the 1980s. Image via visionaryartistrymag.com.

Clockwise from top left: Brothel Creepers by ASOS, Girl in Platforms by Tiger Lilly Girl, Yellow Platforms by Young and Ukraine, 80s Courts by Love it So Much, Brogues by Snappy Lifestyle

80s Courts

My personal favourite, 80s court shoes make any outfit look cool and they’re a great way of adding an element of vintage to current fashion items. Wear with skinny jeans or a summery dress when the weather gets hotter.

Brothel Creepers

Not everyone’s cup of tea, brothel creepers add height and comfort to your style. They look awesome teamed with skinny jeans, white socks and turn-ups. They take a bit of getting used to, but look totally cool once you nail it.

Platforms

70s platforms look fantastic in summer when teamed with a long flowing maxi dress or short floaty floral number. They’re comfortable to wear and make a massive statement too. Look out for cork wedges for a traditional 70s look or glittery styles to glam it up a little. A hippy headband is entirely optional!

Brogues

The beauty of this type of shoe is that it’s very masculine which means they can look amazing worn with feminine clothing such as dresses and skirts. If you want to go for an androgynous look then wear with trousers (opt for a slim leg) and a turtle neck or tank top.

Photo by: Cotton Candy Clouds

So to get the vintage look you’ll only really need a few essential makeup items – a good foundation, translucent powder, black mascara, eyebrow pencil, black liquid eyeliner and a pillar box red lippy.

Face

To start with make sure you have a well moisturised face. No matter which decade you’re going for, dry scaly skin is never a good look. Apply your foundation evenly and add a touch of red lippy to your fingertips, place a dot of lipstick onto your cheekbones and blend well to give yourself a rosy cheek tint. Finish with a blot of powder to fix the look.

Photo by: Rockabilly Girl

Eyes

Take the liquid eyeliner and starting from the inner corner of the eye draw a line along the lash line (keeping your eye open and looking down into a mirror) when you reach the end of your lashes flick the outer corner up to create that perfect ‘cats eye’ shape, apply a few coats of black mascara to finish. This is simple and effective. For more drama add false lashes too!

Photo by: Fotos de Lola Von Der

Lips

Finish your look with a slick of red lips. Apply, blot, apply, blot and finish with a dusting of powder to set the colour.

If you don’t know who Bettie Page is… shame on you! But we’ll forgive you because you’re reading this and will soon know how important she was in the 50s. Bettie was an iconic pinup girl who caused a bit of controversy by becoming the first famous bondage model – to this day her iconic jet black hair with short fringe and womanly curves has inspired generations of women to recreate her look.

Photo by: Listal

Here’s how to do it…

The Hair

Long, jet black and wavy – if you don’t have this type of hair then worry not; the main thing you’ll need to create Bettie’s hair is the famous short fringe. Please don’t attempt to cut this yourself unless you’re super skilled with a pair of scissors. You might even have problems using ‘regular’ hairdressers too as they tend to shy away from cutting proper Bettie bangs. Ideally you should find a vintage hair salon for your Bettie fringe as they know exactly how this fringe should look; but if they don’t be sure to ask for a short fringe (about an inch above the eyebrows) that is longer in the middle and shorter at the sides – take in a photo to be safe.

Photo by: Vintage Women

If you’re feeling brave then dye your hair blue-black – but remember, black permanent hair dye is the ultimate hair colour commitment and cannot be washed out, you’ll have to grow it out and this could take years!

To get the waves then the best option is to use hair ‘rats’ the night before and roll your dry hair around the fabric.

Click here to watch video demonstration

Brush the curls out the next day and fix with lots of spray.

The Clothes

Now let’s get one thing straight…Bettie Page was not famous for wearing clothes! Quite the opposite really but when she did wear clothes boy did they speak volumes! If you feel brave enough to flaunt your curves then the outfits you should try are: wiggle dresses, pencil skirts, high-waisted jeans/trousers, off-the-shoulder tops and lots of leopard print – heels are essential too! Wear your dress with a pair of stockings and make sure they have a back seam for added tease value.

Photo by: Vintage Women

The Makeup

To get the Bettie look you’ll need an eyebrow pencil, eyeliner (preferably liquid), mascara, foundation and red lipstick.

First make sure you put on a good matt foundation – the paler the better as Bettie was renowned for her alabaster skin. Next your eyebrows will need defining, take a look at Bettie on the internet to see her eyebrow shape – they were slightly on the heavy side. Use your pencil to thicken your brows and create more shape. You don’t want it to look too fake though so keep the shape similar to your real brows and just use the pencil to fill in any gaps and create more shape.

Next you’ll want to draw a line with your liquid eyeliner along your upper eyelid and flick this out towards the outer edge to create a cats eye shape add lashings of mascara to finish this look.

Finish with fiery red lipstick.

Now you have the look it’s now time to strike a pose… whip, crack! Down boy!

Retro Dresses

There’s the gorgeous circle dresses, saucy Hawaiian dress, sophisticated shift dress and the super sexy wiggle dress to choose from when looking at the 50s era. All of these retro dresses are curve-friendly and serve a different purpose. The shift dress is great for the office and evening (think Mad Men for inspiration) circle dress for a more playful approach to the era and the Hawaiian print and wiggle dress for the true pinup style… take a look at Bettie Page and you’ll see how these dresses should be worn.

50s Hair

For a rockabilly 50s look then you’ll need a quiff with lots of height or (if you’re brave enough) a Bettie Page fringe – but only get this at a reputable retro salon! Victory rolls are also gorgeous and can work on long and short hair – the key to mastering this look is practice, practice, practice.

50s Makeup

To nail 50s makeup you need to memorise this mantra: ‘I must define my brows, make my eyes stand out and always add lipstick’. In other words the 50s makeup look is not a subtle era – nevertheless it’s a gorgeous time for makeup. Eyebrows were strong and defined, eyes had a slick of liquid eyeliner and lips were red and feisty.

Clockwise from bottom: White Floral Dress: ASOS | Floral Girls: Nasty Gal | Daisy Jumper: Elle | Floral Wallpaper: Ectomorrrph

On the SS13 catwalks 40s inspired ditsy florals were seen on jumpsuits and maxi dresses whilst large floral prints leaned more towards the 60s. It’s up to you how you wear your florals.

Ditsy florals tend to be more subtle and feminine and work well for daywear, although many outfits can of course be adapted for the evening. Wear a floral print jumpsuit with flatforms and a cardigan during the day and for the evening add a pair of killer heels, slash of red lipstick and victory rolls for that gorgeous pin-up look.

If you’re going for something a little louder then wear big, bold floral prints on strong structured shapes such as A-line dresses and skirts for a 60s retro style.

If you don’t rate yourself as a ‘girly-girl’ then remember it’s easy to add edge to floral outfits. Mix things up a little with edgy jewellery with leather, spikes and beads. Your shoes will change the direction of your outfit too – chunky wedges and ankle boots will ‘toughen’ up the floral look whereas sandals and court shoes will make it look more vintage. Wear your hair tousled and modern (the grungy low-fi look is IN this season) or retro and considered.

1. Oasis Almari Dart Detail Rib Dress, £50: This basic wiggle dress will give you flexibility to wiggle at the office, or for fun.

2. ASOS Wiggle Dress With Exaggerated Hips And Embroidery, £120: Show off your personality with this embroidered, enhanced silhouette.

3. Dolce & Gabbana Rose-Print Crepe Bustier Dress, £880: Be funky and chic in this Dolce & Gabbana wiggle dress with gorgeous florals.

4. French Connection Manhattan Jersey Colour Block Dress, £60: Fantastic for the office place, this figure-hugging colour block dress is professional but not boring.

5. Oasis Victoria Lace Print Shift, £65: Wiggle with a little lace! Be demure and sexy all at once.

6. Farfetch Malene Birger ‘Elizao’ Dress, £152.97: Be pretty in pink with this gorgeous, curve-enhancing frock.

7. Topshop Scratch Graffiti Midi Dress, £32: Funky and fabulous, this modern twist will stand out against all other dresses in the room.

8. Joseph Red/White Wool-Cashmere Paule Spot Knit Dress, £286: Combine a cute polkadot with a very sexy dress and you can’t go wrong.

9. Zero + Maria Cornejo Sayah Dress, £297.52: This dress gathers in all the right places and will make you feel fabulous.

10. Farfetch DSquared2 Melange Jersey Dress, £538.97: This wiggle dress can be dressed up or down and work for a myriad of stylish occasions.

Joan Harris from Mad Men in Fashionable Wiggle Dress. Image from AMC.

With Mad Men, Downton Abbey and The Great Gatsby guiding modern fashion trends, vintage inspired fashion is on the rise. Now, you might think you can’t wear vintage to the office, that it’s only for after hours and weekends, but we think you might be wrong. Vintage wear is becoming more acceptable for the office, especially in creative industries like graphic design, digital media, publishing, tech, advertising, non-profit and other creative, less formal office settings. If you work for a bank, law firm or insurance company, it might be a little bit more difficult to wear your vintage looks, but don’t be afraid to experiment a little and throw a vintage piece in here and there. Do be sure to follow your employee dress policies though!

What to Wear

A good place to start figuring out what vintage looks to wear to the office is to look at women’s office wear of the past.

Wiggle Dresses

Our first and favourite option: the wiggle dress. Think Joan Holloway / Joan Harris from Mad Men above, if you’ve never heard of this dress before now. During the 50s & 60s, women wore wiggle dresses to the office. These dresses were very body conscious and are meant to exaggerate the hourglass silhouette with a hemline that narrowed from the hips to the knee.

Colour Block Wiggle Dress with Belt from Asos.

Suits

Just like today, women wore suits in the office. They tended to be nipped in at the waist and with narrower skirts as opposed to full skirts, which were more common outside of the office. Suits were often more feminine than what one thinks of as a business suit of today. Vintage suits had more details like trim and darts. Sleeves were often shorter for practical reasons – like keeping them from getting caught in or soiled by typewriters.  A popular style was the Box Style jacket – a boxy jacket that draped to just below the waist and just above the hip.

1950s Suits from Sammy D Vintage.

Gloves and Hats

During the 40s, 50s and part of the 60s, women didn’t leave the house without gloves and hat. Hats and gloves became as integral to an outfit as our handbags are to us today. The office was no exception either. These accessories weren’t worn in the office, but  worn while travelling to the office and while on lunch and breaks outside of the building.

Skirts and Blouses

While less formal than a suit, dresses and blouses were worn in the office. Pencil skirts we popular as were tie-front blouses.

Pencil Skirt and Tie-Front Blouse from Mod Cloth.

Women Working in a 1950′s Office. Image from National Women’s History Museum.

Tips on How to Wear Vintage at the Office

• Don’t wear vintage head-to-toe. It really is too much for the office and gives the impression that you’re in costume.
• Be careful of wearing styles that are too body conscious for the office.
• Some vintage styles might be too dressy for the office. Fashion, especially for the office, has become less formal over the years. So, if a piece seems too dressy for work, consider accessorising it to make it more work appropriate, i.e. add a belt and cardigan.
• Leave the vintage makeup and hairstyles for after work – it’s definitely too much for the office.
• Don’t go crazy with prints and fabrics. It’s easier to get away with vintage styles at the office if they are monochromatic and aren’t made from 1970s polyester.
• Don’t wear anything too dated. The goal is to create an updated vintage inspired look, not look like you are working in London circa 1957.
• Oftentimes, vintage clothing is easy to spot because it’s just a little saggy, missing a few beads and has some piling. Don’t wear anything that isn’t in tiptop shape and condition.

Do you wear vintage clothing to the office? Are you planning to after reading this article? Let us know in the comments below!