When we saw these spiderweb shoes in a vintage catalogue from the 1920s, our jaws totally dropped! Bada-bing-bada-boom, now we have Parker Vintage Shoes, resplendent in all her spidery goodness. Spiderwebs are…
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Glamorous 1920s Shoes and the History Behind Them
Something about the fall and winter months reinvigorates enthusiasm for the Jazz Age, Art Deco, and all things 1920s and flappers! Working on the designs for the All Hallows collection also totally…
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All Hallows – {Pre-Order Open}
It’s spooky season, and to celebrate we have some enchanting shoes for you! This collection is definitely aesthetic, vibing strong in the 1920s with a dash of gothic goodness. Satins, patents, and…
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The History of Mary Jane Shoes
The new Prism collection features not one but two splendid Mary Janes, Anna May (3 inch heel) and Millie (1.75 inch heel). We have been working on these babies for a looooong…
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All About Anna May Wong
Have you heard of Anna May Wong? Anna May is widely considered to be the first major Chinese-American film star, and she is the namesake of our new Anna May Mary Jane…
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“Prism” by American Duchess – August 2022 Pre-Order is Open!
The new “Prism” collection is now ready! This collection is all about colors, presenting several new colorways in AD classics, along with a new design in two different heel heights. Before we…
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We’re Sports People Now: A Brief History of Victorian/Edwardian Tennis Shoes
Our latest pre-order features an especially fun style; a reproduction Victorian/Edwardian sporting shoe! This shoe is the ancestor of our modern sneakers. We call our version the “Kedwardian’ (heh heh). We were…
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The “Star Princess” Camille Boots
The stuff sparkly dreams are made of. Back when we did the color poll for the Camille Edwardian Boots, we got a fair few comments about doing them in metallic silver and…
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UPDATE: The Scandalous Tango Boots!
Around the time of the turn of the 20th century, a new dance craze swept the Western world. The dance was risque and immensely popular, first introduced to Paris by the sons…
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Book Review: Women of the 1920s: Style Glamour, & the Avante-Garde by Thomas Bleitner
Louise Brooks On the eve of the 2020s, the spell of the exciting and revolutionary 1920s looms large. It was an unforgettable era with deep cultural shifts and powerful aesthetics. Women, in…
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Meet our New Theatrical Footwear Line!
American Duchess Spring/Summer 2019 Theatrical Line We are trying lots of new things this year in shoe-company-land. For years we have (rather unexpectedly) supplied historical footwear to the opera, ballet, and theater,…
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Where to Find Great War Era Sweaters
Original advertisement for 1919 sweaters – image from Wearing History (click through to visit her blog post on these sweaters) I don’t know about you, but when I see September on the…
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Podcast Episode 13: Flappers, Fringe, and Fashion with Zoë Beery
Nope. Hi All! This week on Fashion History with American Duchess we speak with the amazing Zoë Beery, a writer for Racked, about her article on how flappers didn’t wear fringed dresses (at least…
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Pattern Review: Decades of Style #2502 – 1925 Zig Zag Dress
Hello Lovelies! Abby here, reporting for 1920s vintage-y fashion-y goodness! Today, I wanted to share with y’all my snazzy new 1920s dress I made for The Gatsby Summer Afternoon in Oakland earlier…
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How To Make a 1920s Miss Fisher Wardrobe
For Costume College 2016, one of the classes I taught was about making a “Miss Fisher” wardrobe, developing your style based on the popular Australian murder-mystery show set at the end of…
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The Gatsby Picnic in Pictures
Lauren, Abby, and Tina at The Gatsby Oh Gatsby Summer Picnic how I love you … let me count the ways! This year Abby and I ventured over the hill to one…
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The Vintage Makeup Review – with Lauren & Abby
Whether you’ve gone fully down the vintage style rabbit hole of everyday dress or you need a faceplan for an impending costume party, today we’re going to share with you our discoveries…
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Pattern Review: Decades of Style #2005 1920s “Baltimore” Dress
My Decades of Style “Baltimore” dress in green and ivory striped cotton. This past weekend was one of my favorite events of the year, the Oakland Gatsby. This annual end-of-Summer picnic is…
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Getting Ready for Gatsby
Hello Lovelies! Abby here — and let me tell you — I have 1920s on the brain! Now that Costume College has ended, the Royal Vintage travel schedule has died down just…
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Oh Snap – A 1920s Photo Shoot
Back in April we did a photo shoot for the new “Deco Darlings” designs, showcasing two of our lovely 1920s and 30s shoes – Evelyn and Lillian. Because the Deco Darlings work…