I heard about this event through Facebook. Having lived in Boston for a few years, I was sad to find out that Los Angeles of all places didn’t have anything like the New England Roaring 20s Lawn party or anything similar to what Greater Vintage Society of Boston does. It wasn’t until a friend shared the event on my feed to let me know that such events like these exist. Even before then, whenever I kept Googling “1920s lawn party Los Angeles,” I would get results that leaded to funeral sites. Either way, I was happy to discover The Roaring 20s Street Jam.
The Dress
I wore this 1920s / tiki style dress I bought from Loco Lindo LA from the Art Deco Festival. It was a nice and airy light dress perfect for summer. Though it was the first day of Fall, I wanted to wear something on the lighter side. I liked the colors and it seemed to go well for a lawn party theme. Because I can’t do my hair for crap, I ended up wearing a wig from Tasty Peach Studios that suited the time period.
Additionally, my partner ended up coming with me. He was originally going to wear a three piece suit, but because it was 90+ in Griffith Park, he decided against it. Instead, he did a variation of his safari professor look. The hat is actually vintage from New Hampshire. Everything else is from his closet.
The Picnic
Because this was bring your own food, we stopped by Trader Joe’s to grab salads and apple cider. We had a simple blanket with us for the picnic. I was quite impressed with some of the set up some other groups had – some brought in actual tables and canopies to complete an authentic 1920s look. Others brought old time picnic baskets and had an entire tea time set up. Jared and I were brainstorming ideas of what we wanted to do should we ever do this again. We were thinking a safari / Lovecraft theme where we could have a small table where we could have our drinks and salads and then do around of Call of Cthulhu before sunset.
Vendors
There were a couple of vendors selling things at the park. These included souvenir parasols and hats – nothing too fancy, but they were there. There were also photographers doing tin type style photos and had a photo booth ready.
The Entertainment
A jazz age lawn party would not be complete without jazz. What I liked about the event is that they played ambient music to contribute to the 1920s atmosphere. They also had a few singers sing a few standards, live bands, and some dancing. Dancing included a dance troupe and Charleston lessons for attendees. People could also dance throughout the picnic. The dance floor was fairly empty because it was too hot to move. Jared and I could have danced, but Jared’s jungle safari explorer boots were in the way.
The Croquet
The event was fairly small compared to other lawn parties I have attended. There was a croquet set by the hill. Jared and I were wandering around to see what else there was to do. Because the croquet sets were free, Jared tried his hand at croquet. He needs to get two strokes off his game after all.
The Outfits
I liked that everyone dressed up for this despite the hot weather. There was a costume contest at the end of the day.
Overall
I really had no idea what to expect from Roaring 20s Street Jam, particularly when I did not know much about it. It is a much smaller event compared to the lawn party on Crane Estate in New England. However, it was a nice way to spend a lazy Sunday. I would do this again and maybe have a few friends to come along. We didn’t go to the merry go round for more dancing in the evening; we were already tired by the end of the day. Maybe another time we can show off our east coast moves…
Links of Interest
Roaring 20s Street Jam Photos by Jennifer Stockert