Art Deco Style
Art Deco Style
Art Deco is a decorative style that emerged in the mid 1920s, built on bold geometry, rich materials, and confident symmetry.
In the spirit of the
Gatsby Art Deco style and occasion planning
The Gatsby is a guide to Art Deco style, architecture, and occasion planning, covering 1920s interior design, Prohibition-era cocktails, Great Gatsby-inspired weddings and events, vintage fashion, and the golden age of American glamour for anyone planning an Art Deco celebration or bringing the era into their home.
Why The Gatsby
The 1920s are a feeling as much as a look. We help you capture both, with research-backed guidance and not a single fabricated vendor claim.
12 Guides to 1920s style and occasion planning
100+ Art Deco elements and ideas covered
0 Fabricated vendor claims or fake endorsements
The era at a glance
From the ballroom to the speakeasy
Hover to linger on each. One aesthetic carries weddings, parties, cocktails, music, and the architecture that started it all.
What this is
The Gatsby is a guide to Art Deco style, architecture, and occasion planning, covering 1920s interior design, Prohibition-era cocktails, Great Gatsby-inspired weddings and events, vintage fashion, and the golden age of American glamour for anyone planning an Art Deco celebration or bringing the era into their home.
Style guides
Capture the look, at home and on the night
The 1920s aesthetic runs from the walls of a room to the beading on a dress. Start with the style, then dress the part.
Vintage Glamour
Vintage Glamour
A 1920s glamour look combines sculpted hair, dramatic makeup, and a few signature accessories.
Occasions
Plan the celebration
Weddings, parties, and speakeasy nights all draw on the same era. These guides take you from theme to run of show.
Great Gatsby Weddings
Great Gatsby Weddings
A Great Gatsby wedding translates 1920s Art Deco glamour into a celebration.
1920s Event Planning
1920s Event Planning
Planning a 1920s party means setting a clear theme and scope, sending period invitations with a dress code, designing cohesive Art Deco decor, choosing era-appropriate food and drink, booking jazz entertainment, and building a run of show.
Speakeasy Events
Speakeasy Events
A speakeasy event recreates the atmosphere of a Prohibition-era secret bar.
Why The Gatsby
An editorial guide, not a store
Most theme sites push you straight into a product feed. We do the opposite. The Gatsby is built to help you understand the era before you spend on it: where Art Deco came from, how to recognize it, what makes a 1920s celebration feel authentic, and how to assemble the look without tipping into costume-party cliche.
We do not publish prices or make vendor claims without disclosure. Where the site can connect you with a planner, decorator, or other specialist, those slots are clearly marked. Explore the cocktail guide, the table-setting guide, the architecture guide, and the venue guide to go deeper.
Explore in depth
A fuller guide to Art Deco and the 1920s
If you are getting oriented, the sections below go deeper on the era, the look, the occasions, and the details. Open whichever is useful.
A quick orientation to Art Deco and the 1920s
Art Deco is the design language that defined the years between the two world wars, taking its name from the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes. It replaced the flowing, organic curves of the Art Nouveau era that came before it with bold geometry, clean symmetry, and a confident, machine-age optimism. The result is instantly recognizable: chevrons, sunbursts, zigzags, stepped ziggurat forms, and strong vertical lines, dressed in rich materials and a glamorous palette.
The 1920s, often called the Roaring Twenties or the Jazz Age, gave the style its cultural energy. It was the decade of jazz, of the flapper, of speakeasies during American Prohibition, and of a giddy sense of modern possibility. That spirit is what people are reaching for when they plan a Great Gatsby wedding or a 1920s party, and it is the thread that ties together everything on this site, from architecture and fashion to cocktails and music.
The look: style, architecture, fashion, and glamour
On the design side, Art Deco shows up at every scale. In architecture it means vertical emphasis, setbacks and stepped crowns, decorative spires, and stylized low-relief ornament, the language of the great 1920s and 1930s skyscrapers and of the pastel Streamline Moderne districts. In interiors it means geometry, symmetry, lacquer and chrome and mirror, exotic woods, and a palette of black, gold, ivory, and jewel tones. You can bring a little or a lot of it into a modern home.
On the personal side, the era is just as distinctive. Womenswear shifted to the dropped-waist, beaded, and fringed silhouettes of the flapper, finished with cloche hats, T-strap shoes, and long ropes of pearls. Menswear meant sharp three-piece suits, bow ties, suspenders, two-tone shoes, and fedoras or boater hats. The look is completed with vintage glamour: finger waves, bold lips, and a few well-chosen accessories. None of it requires a literal costume to read as authentic.
The occasions: weddings, parties, and speakeasy nights
A Great Gatsby wedding is one of the most popular ways to use the era, and it rewards a clear palette (gold, black, ivory, and a single jewel tone go a long way), geometric decor, candelabra, feathers, and pearls, with Deco typography on the invitations and signage. A 1920s party follows the same logic at a smaller scale: set the theme, communicate the dress code early, plan the decor and the drinks, and program the music for both listening and dancing.
The speakeasy is the era's most atmospheric format, recreating the hidden Prohibition-era bar with a password or a discreet entrance, dim candlelight, live or recorded jazz, and period cocktails served in coupe glasses. The same ideas scale up into corporate and gala events too, where the trick is to keep the theme inclusive, make costumes optional, and stay tasteful in a professional setting. Each of these has its own guide here.
The details: cocktails, table settings, and music
The right details are what turn a theme into an experience. Prohibition-era cocktails like the Sidecar, the French 75, and the Bee's Knees set the tone at the bar, and their citrus-and-honey character is no accident; bartenders of the day used bright mixers to soften rough bootleg spirits. A period bar, with coupe glasses and a few non-alcoholic options, is one of the most authentic touches you can add, and it is easy to do well.
The table and the soundtrack carry the rest. An Art Deco tablescape leans on a black-and-gold or ivory palette, geometric chargers, mirrored or marble surfaces, candelabra, gold flatware, and Deco-type menu and place cards. Over all of it sits the Jazz Age sound, hot jazz, dixieland, ragtime, and early swing, whether from a live band, a DJ, or a curated playlist. Our guides cover each of these in practical detail.
How this guide works, and what we deliberately do not do
The Gatsby is an editorial guide, not a store or an event agency. We publish durable, well-researched guidance on Art Deco style and 1920s occasion planning: how the look works, how to recognize it, and how to plan a celebration that feels authentic without tipping into costume-party cliche. The aim is to be genuinely useful whether you are styling a single room, dressing for one event, or planning a full wedding.
We deliberately do not publish prices, and we do not make specific vendor claims or endorsements without disclosure. Where the site can connect you with a planner, decorator, or other specialist, those slots are clearly marked, and any affiliate product links are disclosed as such. This content is general information rather than professional design, catering, legal, or event advice, and our cocktail content assumes responsible, legal-age enjoyment. Verify anything decision-critical with a qualified professional.
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Questions about Art Deco and 1920s events
What is The Gatsby?
The Gatsby is an editorial guide to Art Deco style and 1920s occasion planning. It covers interior design, architecture, fashion, and vintage glamour, plus how to plan Great Gatsby weddings, speakeasy nights, and 1920s parties, with period cocktails, table settings, Jazz Age music, and venue advice. It is informational, not a vendor or store.
What does Art Deco actually mean?
Art Deco is the design movement that defined the 1920s and 1930s, named after the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs. It is built on bold geometry (chevrons, sunbursts, zigzags, and stepped forms), rich materials, symmetry, and a glamorous palette of black, gold, ivory, and jewel tones. It shaped everything from skyscrapers to jewelry.
How do I plan a Great Gatsby themed party or wedding?
Start with a clear theme and palette (gold, black, ivory, and one jewel tone work well), communicate the dress code early, and build the room with geometric decor, candlelight, feathers, and pearls. Add period cocktails, Jazz Age music, and Deco-style invitations and signage. Our wedding and event-planning guides walk through each step.
What should I wear to a 1920s event?
For a feminine look, a dropped-waist beaded or fringed dress, a cloche hat or feathered headband, T-strap shoes, and long pearls read as authentically 1920s. For a masculine look, a three-piece suit, a bow tie or necktie, suspenders, two-tone shoes, and a fedora or boater hat work well. You do not need a literal costume; period-inspired pieces are enough.
What were the popular cocktails of the 1920s?
Prohibition-era favorites include the Sidecar, the French 75, the Bee's Knees, the Mary Pickford, the Southside, the Gin Rickey, and the Clover Club. Many leaned on citrus, honey, and mixers because the available bootleg spirits were rough and needed masking. Our cocktail guide explains the classics and how to build a period bar, including non-alcoholic options.
Does The Gatsby sell products or book vendors?
No. The Gatsby is an editorial guide, not a store or an agency. We include clearly-marked placeholder slots for affiliate product links and for connecting with planners or decorators, but nothing is sold or endorsed here without disclosure, and no prices or vendor claims are published.
What music fits a 1920s or Gatsby event?
The Jazz Age sound is hot jazz, dixieland, ragtime roots, and early swing, with the Charleston as the signature dance. A live band gives the most authentic feel, but a skilled DJ or a carefully curated playlist also works. Our Jazz Age music guide covers how to program the evening for listening and dancing alike.
How do I bring Art Deco style into a modern home?
Work room by room and lead with geometry and contrast: a bold black-and-gold or jewel-toned palette, symmetrical layouts, mirrored or lacquered surfaces, and a few statement pieces with strong lines. You do not need to redo everything; a Deco light fixture, a sunburst mirror, or a geometric rug can shift a room. Our style guide goes deeper.