Historic Downtown Vero Beach experienced a time warp last Saturday during an inaugural Downtown Dapper Daze at the Heritage Center presented by the Parisian Hostess Boutique.

Traffic came to a standstill as a bevy of 1940s- and 1950s-era pin-up girls strolled along 14th Avenue, parasols in hand to shade their delicate complexions from the sun, before stopping to pose with antique cars from a bygone era.

“I love the dapper lifestyle and the look of dressing up in pin-up. I’ve found such a joy in doing all of it,” said Tamara Darress, event coordinator and boutique owner, who has cultivated a community of enthusiasts who love the nostalgia of that era.

“So many other women have felt empowered dressing up in pin-up that I started doing Bombshell Academy Boot Camps and the Dapper Dine-out Nights. People just kept saying we want something more and that’s when I thought to do the Downtown Dapper Daze.”

The response was positive enough that Darress plans to make Downtown Dapper Daze an annual event, commenting that participants in the Pin-Up Pageant haled from as far away as Miami, Orlando and Tampa.

And, although the look is not simple to achieve, it does harken back to a simpler time.

“Life is more complicated now,” said Darress. “People don’t have conversations like they did when families sat down at the dinner table every night.”

In a nod to “the good old days,” a pop-up Vintage Market offered retro clothing, jewelry and handbags, homemade goods including jams and jellies, quill jewelry and needlework items.

Those looking to “date” their wardrobe sifted through a wide range of fashions at the Lotty Dotty Vintage shop, which boasted a sign poking fun at their love of old fashions – “Things they didn’t get buried in.”

Saturday’s entertainment was geared toward simpler times as well, with a magic show, bubble gum blowing and Hula Hoop contests, an ice cream social photo op, and a performance by the Indian River Charter High School Wolves Jazz Band.

Folks wanting to take full advantage of the beautiful day outside participated in the Dapper Dash.

With maps in hand, dashers visited shops along Main Street and performed zany mini challenges to earn a punch on their maps. Completed maps earned the participants a chance to win a downtown shopping spree.

The evening ended with the screening of the classic film “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” before the dance floor was turned over so the Dapper Dolls and Dapper Dans could dance the night away to Beau & the Burners Rockabilly Band.