FASHION Magazine

We do say, the Museum of Vancouver’s exhibit “Art Deco Chic: Extravagant Glamour Between the Wars” is well-timed to assuage period piece poppers who have a while to wait for Season 3 of Downton Abbey (to be in the throes of the roaring twenties!) and Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby remake.

The fashion exhibit, which runs until September 23, 2012, features some 73 mannequins adorned in frocks from early 1920s through the late 1930s—those fit for tea and tittle-tattle by day and those for accepting marriage proposals by night. There are designs by French haute couture pioneer Charles Frederick Worth, Jeanne Lanvin, Madeleine Vionnet and Elsa Schiaparelli. One black Chanel day dress which was featured in English and German Vogue issues in 1928 seems particularly perfect for mourning, Turkish diplomats or otherwise.

Since the lords, ladies, and servants of a certain English period series came into our lives, we’ve scarcely been able to talk about anything else! (Raf who?) Not even the Oscars filled our Sunday night void. Downton Abbey has been thrilling us since the first season aired last year, but it seems that the buzz regarding this latest instalment has come to a fever pitch. While our recaps are obviously the best way to relive season 2, we’ve pulled together another 8 awesome ways to savour Downton till the last drop, that is, until it returns (with Shirley MacLaine as Cora’s mother!) next year on PBS.