Book Review - 1920s Jazz Age Fashion & Photographs

1920's Jazz Age Fashion & PhotographsMartin Pel and Terence PepperUnicorn in association with Fashion and  Textile Museum, London 2016
ISBN 978 1 911604 22 8
$34.99 (Aust)

I must admit, my knowledge on 1920's fashion is quite limited.  I have been constantly exposed to 1920's fashion in the TV show's such as, 'Miss Fisher Murder Mysteries' or the later years in 'Downton Abbey'.  So you can understand why I was so excited to see this little gem of a book. 

1920's Jazz Age is initially the book that accompanied the exhibition 1920s Jazz Age Fashion and Photographs at London's Fashion Textiles Museum back in 2016 - 2017.  The publication covers the fashion, accessories and photography throughout the jazz age, 1919 to 1929. 

The first chapter gives the reader a general overview of the 1920's movement.  It was a time of freedom for women especially, able to take off their corsets, cut their hair short and be more free with self expression.  Music, fashion, politics, sexuality,  First World War brought so many changes to the 1920's.  

Fashion in the 1920's wasn't just flapper dressers, this is what modern people tend to just think of, due to Hollywood's interpretation of the 20's.  Fashion expanded with the demand of women par taking in more sport, driving automobiles and employment opportunities. 

Continuing on with the book, we have a chapter about James Abbe, Photographer of the Jazz Age. An overview of his climb in the photography industry is illustrated with beautiful sepia and black and white photos.

The photos of the popular The Dolly Sisters feature in the collection.  I was quite fascinated with these photos, because I had only seen The Dolly Sisters feature in the TV Series 'Selfridges'. 

  The Dolly Sisters portrayed in the TV Series
       'Selfridges'. 

The next section is the Fashion Plates from the collection of Mark and Cleo Butterfield. Here we can fest our eyes on these delicious garments and admire the embroidery and beading.  This is where I feel the reader can appreciate that the 20s wasn't just flapper dresses. 

1920s Jazz Age Fashion and Photography is a great beginners resource for fashion history buffs. The complete overview of the time period is presented in a well balanced way.  History, Politics, Fashion and Music all illustrated with the use of text, and photos, excellent resource. 

2018 Victorian Reading Challenge

Well it's that time of year when I start to think of what Book Reading Challenges I will attempt for the next year.  Scanning through Pinterest I found the 2018 Victorian Book Challenge, perfect I thought.  Checked out this reading blog by another Becky (spelt with a c) and she has so many reading challenges.  Great! 

The Challenge!

Victorian Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews
Duration: January - December 2018
Goal: Read a minimum of 4 Victorian books

Sign up in the comments (If you have a blog, please leave your blog address. If you have a Goodreads profile AND if you review regularly on Goodreads, then you may leave that as well.)

I'll have quarterly check-in posts. I'll be posting check-in posts March 25, June 24, September 23, and December 30. You may leave links to your reviews on any of those four posts. If you want to share your review with me BEFORE that, AND if you have twitter, feel free to tweet me a link @blbooks.

Option A.  Read alphabetically A-Z with authors OR titles OR a blend of authors/titles. I've decided that from now on X in reading challenges stands for multiple authors. I'm flipping my "x" to a "+".

Option B. Choose one author to read exclusively for this challenge; perhaps challenge yourself to read chronologically OR to read through an entire series in one year.

Option C. Do as many books from the checklist as you can. Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. 

Option D. Make the challenge completely your own and read as YOUR whimsy dictates.

IF you love Victorian literature AND you happen to love tea...consider joining my Share-a-Tea reading challenge.  

Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. If you list the books you read, that may help other people decide what to read.

This year's checklist:

1. _ A book that was originally published serially
2. _ book published between 1837-1840
3. _ book published between 1841-1850
4. _ book published between 1851-1860
5. _ book published between 1861-1870
6. _ book published between 1871-1880
7. _ book published between 1881-1890
8. _ book published between 1891-1901
9. _ nonfiction published between 1837-1860
10. _ nonfiction published between 1861-1901 
11. _ A book published between 1902-1999 with a Victorian setting
12. _ A book published between 2000-2018 with a Victorian setting
13. _ A fiction or nonfiction book about Queen Victoria
14. _ Biography of a Victorian
15. _ Nonfiction book about the Victorian era
16. _ free choice
17. _ place name in the title
18. _ character name in the title
19. _ book in a series
20. _ drama or melodrama
21. _ gothic, suspense, mystery
22. _ romance or historical
23. _ comedy 
24. _ science fiction or fantasy
25. _ adventure, crime, western
26. _ poetry collection OR story collection
27. _ happily ever after
28. _ unhappily ever after 
29. _ children's book
30. _ translated into English from another language
31. _ a book under 250 pages
32. _ book over 500 pages
33. _ a book over 800 pages
34. _ A book that has been filmed as movie, miniseries, or television show
35. _ memorable heroine
36. _ memorable hero
37. _ British author
38. _ Irish author OR Irish setting
39. _ Scottish author OR Scottish setting
40. _ American author
41. _ reread
42. _ book with a subtitle (the longer the better!)

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

MY AIM

I will only choose a minimum of 4 books, seeing I'm a slow reader and I need time to construct my costumes, thus Option D.

Book Review - The Button Box

The Button Box: The Story of women in the 20th Century, told through 

the clothes they wore

By Lynn Knight

Vintage Penguin Random House

2016

What an absolute delight to read Lynn Knight's social history book on buttons.

Knight reflects on a collection of button's in a shoe box that have been passed down in her family.

In each chapter, a button is selected. Knight writes about the buttons connection with her family and with its connection with fashion and society.

An assortment of buttons like a shoe button, baby button, jet button. Mackintosh button, coat button. And my personal favourite the toggle button are just a small selection of buttons she discusses.  When I see a toggle button, I automatically think of the childhood book character, Paddington Bear.

Each chapter intertwines history and quotes, accompanying stories of her family.  The Button Box is an excellent book to illustrate to the reader that the humble button is not just there to help us wear our clothes, the button is there to also tell a story.

Book Review - Fashion Victims The Dangers of Dress Past and Present

         

   

      When I first spotted 'Fashion Victims : The Dangers of Dress Past and Present', the cover illustration just grabbed me. With it's whimsical macabre dancing woman to the raised red eyes.  I knew I just had to have it.

Fashion Victims, written by Alison Matthews David is about the history of women, men and children's clothing.  How fashion harmed the maker and the wearer.  Covering the time periods 1700's to the 1930's. However there are mentions of recent events, where fashion has harmed the maker or wearer.

The book is divided into categories, each chapter covering a different aspect of fashion that caused disease, accidents and even death.  Each chapter is illustrated with beautiful photos, cartoons and illustrations.  Davids presents interesting facts with anecdotes and illustrations.


Davids doesn't hold back on the explaining how the
workers were treated badly, especially the

women and children. To illustrate how badly workers were treated here is a chromolithograph of damaged hands, the effects of working with arsenic to make artificial flowers.

Reading the chapter 'Poisonous Pigments : Arsenical Greens' was fascinating, however I did have to laugh at myself.  I was wearing green at the time, when reading the chapter, one became a little paranoid.

Fashion Victims is a valuable resource. Each chapter has excellent detailed, EndNotes. The reader has the opportunity to explore more, if they wish.

Fashion Victims is such an amazing book, it really took me on a journey of the past. I could tell Alison Matthews Davids has such a passion for this subject. Her passion was contagious and was a real joy to read, I would thoroughly recommend this beautifully illustrated and informative book, for anyone who loves fashion and history.



Fashion Victims 
: The Dangers of Dress Past and Present
Alison Matthews David
Bloomsbury, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-8452-0449-5

A Year In The Life of Downton Abbey - Book Review

A Year In The Life of Downton Abbey

Jessica Fellowes

2014 Headline Publishing Group

Hardback ISBN 978 1 4722 2053 0

We have another glorious published book on the wonderful British drama, Downton Abbey.  Written by Jessica Fellows, the niece of Lord Julian Fellowes, creator of Downton Abbey. 

This latest book covers the current 5th Season, which takes the viewer to the year 1924.  This publication is divided into months. Each month covers various subjects such as food, locations, props, Ealing Studios, hair and makeup and of course costumes.  I will focus on the costume section for this review. 

Spotlight on Costume is discussed in the chapter June: The London Season.  Costume designer Anna Mary Scott Robbins discusses her history with the show and the process of putting a collection together.  What input she puts in and even the actors have a little input as well.  We read why certain characters wear a particular outfit, where some items are obtained from. Also she discusses that many of the garments are made from scratch by the team of 10 she has. There is even historical mentions on garments.

Through out the book there are many beautiful colour photos of the garments featured in Season 5 of Downton Abbey. For those who like 1920's garments in Britain this book will be a must for their collection.