Photographic Time Travel 1920-1930

Probably thanks to period movies I have a distinct picture in my head of 20s looks and fashions - much like the picture above and below.
























However, looking through Fortepan's amateur photographs you don't only see the "do take a picture of me in my best dress" and "well off people in the park" shots, but real, everyday people going about their business... And how different those looks and settings can be!



































My favourite photo from this lot... So everyday, so laid back, so simply, effortlessly perfect.








































She's way ahead of her time, isn't she?























I find it so captivating how they all look into the camera like they'd look into your eye.






















I trend to forget that longago people still had fun. :)






















I wonder who these youngsters are and how did they get to know each other?


























And one more for laughs: twenties trolling. :D

In case you missed my previous Time Travelling posts, here they are:
Photographic Time Travel 1900-1910,
Photographic Time Travel 1910-1920.

All of these wonderful pictures are from Fortepan.hu, which collects amateur photographs from 1900 to 1990, mostly from Hungary, which you can browse and enjoy and also share if you feel like it! The creators collected old negatives and slides, saved pictures from being lost forever. Luckily for us, one day they started to scan and publish them online for everyone to see. So now time travel really is possible for us! All we need is some free time to immerse ourselves in the everyday life of the 20th century... So go on and visit Fortepan and have a browse. You can also read more about their project here!







































<3

Photographic Time Travel 1910-1920

A fellow self-photographer a hundred years ago...

































A picture from around 1912 that would work just perfectly on most of the blogs I read in 2012. Let's just say I'd love to borrow the whole outfit.






































A radiant smile and a great belt!








































Looking at these pictures my first instict was to reach out to these girls, to connect, as I do every day when I leave comments on blogs. I felt them as close as I do my blogger friends. It was such an eerie feeling to remind myself that they are now frozen in time forever, and their youth and kindness that radiates from the pictures is not in this world anymore. 





















The 1910s was a turbulent decade in Hungary, the First World War rearranging and ending so many lives. I hope this soldier returned to this girl after the battles...


































And that this defiant nurse helped many of the wounded and was safe herself at the end of the decade. The mystery of these pictures is that we'll never know...



















Looking through Fortepan's collection from between 1910 and 1920, what you notice is that so many of the pictures that people kept and cherished and that eventually made their way to the world wide web a hundred years later, talk about happiness and joy, of friends, families and loves. I think we feel close to these pictures because in essence, nothing changed. These are the same things we keep close to our hearts.






















Look at these wonderful swimsuits! What a summer it must have been!

























And these girlfriends in a brilliantly lit café? I wonder what they talk about!

























I kept this one for last. I'm pretty sure these girls are wearing their boyfriends' suits, posing with their unlit cigarettes, and judging from the cheekyness of their smiles and the liquor on the table, the boys must be quite scantily dressed. :D 

In case you missed my first Photographic Time Travel post, all of these wonderful pictures are from Fortepan.hu, which collects amateur photographs from 1900 to 1990, which you can browse and enjoy and also share if you feel like it! The creators collected old negatives and slides, saved pictures from being lost forever. Luckily for us, one day they started to scan and publish them online for everyone to see. So now time travel really is possible for us! All we need is some free time to immerse yourself in the everyday life of the 20th century... So go on and visit Fortepan and have a browse. You can also read more about their project here!

Time Travel - 100 Years Old Open Houses

Today was another great one for time travel. Apart from the 100 year old anniversary of the tragic loss of the Titanic, which I've learnt so much about this past week, this weekend another - not tragic at all - centenary event took place. We have a great programme initiative here in Budapest where every year for one weekend those houses that are a 100 years old that year, open their doors and host different events run by volunteers for anyone interested.






































Year after year I promise myself I'll immerse myself in the programmes, but always end up working at the weekend. This year however my friend Sophie hosted one of the programmes in a 100 year old house, so I really couldn't miss visiting at least her event!






































I really enjoyed walking around the house without any neighbours bothering me, and clicked away... Unfortunately my camera cannot deal very well with bad light conditions, but I like these little bit grainy pictures too. :)































































































Sophie prepared a language quiz targeted on how different our language was a 100 years ago. It was fun to watch how much people enjoyed the questions and how interested they were in the right answers! Great job! :)

The best thing about this huge architectural birthday celebration is that next year another lot of beautiful houses will celebrate their 100th, so we have the chance to see more and more of them, year after year!


























































Finally, this is what this house looks like from the outside:





















And this is what I look like taking grainy pictures of myself in the mirror on the corridor: 

Wearing: Promod trench and cardigan, thrifted bag, M&S jeans, 

scarf from an underpass, trusty old Docs for strolling around 

and walking through Elizabeth bridge afterwards!

Photographic Time Travel 1900-1910

There is something magical about old pictures, they really seem like special objects as they bring back a slice of life that’s long gone. Especially amateur, or family photos of old…



































There’s and amazing website, Fortepan.hu, which collects amateur photographs from 1900 to 1990, which you can browse and enjoy and also share if you feel like it! The creators collected old negatives and slides, saved pictures from being lost forever. Luckily for us, one day they started to scan and publish them online for everyone to see. So now time travel really is possible for us! All we need is some free time to immerse yourself in the everyday life of the 20th century...































These pictures are from Fortepan too, from between 1900 and 1910. Looking through the pictures, (and let me warn you, you can get lost in this website for hours and hours...) I saw the past century come alive and felt instantly transported. It’s amazing to see how people weren’t any different from us a 100 years ago, really. You see laid back, smiling girls or clumsy ladies, ashamed of looking into the camera, or looking piercingly straight into it, stolen moments and carefully organised scenes.



































Not only can you pan the history of 20th century Hungary through the eyes of everyday people, the evolution of fashion is also fascinating!

































Look at the pleating, the ruffles of the hat and the dainty but long necklace! Swoon!






















What a wonderful little room, with the dressing table and pictures on the wall… Of course the fingerprint gives it extra charm!





































Don’t you think these girls made their dresses themselves and they’re really proud of them? (Also, what’s up with the flying piano?)




















I bet the Sartorialist wishes sometimes he could travel back in time and take some streetstyle pictures like this! These girls seem to walk with such confidence!



























This wedding picture is so sweet… Just look out for the guest of honour, the dog. :D























This picture is my favourite of them all... Such happiness, such ease.
I've got new imaginary friends.

I could go on and on about each picture and choose more and more, every detail spins a whole story for me. So go on and visit Fortepan and have a browse. You can also read more about their project here!
I rather enjoy time travel, so you might see similar posts in the future. :)