This past Sunday I attended an event called ” The Gatsby Garden Party” that was run by the Spadina Museum right here in Toronto. It was a lovely afternoon filled with music, croquet, lemonade & ice-cream, Charleston lessons and a tour of this outstanding historical house (I might do a future blog post on the house and the family as this house was really amazing).

The day turned out to be so beautiful, hot but sunny with not a chance of rain anywhere and lots of people came out in full 1920’s style, which I was really glad. Nothing worse than going to a 1920’s party and being the only person IN 1920’s clothes 🙂 I wore a 1920’s reproduction dress from Unique Vintage that was actually my mothers and a 1950’s hat (which looked very 1920’s) from Cabaret Vintage. I received many many compliments on this dress and it was truly beautiful BUT due to the weight of the beads after 4 hours my shoulders were feeling the pain (ahhh what we do for fashion lol). That’s okay I felt fantastic in it and when I danced the beads spun around in the most magical way and I truly felt like I was a part of the Gatsby world.

Here I am out front of the Spadina House.

1920s Gatsby Garden Party at the Spadina Museum in Toronto, Canada. 1920s dress from unique vintage.

Recently I have a joined a Meetup group to meet vintage like-minded ladies and our recent get-together was at the party. I have to say that if you are looking to meet people who share the same likes/interests as you that coming to events like this or joining “Meetup” is a good place to start. These ladies are fantastic and so nice and I am really looking forward to doing more things with them.

Here is a pic of our little group…

Gatsby Summer party at the Spadina Museum in Toronto Canada. This group would eventually become the Toronto Vintage Society.

As mentioned above there was live music at the event and one of the bands that played is a favorite of Swing Dancers in Toronto, “Combo Royale“. Their style according to their website is “Old-Time Foot Stompin Jazz” and that statement is really true for when you are around them you can’t help but clap, sing, dance etc. I love the band and I have also become friends with a few of the members as well 🙂

Combo Royale at the Gatsby Garden Party in Toronto 2013.

As well as music there was Croquet. I really wanted to learn how to play this game but the sun was pretty hot and I was starting to melt so I had to pass this time around.

Gatsby Garden Party in Toronto-Playing croquet.

Here is an awesome picture of the back of the Spadina House and I did not realize that when I took the picture that this very handsome and well dressed man was in it lol! Clearly he thinks I’m taking a picture of him with that perfect pose, when I was really focused on the house. But I’m very happy he did pose because I love this photo even more now.

1920s Gatsby Garden Party at he Spadina House in Toronto Canada

Here I am with a fellow swing dancer (whose names escapes me). Her outfit was outstanding and I think she might of also won the costume contest.

1920s outfits at the 1920s Gatsby Garden Party at he Spadina House in Toronto Canada

The museum was kind enough to let us tour the home as part of the activities of the day and boy oh boy was I glad I did, for this house is truly a masterpiece (and very well restored). The early 1900’s-1930’s décor was drool worthy and I became slightly obsessed on trying to figure out how I could move in here without anyone knowing lol!

Here is a window from the front foyer…wow! Pssst…can you see the animal in the pic? It was a stuffed wolf that welcomed you when you walked in and boy did it look real!

Inside look at the Spadina Museum in Toronto, Canada

Front sitting room (sorry for the blurry pic).

The wallpaper in the house was so incredible and I think I spent a lot of time staring at it and talking about it (my husband was pretty sure I had gone crazy lol), but don’t you agree that it is pretty awesome wallpaper?? According to the guides when the house was given over to the city in the 1980’s they discovered that the Austin family were a bit of hoarders and kept everything, from grocery receipts to….wallpaper swatches! So when the restoration/replication started they had an easy job when it came to recreating the wallpaper. Yay for antique hoarders!

antique wallpaper as seen at the Spadina Museum in Toronto, Canada

This was the closet in the main bedroom, so envious on the size! My closet is an Ikea wardrobe 🙁

Inside look at the Spadina Museum in Toronto, Canada - Walk in Closet.

Vintage dresses on display in the closet of my dreams (see why I wanted to move in).

1920s & 1930s fashions seen at the Spadina Museum in Toronto, Canada

Another Wallpaper shot 🙂 AND the most lovely pictures of the owner and her two daughters (I believe).

Close up of the pictures. Look at the hair? Beautiful.

1920s photo of a family member who lived a the Spadina House in Toronto in her 1920s hairstyle.

OMG! Everything about this photo is outstanding. Hair, clothes, pose..wow! Love 🙂

1930s photo of a woman who lived at the Spadina House in Toronto, Canada.

I sadly did not take a lot of pictures of the inside of the house because I think I was spending too much time gawking and not picture-taking lol! So you will just have to visit Toronto and see it with your own eyes (it is worth the trip trust me). If you do visit you can pop over next door and tour Casa Loma as well.

Here I am at the end of the day in front of Casa Loma.

Gatsby 1920s Party in Toronto, Canada the Spadina Museum. 1920s dress from Unique Vintage.

Have you attended any Gatsby like parties recently?

Liz 🙂

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Unique Vintage are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

There is a pub/bar/my local beer hangout called the Rhino Restaurant in Parkdale, Toronto. They have a mural on the side of their wall that for some reason I only noticed recently that I have found very intriguing and has encouraged me to write a blog post about it. Here is the mural (sorry for the side image but the patio was closed and this was a close as I could get).

Photo of the wall at the Rhino Restaurant in Parkdale Toronto that has a mural of the Miss Toronto Pageant.

It’s a mural of the “Miss Toronto Pageant” in the 1920’s…1926 to be exact, the year that the Miss Toronto Pageant started at Sunnyside Park.

WOW…I never knew Toronto had done anything like this. I moved to the city in 1999 and from my reading I discovered that the pageant closed it’s doors in 1991, so of course I would not of read or heard anything about it. Anyways as I was looking thru some very cool vintage pics of the “early days” of the pageant (lets say pre 1960’s because that is what my blog focuses on) I discovered the original image that the mural was based from. Here it is…the first Miss Toronto winner of 1926 – “Miss Jean Ford Tolmie” in her full glory (holy flower hat!) at Sunnyside Park.

1920s vintage photo of the first Miss Toronto winner of 1926 - "Miss Jean Ford Tolmie" in her full glory (holy flower hat!) at Sunnyside Park. Stunning 1920s hair and 1920s swimsuits.

Image source: Toronto Archives

Look at the hair and the bathing suits and stockings but the best part is how very unhappy the ladies who did not win are. Totally Miserable! Cheer up ladies you are all beautiful and I would not of known who to have picked if I was a judge!

Note: Toronto Archives Website (where I found my images)

Miss Toronto Pageant-The Early Days

History & Photos of the Pageant

There is not a lot of history online about the pageant but what I could find, after its initial startup in 1926 it seemed to remain dormant till about 1937. In 1937 the “Toronto Police Amateur Athletic Association” who wanted to add something “extra special” to their annual Police Games decided to take over the Pageant and run it again. It was not without controversy though, no sooner had the pageant been announced than it came under fire from the Local Council of Women of Toronto in a letter to the Board of Control and the chief of police. The council’s issue was not that the pageant objectified women—as feminists would assert in the future—but rather that the pageant was “not in good taste.” Their letter read in part:

“We look to the heads of the police department not only to see that existing laws pertaining to standards of decency and good taste are enforced, but also to be most punctilious in seeing that nothing they sponsor may tend to have a lowering effect on the standards of the people in general.” (Torontoist.com)

But this did not stop the pageant from moving forward with 350 pretty 16+, British Subjects entering. 66 were then chosen to compete in the finale at the CNE Grandstand (Canadian National Exhibition) on July 17th, 1937. The website “Torontoist.com” has a super post on what went down that day that eventually had the very pretty 17-year-old Billie Hallam become “Miss Toronto, 1937“.

Please Read: Softball Pitcher & Beauty Queen

1937 Photo of 6 of the ladies –Look at their cute shoes and the hair..fantastic!

1937 Miss Toronto contestents posing in their 1930s swimsuits, 1930s hairstyles and 1930s shoes.

Toronto Archives

Your 1937 Miss Toronto Winner-Billie Hallam, isn’t she just a doll?

1930s vintage photo: 1937 Miss Toronto Winner-Billie Hallam spoting a 1930s swimsuit and 1930s hairstyle.

Toronto Archives

With her win, the lovely Miss Hallem won $200 cash (a lot of money in 1937), Free trips to the police games in several other cities, invite to the Miss American pageant, jewellery, and sponsorship deals with companies like “Ponds Produce” & “Star Taxi” to name a few. She even had a potential chance to screen test with R.K.O. Studios…amazing!! (Torontoist.com). This was a huge deal for a 17-year-old in Toronto.

The pageant continued on until 1991 where backlash from Feminists and declining sponsorship eventually saw it shut it doors but thanks to the internet we can relive some of those wonderful pageant moments thru the pictures that still exist today. Lets take a look…

Some of the other contestants from the 1937 pageant. OMG the parasols!!!

1930s Vintage Photo of the Miss Toronto Pageant Contestants from 1937 in 1930s swimsuits, 1930s hairstyles and holding parasols.

Now for something slightly different…”Miss War Worker 1942“. This contest was created to encourage women to enter the workforce during the war (not sure how a pageant would do this, but ok).

1940s Vintage Photo of the Miss War Worker 1942 contest. The image features a group of women in their 1940s factory uniforms standing in a row with numbers.

Miss Toronto 1946 – Her surfing bathing suit from Catalina is totally adorable and something I would love to have today. Check out the ladies in the background, the one to the left looks a bit like Ava Gardner.

Further Reading: Summer is here! Vintage Catalina Swimsuit Ads

1940s vintage photo of Miss Toronto 1946 in her two piece Catalina Swimsuit.

Miss Toronto 1947 – Look at the handsome Police officer hoisting her in the air. Lucky her! Once again her shoes are divine!

1940s vintage photo of Miss Toronto 1947 being held up by a Toronto Police officer.

Miss Toronto 1948-The bathing suits are super amazing. These ladies all look like they stepped out of a movie set.

1940s vintage photo of the miss toronto 1948 beauty pageant. The woman are all wearing 1940s swimsuits.

Miss Toronto 1950 contestants Beautiful!!

1950s vintage photo of the miss toronto 1950. The woman are all posing in 1950s swimsuits.

Miss Toronto 1956at the CNE – Ummm Hello! Where can I get THAT DRESS???? yooza!

1950s vintage photo of Miss Toronto 1956 in a slim fitting 1950s dress at the CNE in Toronto.

Miss Toronto 1957 – The runner-up should have won because her shoes were the cutest 🙂

1950s vintage photo of the Miss Toronto pageant 1957. The image showcases the winner in her 1950s swimsuit being crowned.

So there you have a brief early history/pictures of the “Miss Toronto” Pageant, hope you enjoyed learning a bit about the Glory Day of the Pageant.

FURTHER READING:

Liz

Tag: 1920’s

Miss Toronto Pageant-The Early Days

History & Photos of the Pageant