My house turned 100 years old in 2026, so I decided to throw it a birthday party! I did a ton of research about my house and the neighborhood, and even though I’m not a fan of ’20s fashions, I decided to make a ’20s dress for the event. The party was “1920s costume admired by not required,” and while I have a couple ’20s-ish dresses in my closet, I wanted something in a more daytime fabric because I’d be running around hostessing.
I’ve made a few so-called “one-hour” ’20s dresses before (they always take me a weekend or two, not one hour), so I found a drapey black rayon fabric for the dress and assembled it according to the period diagrams.
1924 “one-hour” dress pattern
As a nod to my Chinese heritage, I added appliqués of a dragon and purple flowers, plus black flowers on the back, all of which I painstakingly hand-sewed down. This was much harder than I expected and took two months, including while I was on a transatlantic cruise. The final touch was a purple silk sash at the dropped waist.
I accessorized with a short curly wig and new ’20s-style eyeglasses. The party was a blast! People did dress up and Bella Donna Historical Performers sang songs from the era.
Photo by Sandra Brenchley.
Photo by Sandra Brenchley.