Vintage is more fashionable than ever.
Wearing something that carries a story with it is a privilege, often expensive.
Each historical period has been represented by a style of clothing that has told the changes and moods.
Fashion trends speak of the era we are living in and anticipate the story to come.
By the same token, the clothes we choose to wear every morning tell us who we are, the moment we are experiencing and also our emotions.
I have prepared 7 moodboards. One for a decade, from the 20s to the 80s (yes, the 80s for boys are already vintage!).
And for each of them, I'll explain to you how to recreate a vintage look, using modern garments, and what elements to put in your everyday clothing for a retro touch.
Along with the description of the board, I'll also tell you about the type of woman it refers to.
20 YEARS
The woman of the 1920s is certainly the most transformative. Modest and modest by day, she becomes a butterfly by night and moves her body to the rhythm of jazz.
During the war she had to put herself to the test in a forced way: with the men, at the front, she had to fill vacancies in factories and workplaces.
And she had shown everyone, and first and foremost herself, that she could be autonomous.
The clothes had become comfortable to face the new electrifying life in motion, the hair had been cut to the boy/garçonne and the face emphasized with makeup in its salient features, to highlight the new playful and conscious sensuality.
During the day, pants appear (already introduced at the end of the nineteenth century by the feminist movement like Amelia Bloomer) and in the evening, everything is studied to attract attention on the dance floor, where the woman, finally free (or apparently free) can afford to go crazy all night long.
A flapper dress will suit you well if you are both mischievous and romantic. It will be perfect on a tiny body, with little breast and graceful shapes.
Essential elements are the fringes on the dress and the embroidered handbag that flutter, following the movements of the body and giving gracefulness, and the long necklace to give further rhythm with its clink.
And on her short hair, worn as a helmet, suitable for framing a face with not too marked features, she gives the go-ahead to feathers and tiaras.
30 YEARS
The woman of the 30's is an elegant and refined woman. By now aware of herself she has gone from exaggeration to refinement, even when she dares with voluminous prints and references to the canvases of artists. The back is straight, the body is dry, the perfect posture to be wrapped in long, draped evening dresses.
During the day the clothes are tight and comfortable thanks to the new fabrics such as jersey with which to combine a wide coat and the inevitable cloche, the bell hat perfect for framing the face and the new short hair.
The shoes keep the T-belt that holds the foot firmly when dancing (dancing has been one of the greatest sources of inspiration since the beginning of the last century, particularly Nijinsky and his Russian ballets influenced fashion and culture in a clear way).
A detail that is not to be missed are the stockings with a back row (in wartime those who no longer had the money to buy the stockings made up for the lack by drawing a row with the pen).
The accessories are particular and wink at surrealism/
The makeup is well cared for and begins to be coordinated (mouth, hands, cheeks of the same color) thanks to the invention of Elizabeth Arden.
40 YEARS
The look of the '40s becomes more austere, it is that of a woman in war who needs all her strength to overcome a second world war in a few years and a fierce battle situation, not limited to distant battlefields but fought on the streets below the house (obviously talking about Europe).
The silhouette of the clothes is what Elsa Schiaparelli called a skyscraper, the straight shoulders (yes, the 80's did not invent their straps) to emphasize the well-turned arms. The sure attitude, the step weighed down by thick clothes, rough fabrics (in times of war had returned to the limitations on the fabric and its import, limitations that almost did not fail the French fashion) and heavy footwear.
The bag becomes larger to carry as many things as possible, because you never know if, once you leave the house, you will return.
The hair was placed in a comfortable and practical turban to raise the forehead and consequently the whole figure (and after the victory of the Allies came the Victory Rolls, maxi curlers aimed at the top of the head to create soft waves, like those of the volutes in the sky of the victorious planes, and volume).