After the Armistice in 1918
by Esther May Flowers Edwards
Demob Party, 1918
Included are:- Archie Michael, Phil Kift, Will Thomas, Alf Reeves, H. Thomas and Bill Lewis
photo; Mrs. KippinThe 1914-18 war was over and the young men came home from the army and navy. The girls were all waiting for them ready to enjoy themselves. Fashions changed.
Typical fashion
The girls had their hair bobbed, but before that, all women had had long hair. Girls from about sixteen had sleeveless dresses, cut high above the knee and low in front. They wore long strings of beads almost to the hems of their frocks, the bigger the beads, the better they were. Lipstick and powder were considered essential to the completed toilette. Cold cream went on first, then the powder and bright red lipstick. There was no eye shadow or mascara. As I was only ten, I was still stuck in my navy gym-slip and black stockings, while the young ladies were wearing ‘french’ knickers, lace petticoats and silk stockings with fancy garters, worn showing just above the knee. They wore snake bangles on their upper arms and slave bangles too, which were either silver or gold. Very narrow glass bracelets came in—all colours of the rainbow. You wore as many as you could, to make them jingle nicely. Pointed shoes were fashionable and the men wore these too with blazers. I was about ten, when I had my first ‘bob’. There was also the pageboy or the shingle, which was cut high in the back, in layers. We used heated tongs on our hair and hair-nets to keep it tidy on the beach—the Ena Sharples look!
Cars came on the road. Young men in MG sports cars, which had no seats at the back, just the driver’s seat and the passenger’s, who was usually a pretty girl.
Woodbines appeared. A paper pack of five costing 2d and a book of matches were to be found in any smart young lady’s bag. The men had cigarette cases and a box of Swan in their pockets. They used Brylcreem to keep their hair tidy and wore Oxford bags and jackets. We saw coloured shirts for the first time — up until then they had only been white or blue.
These memories illustrate the ‘roaring twenties’ with people trying to forget the trauma of the war, but its aftermath continued to be felt by many. During one carnival, I remember seeing, a man pushing a railway porter’s trolley, on which was a soldier with no legs, standing up on his bum as he couldn’t sit down. He wanted to see the carnival. There were also a couple of street singers, who were casualties of the Great War. The men used to hold their caps out and the women their hands.
There was some fighting in the Ship and Castle between those who had been to war and those who hadn’t. One soldier put a man’s head through the railings and he had the spike through his cheek.
Esther May Flowers Edwards, March 1911-June 2001
Extracts from the autobiography of Esther May Flowers Edwards
The beginning is always a good place to start a story, so that is where I shall begin ...