Fitzgerald sparks the revival of Flapper Fashion

Whether you loved or despised it throughout English A-Level, Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby can be deemed nothing less than a literary classic. Set to be released in Summer 2013, six months after the original date, Baz Luhrmann’s new film adaptation of the novel, with its all-star cast, curious yet compelling soundtrack and of course, lavish costumes, is set to be a classic in its own right, thrusting this celebrated 20s novel, and its era’s fashion, back into the limelight.

As if the list of star-studded celebrities involved in this production wasn’t extensive enough (Luhrmann, DiCaprio, Mulligan and Maguire to name but a few), Miuccia Prada has also had considerable involvement with the costume design. Prada and Catherine Martin, Luhrmann’s wife, have selected and adapted forty dresses from the Miu Miu and Prada archives for the 20s women to wear and Jewellers Tiffany & Co. and Brooks Brothers are responsible for completing the quite literally dazzling Jazz Age costumes.

“I usually try not to literally reference periods in my work, because that’s not the way I think,” Prada tells US Vogue. “But when I worked on the costumes, I realized how many pieces could become very 1920s with a little intervention and another point of view.” Not only emulating the glamour and upper-class luxury of the period, the costumes also draw upon the birth of the 20s woman. She smoked, sported short haircuts and strove for sexual emancipation whilst wearing frills, lace and silk; female empowerment at its finest. Yet can we expect to see this woman wandering down Oxford Road nearly a century later?

It is clear designers certainly believe it to be a possibility; after he co-designed costumes for the 1974 Gatsby film, Ralph Lauren’s Spring 2012 collection encompassed translucent sheers, pastel palettes and feather wraps whilst Jill Stuart’s Spring 2013 pieces showcased ‘Gatsby-esque’ femininity with drop waists, plunging necklines and pale minimalistic faces. Whilst not everyone has the petite, boyish figure to pull off a flapper dress, 2013 will allow you to release your inner Daisy Buchanan, even if that simply means incorporating beaded accessories, embellished tops or throwing on a headband.

So whether you loved or hated Fitzgerald’s novel, make use of Orange Wednesdays next May and see what all the fuss is about.