Charlot was not an original clothing designer. She was a singer and actress in an opera company. She worked that way until the Second World War was over and she got married to her husband Philip.

She was, however, sensitive to fashion. She was very particular about the clothing she wore while up on stage. She hired dressmakers to look at her designs and sew dresses based on them.

When her husband lost his job, and she had limited funds, she decided to continue creating her own designs instead of purchasing dresses. She was limited in what she could do, however, since she never had learned how to sew. Her mother owned a factory that gave her access to free felt material, so that was the material that Charlot decided to use with her full skirt.

Felt is a material that does not require hemming because it can be cut in a full circle. Charlot decided to make her first skirt during the Christmas season by adding cute Christmas appliqués to the skirt. She liked it so much she made three more like it and sold them at a Beverly Hills Boutique in town.

After the holidays she was asked to design some more skirts using a popular dog theme. That theme eventually turned to poodle themes. Thus, the poodle skirt was born.

Charlot’s designs began to grow in popularity. More and more stores wanted her designs in their store. By the time she turned 25 she already had her own clothing factory and 50 employees under her wing creating poodle skirt designs.

Juli Charlot is a great example of how to overcome challenges. She didn’t know how to sew, but she loved creating fashionable items to wear, so she came up with a design that she could do on her own. She did eventually learn how to sew later on in life.

They work for both adults and children. Poodle skirts look great on little girls. Girls will have a blast dressing up in their skirts and twirling in front of the mirror.

They also work well with adults. They come in a variety of styles, sizes, and colors. That way you can choose a poodle skirt that matches the personality of the person you are giving the skirt to.

You can choose to get ones that are authentic like they actually were in the fifties. Originally they came in bright colors that also had a colored appliqué that was metallic. The appliqué was that of a poodle, often shown with a bright collar and leash that wound its way up to the waist of the skirt.

Another good gift would to purchase some petticoats for the skirt. Petticoats and crinoline were often worn underneath the skirts. They fill the skirts out a little more and make them look more full.

Petticoats are also nice for giving the skirts movement. Since the skirt is round or circular, petticoats and crinoline really make the skirt have a more dramatic appearance. They are really fun to dance in.

Poodle skirts look great with other 50’s costumes. You can pair it with the complete attire package. Throw in a beautiful blouse, matching cardigan, and a pretty scarf. Footwear can also come in handy with 50’s costumes. Find some saddle shoes with bobby socks to pull off the look.

Gift shopping can be a real headache. Save yourself the trouble of stressing over a gift by finding a cute poodle skirt today. You won’t be disappointed.

First of all, the 1950’s have a lot of things to offer. There are fun 50’s outfits that you can purchase to wear to make the event fun. Plus there is good Christmas décor, and beautiful 50’s Christmas music that you can listen to.

Food – Serve a traditional, holiday meal that would have been served in the fifties. This can include holiday glazed ham, parsley potatoes, eggnog, green salad bowl with French dressing, individual plum puddings, broccoli, fruit cocktail, potato cubes or roast potatoes, and Parkerhouse rolls. Choose your favorite array of food items and be sure to serve on nice china.

50’s Outfits – Ask guests to dress up in traditional 50’s outfits. Adult men can wear suits and fedora hats, women can dress up as fifties housewives with heels and full dresses that reach a little below their knees. Teenagers and children can have fun with greaser outfits, poodle skirts, white t-shirts, slicked back hair, ponytails, and rolled up jeans.

Christmas Decorations – Decorations always help a party start off on the right foot. Use Christmas decorations that would have been used back in the 1950’s. These include gilt paper dollies that are red, white, or green. You can also use candles, pine cones, and fun place settings such as napkins that have the guest’s Initial on it.

Christmas Songs – Nothing brings us back to the good years of the fifties like holiday music can. Choose songs that were played on the radio during the fabulous fifties. There are literally dozens of holiday favorites that you can choose from.

One of the most popular Christmas artists during the fifties was the charming Bing Crosby. He sang the classics, such as Away in a Manger and Deck the Halls, but he also has other holiday favorites such as “White Christmas”. Other favorite artists from that time period are Burl Ives, Dean Martin, The Andrews Sisters, Frank Sinatra, Gene Autry, Nat King Cole, Bobby Helms, Alvin & the Chipmunks, Brenda Lee, and The Ames Brothers.

Party Favors – Wrap party favors in Christmas boxes, which you can find at dollar stores. Purchase miniature classic cars from the fifties era and write the guests name on it with the date of the party. You can also choose to do a Christmas theme for favors, such as a Christmas coffee mug with a yummy treat inside.

Start with a great invitation. Invitations are the first thing your guests will look at so be sure that you have a fun invitation to share. You can make hand-made invitations or purchase ones that have a 50’s theme.

Another important aspect of sock hops is the costume choices. 50’s attire is mandatory to pull off a successful sock hop. This means wearing bobby socks, saddle shoes, cuffed jeans, leather jackets, poodle skirts, and cat glasses.

Dances need really good music to dance to. Stick to the popular classic choices with your music. Elvis Presley and Bill Haley will definitely liven up the dance party.

You could hire a choreographer to teach some fun 50’s dance moves to people who are interested. There are quite a few fun dance steps including the bop, the hand jive, and the cha cha. Some people like to have the choreographer teach guests the dance moves an hour or half  hour before the dance starts so they can use those moves during the dance.

Food and refreshments are also a necessity. If you want to keep it light you can choose to serve ice cream sundaes and milkshakes. For more of a meal you can have the famous 50’s meal of hamburgers, French fries, and coca cola.

Dances need good decorations to keep them fun. Transform your dance location into a 50’s hangout spot. Hang up music notes, records, silhouettes of dancers, and classic cars.

Make your sock hop a fun place to be. Planning ahead can really help make everything come together nicely for your dance party. Brainstorm what you would like to see and make it happen.

Clothing – Clothing styles were classified in to different types. Preppy styles were poodle skirts, button-blouses, and cardigans for girls. Guys wore button down polo’s, blazers, letterman’s jackets, and loose fitted slacks.

The Greasers were also a popular style during the fifties. Greaser guys wore white t-shirts, tight rolled up jeans, and leather jackets. They took their inspiration from the Hollywood legend James Dean.

Hairstyles – Hairstyles also varied. Girls often wore their hair in ponytails or short, curly poufy hairstyles. Guys wore their hair slicked back or parted to the side.

Shoes – Nothing quite expresses shoes from a 50’s outfit like the saddle shoe. Women also wore flats, stilettos, high-heeled boxy shoes, and “ballerina” slippers. Flats and ballerina slippers were worn to school or worn with slacks.

Accessories – A scarf was a very popular accessory for girls in the fifties. Scarves could be tied around ponytails or worn around the neck. Hats and caps were also popular, as well as pearl necklaces and pearl-stud earrings.

Makeup – When I think of fifties makeup I think of stars like Marilyn Monroe. Good makeup choices are cherry red lipstick, moderate false eyelashes, and lightly penciled eyebrows. Try using thicker eyeliner just on the top lid and see if you like it.

These ideas can be used for costume parties, sock hops, or just for dressing up. Having the proper 50’s outfit put together can really make you look great and wow your friends and family members. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by. Find the right 50’s gear to put together an amazing 50’s costume this year.

“Grease” Party – Get a group of friends together for a fun 50’s movie party. You can have some friends dress up as the good-girl Sandy with poodle skirts, cardigans, and ponytails. Others can come dressed up as the pink ladies or grease members. Add some soda and popcorn and you have the perfect Grease party.

Car Hop – Host a carhop or look for a carhop in your area. 50’s costumes work perfectly for carhops. Dressing up in 50’s attire makes the car hop look more authentic, and makes it a much more fun experience for everyone involved.

Sock Hop – Have a fun sock hop dance party. Pull together the amazing music from the 50’s. You can even host the dance in a gym and ask guests to take off their shoes for the event.

Costume Party – Costume parties work all year round. Have a fun party this year by asking guests to come in costume attire. You can have a themed costume party or have everyone choose their own costume.

Drive-In Movie -  Does your town have a drive-in movie? Dress up in vintage clothing and go as a group to a drive-in-movie. If you don’t want to go to an actual drive-in you can rent a projector and play the movie off of the side of your home or a large sheet or screen.

Dance Recital – Use a 50’s theme for you upcoming dance recital. 50’s music works for individual recitals or group recitals. Swing dancers, in particular, love using the 50’s theme with their recitals.

There are a lot of different activities that you can go to and wear your amazing costume at. Have fun with the activities you host, and keep your eyes open for fun 50’s activities in the community. You can have a lot of fun by following through with these good, wholesome activities.

During the 1950’s teenagers had quite a few options as far as 50’s outfits were concerned. There were the preppy outfits, the jock outfits, and the new greaser outfits. Each of these styles was a popular 50’s fashion choice.

Girls who were more on the preppy side wore skirts and blouses. They wore soft cardigans over their blouses. They wore their hair curled and sometimes put a bow in their hair.

The skirts varied in styles, but the most popular option was the famous poodle skirt. The poodle skirt was often made out of felt or wool, or heavier material. The term poodle skirt came from the appliqués that teenagers liked to add to their skirt to make it more personal and cute. These appliqués were things such as poodles and music records.

While this was the everyday wear for teenagers, teenage girls still had to don fancy cocktail dresses for entertainment purposes. Cocktail dresses are dresses that have full skirts that required crinoline or petticoats. The petticoats gave the dresses the fullness they needed.

Teenage boys also wore preppy 50’s outfits. This usually consisted of button down shirts that were collared and loose-fitted pants. Jocks often were seen wearing their letterman jacket.

Greaser 50’s outfits were also a popular option for teenagers. James Dean and Marlon Brando were the inspiration for this type of style. Teenage boys would often wear tight-fitted rolled jeans that were blue and a white or black t-shirt. They would often wear a leather jacket with it.

Girls that liked the greaser style wore similar 50’s outfits. Teenage girls that wore greaser styled clothes wore tight jeans or capris instead of full skirts. They also opted for t-shirts instead of button down blouses, and often wore high heels instead of white tennis shoes.

50’s Themed Party – Host a 50’s party. Invite family and friends to come dressed in their fifties attire. Your 50’s costume will definitely come in handy for a fifties gathering.

Birthday Party – Having a hard time coming up with a theme for your child’s birthday party? Have a fifties theme. Make it fun for girls by having them dress up in adorable poodle skirts, and boys can have fun slicking back hair and putting on fake tattoos.

Dress Up Party – Every girl loves a dress up party. Your child’s poodle skirt will work perfectly for this. Include your own, and some of your other fun dresses, shoes, and hats for girls to use to dress up in.

Sock Hop Dance – Sock hops were popular in the fifties, and can be just as popular today. Use your 50’s costumes for a fun dance. Be sure to listen to rockin’ 50’s music to keep the fifties theme rolling.

Mother’s Day Tea Party – Make a tradition to have a Mother’s Day tea party every year with your daughters. Both you and your daughters can dress up in fun sun hats, cute poodle skirts, and fancy dress shoes. Have fun with the menu and choose food and drinks that you and your daughters can both enjoy.

Couple’s Party – Couple’s parties are a lot of fun. Each couple is asked to dress up as famous couples. This year dress up as Sandy and Danny from Grease with your awesome 50’s costumes.

There are actually a lot of great ways you can still use your 50’s costumes after Halloween. Have fun and enjoy all the creative ways that you can use your fun fifties Halloween costumes. If you have any other great ideas we’d love to hear about it in the comments.

Costume makeup really makes your costume come to life. People are constantly looking into your face and if your face plays the part, then so do the rest of you. The time you will need to spend on your costume will depend on what your costume actually is.

Many costumes portray people as different animals or creatures. The make up that is worn with these costumes should be done to fit the specific creature. There are different techniques that can give the make up the appearance of fur or hair. There is even makeup that can give dimension to your face and other parts of your body.

This dimensional makeup is also used to depict injuries like scars or skin lacerations. It can even change the shape of a nose, cheekbones, or mouth if that is required. It opens the door for so much creativity and accuracy that really adds to the costume and character.

Many times make up is done just to give a stage presence to characters in a play. Most semi- professional and professional acting groups require their actors and actresses to wear makeup especially mascara and/or fake eye lashes. The reason for this is to add distinction to their faces so people in the audience can see more detail in the play. It also accentuates facial expressions and emotions.

Generational makeup is done to give the costume a look from a specific time period. Throughout the years, the way women have worn their makeup has evolved and changed. Having the correct time period makeup will add that much more accuracy and life to the costume you are wearing.

For example, a 50’s costume may entail a poodle skirt and bobby socks but there is also a certain makeup style that goes along with that costume. A 50’s costume will not be complete without the dramatic purely feminine look of a 50’s girls makeup. These details may or may not be important to the person wearing the 50’s costume but for a complete and accurate costume they are necessary.

Costumes are used for so many occasions and can have so much meaning. They can depict anything from an animal to a black eye and everything in between. They give the costume it’s final touch that will really make it come to life.

Bring in a jukebox. A jukebox will pull in the 50’s theme easily. You can bring in an actual jukebox to double as a CD player, or put a stencil of it on the wall.

Decorate room with records. If a jukebox is not your cup of tea, you can still decorate and bring in the classic 50’s theme by portraying music records in your room. You can display a few on the wall, or display record covers as part of the wall art.

Make your photos look antique. If you have a favorite family picture opt to put it in black and white instead of in color. If you want to go the extra step you can even set up a photo session with your family wearing 50’s style clothing in the picture. 50’s style clothing can be bought online or rented at costume shops.

Use a Moonbeam clock instead of your usual alarm clock. Moonbeam clocks were introduced in the early fifties and are still being replicated today. You can find them for a decent price online.

Use an older, vintage phone. You can replace your cordless phones with an older looking phone that has a spin dial. You can find these types of phones in vintage shops or online.

Frame posters of famous 50’s icons. There are a lot of easily recognizable 50’s icons, such as Elvis. Instead of pinning those posters to the wall, make them look more like art by putting them in a nice poster frame. The same can hold true for any stock photos you find of people that are dressed in 50’s style clothing.

Incorporate classic cars in to your decorating. You can do this by posters of classic cars on your walls, desk, or dresser. You can also use model classic cars on any shelves for a nice 50’s touch.