Were Flapper Dresses Really That Short? (10 Photos)

At the time that jazz music was gaining popularity in the US during the 1920s the hemlines of young ladies were rising. So-called flappers were the next generation, a group of youngsters intent on dancing, enjoying life, and even breaking a few conventions while they were at it. After the First World War ended many women had a newfound sense of independence. Flappers were often described as showing a scandalous amount of leg and flapper costumes you can buy today are pretty short. But, this begs the question: a century ago were flapper dresses really all that short? Let’s take a walk look at some historical photos to find out how short they really were.

Sitting down the skirts rose up to almost show the knees on English actress Joyce Barbour.

When standing, actress Claire Windsor shows just how long the dresses could be back then. You can see the length on this dress doesn’t even reveal much of her calves. This would be considered a tea dress by later generations- one of the most appropriate skirt lengths for just about any occasion. But, it was still much shorter than dresses of the 1910s had been.

A group of fashion models seated shows just how long the dresses were- quite modest by today’s standards. However, all the dresses are sleeveless which is something many women would not have dared to wear in public in the decades prior to the 1920s.

Canadian actress Marie Prevost wears a quintessential flapper outfit in sequins and pearls while holding a feather fan. This photo from between 1920 and 1925 shows her hem is shorter at the sides, still leaving plenty of length at the front and back. This was probably a bit cheeky for the era, but stars could often get away with flashier clothing.

This image from a humorous stereograph series shows a young woman intending to makeover her mother as a flapper. You can see the differences of the hem lengths side-by-side in this picture.

These two women show that day dresses could be as short as at the knee during this era. This photo dates from around 1925.

Even doing the Charleston on a ledge we still can’t really see much in the way of knees.

Playing tennis in 1928 with a shorter skirt, but it’s still pretty long. It looks as though it comes to the middle of her knees!

This photo from the late 1920s shows performer Kono San in a handkerchief hem dress. This style was popular during the era. The longer pieces gave the effect of flitting as one moved, but the points higher up revealed just the slightest bit more leg than longer dresses.

By the early 1930s women wearing the new styles were still referred to as flappers, though the Great Depression changed a lot of things for most people. Still, you can see that the hemline is just a bit shorter at the end of the flapper era. Though these hems a far cry from what later generations have considered “too short” such as mini skirts and micro skirts!