Ring Bearer Costumes: A 1920s Outfit



Figure 1.--These children were the ring bearer and flower girl in a formal wedding. The portrait was undated, but HBC would estimate that it was in the 1920s.

HBC has no details on this image. It is an American image which we believe it is a wedding portrait of a ring bearer and flower girl. It was probably a 1920s wedding, but this is only a guess on our part. The image is not real clear, but sone details can be made out.

Chronolgy

Ring bearers in the 1920s commonly wore fancy, elaborate costumes like this. The fact that he is wearing long stockings suggest that it is a 1920s wedding as kneesocks were more common in the 1930s, although they did not entirely replace long stockings. Note that the stockings are quite long, they were generally made shorter in the 1910s as boys wore knee-length pants and knickers and they did nmot have to made so long. Also it became less common to especially style a boys' hair.

Ages

The boy looks to be about 5 years old. His sister looks a little older, perhaps 7 years old.

Ring Bearer

While the image is not as clear as we would like, some details can be made out about the costume.

Blouse

The boy's blouse as it looks to be white, or a very light color, does not show up well in the photograph, so it is difficult to make out the details. It look like it may have a sailor collar or at least a collar which sweeps back. It does not appear to have any colored trim. It has shortened below the elbow sleeves. It looks to be a silk blouse. I do not see any lace and ruffled trim.

Bow

The boy appears to wear a white bow with his blouse. It is a good sized bow, but not massive like the bows in the 1980s and 90s. It is tied without tails, almost like a bow tie.

Pants

The boy appears to be wearing above the knee knickers. They look to be a pastel color, perhaps a light blue. It is nor clear if they match the blouse.

Stockings

The boy wears long stockings with his costume. They are white stockings which became popular for formal, dressy outfits after the turn of the 20th century. They continued popular in the early 1920s, but were declining in popularity by the end of the decade. Black stockings were also worn for formal events, but white stockings were more common.

Shoes

The boy wears blacl strap shoes. They are the classic style with the starp at the insole. They appear to have a particularly wide strap.

Flower Girl

The flower girl appears to wear a minature white bridal gown. It is complete with a veil. If she was Catholic, perhaps it could be used for First Communion. I doubt if the boy's costume could be used for another event. These children probably came from affluent families, so the reuse of even expensdive costumes was probably not an issue.

Hair Style

The ring bearer appears to have his hair styled for the weedding. At least I have not noted a lot of boys in the 1920s wearing their hair styled like his. I'm not sure how to describe it. The hair style is interesting in that it is similar to the one's worn by some boys in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Reader Comments

One reader writes, "It would be helpful to me if you stated whether the boy is wearing a romper suit with a fancy sailor collar or knee pants with white stockings. It appears to me he is wearing white stockings and no knee pants but I am not certain." HBC reply: HBC believes that the ring bearer is wearing above the knee knickers. Rompers were commonly worn by younger boys in the 1920s, but they were primrily a play costume and would not have been seen as appropriate for a formal weddimg. HBC has seen formal rompers, but not in the 1920s.





Christopher Wagner






Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site religious pages:
[Return to the Main individual wedding page]
[First Communion] [Ring bearer] [Victorian wedding]



Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Introduction] [Activities] [Bibliographies] [Biographies] [Chronology] [Clothing styles] [Contributions] [Countries]
[Boys' Clothing Home]



Created: June 16, 2001
Last updated: June 17, 2001