Fashion Throughout The 1980's

People may say that the true years of fashion began in the late nineteen forties and went on through the early nineteen sixties. If you look at fashion today, its almost repeated the look from sixty years ago. In each generation fashion trends become based on history and/or important events. in the nineteen forties fashion was being modeled by the military wear. World War II caused a drastic change in the way clothes were being made and worn. In the nineteen fifties Americans admired the fashion of movie stars and music artists. Media had a strong influence on the wordly trend. The people of the sixties expressed there personalities and emotions through

The Great Depression caused woman to want to save money and not spend much on clothing. All over people were struggling to keep money in their pockets, so no one would spend big bucks on designer outfits. Women tended to make their own new clothes from other clothes they already had. “The life motto of many was to ‘Repair, reuse, make do, and don’t waste anything’; therefore, any creativity was apparently confined to those boundaries.(The Vintage News, 2016)” During this time no one wanted to out shine others so they dressed very conservative. Shoulder pads and butterfly sleeves were coming into trend.

This essay will explore the effects social and political changes had on fashion in the 1980’s. This period was chosen because the new romantic fashions were so different to the punk fashions that had been before, this essay will therefore identify the changes that had taken place to influence this change. Primary evidence used to support findings will include interviews and photographs which will show a firsthand account of the period.

Women in the early 1960's wore bouffant hairstyles, and like the 1920's, knee length dresses. However, later in the decade, mini skirts, or hot pants, with go-go boots became popular. These skirts revealed their legs as bodywear revealed their curves. Women's hairstyles even changed. Women either wore their hair very short or long and lanky. Also, peasant skirts, or granny dresses, and chunky shoes somehow came into fashion during this period of time too. By the end of the decade, unisex dressing was very popular especially with the hippies. Both sexes wore bell-bottom jeans, love beads, and embellished T-shirts. This was also the era of the Afro, which both sexes of African Americans wore.

Women donned flashy evening attire, comfortable sportswear, and conservative work suits. Skirt lengths fluctuated a bit, dresses either hung straight or flared at the hip, and the garçonne look became popular. Men loosened the constraints of previous decades and acquired a more relaxed and flashier wardrobe. Creased pants and ties were abandoned. Their casual attire consisted of colorful suits and patterned socks.

Fashion in the 1950s and now are disparate. Back then, most mothers sewed clothes for their children, and fabric cost roughly $1 per yard. Girls didn’t regularly buy clothes from the department store because their mothers had time to sew their modish outfits. Girls were required to wear dresses or skirts to school because pants weren’t befitting enough at the time for women. Poodle skirts, as well as sweaters, were quite popular. Girls wore nylons with their attire, but nylons are made differently now. Nylons back then were 2, basically full-leg long socks, whereas, today they are sewn together as one. They wore belts to hold the nylons up, and they had a seam up the back. Popular hairstyles back then included the back-comb, and embellishing flowers around the bun.

“ Fashions fade. Style is eternal” - Once said the famous designer Yves Saint Laurent. In the 1950’s marked the era in fashion that people think of as the turning point in fashion. Teenagers would be looked at for their own fashion, and would have sexier outfits. Women would start to wear accessories such as hats, glasses and diamonds (Fashion History). They would show more skin and have tighter outfits. Men would start to wear suits and look more formal. The “cowboy” look would start to play a big role during this time. Many men would wear different colors including pink.

This was when fashion started to become modern and a statement in people’s everyday lives. Because of mass production and consumerism, the famous styles became more easily accessible to the common-person, thus allowing the clothes people wore to become much more important than it was before. Clothing became someone's image for the day, and by being comfortable and free from restraints, people were able to express themselves through the clothes they picked for the day. Thanks to many fashion designers and fashion icons in the 1920s, clothing became the forefront of many peoples lives. The rise of the fashion industry at this time later fell during the Great Depression; despite that, some of the styles are still being worn today.

Women started to wear suits to formal occasions. Although, some still wore dresses, in which case they were beaded or sequined. Commonly, women in the 1960s wore pearl necklaces, boxy jackets, pretty hats, and lots of makeup. Think about how odd it would be to see someone wearing a bright, pastel colored suit out in public

What does source 1 tell us about women’s fashion in the early 1970s? Source one tells us that women’s fashion in the early 1970s had “Extreme, bright colors…”. It depicts an image that long, flared pants with a tiny waist were in high demand. The speaker in the source tells us that these styles of clothing were extremely popular because they “…were everywhere…”.

Changes in Women’s Fashion during the 1850’s and Now Fashion is an enormous part of a woman’s everyday life. From magazines to television shows, the latest trends encircle American women daily. Fashion was a current topic yesterday, is one today, and will be tomorrow, although, this is nothing new. Women in the 1850’s were dedicated to keeping up with the ideal fashion, just like present day, except there were some differences. Even though there are obvious reasons how women’s fashion from the 1850’s differ from today, not all of it has to deal with what they wore.

Every generation laughs at the old fashions such as how big the hairstyles were for women, or the platform shoes, bell bottom pants, and even the grunge look. But some trends are coming back because everything comes back into style eventually. Many fashion trends from the 1990’s have made a comeback today or have simply never left.

In the 1950’s womens fashion was very modern day. With the men back from war the women made sure that their clothing was very suburban as a role in homemakers. A lot of different clothing came into the picture. Sports wear became very popular also. Women started to wear what’s called a poodle skirt but this skirt went very quickly. Jack Kerouac who was a novelist established the beatnik look. This look was a finished dark color look to set the women a part so all the women didn’t look like they were wearing the same color. The teenagers started to dress very efficiently, more casually than their parents. Teenagers wore: full skirts, petticoats, or a super-slim skirt and sweater with bows. A lot of the teenage outfits varied.

1974 was a popular time period for one of them most popular fad for children that came available in the 80’s. The Rubix cube was invented in the 70’s by erno Rubik, but it was known as the 80’s kid toy. By 1981 more than 10 million rubik's cubes were sold to children. Another great fad that was invented was the Pacman machine . It Was originated in Japan in 1970 but not brought to the United States until 1980. The Pacman machine made children happy because it was an electronic device , but at the same time parents of the 80’s also enjoyed the Pacman machine. The last fad of many in the 80’s was the “ Cabbage Patch Kids.” These were dolls that every kid wanted in the 80’s . If parents could get them they would have the happiest children(Feinstein). Fashion of the 80’s is a lot like today's fashion so thank you to the 80’s or we wouldn't be wearing the type of clothing we are wearing today. Men wore lots of dressy style clothing that you would wear to work. They wore white dress shirts with tailored jackets and leather winged tipped shoes. They also wore silk ties with many of these outfits. Women wore white blouse shirts with below the knee skirts and tailored jackets. Many people wore those kinds of clothes, but others wore typical everyday clothing. They wore plaid shirts, v necks, sweaters, turtlenecks, jeans , long shorts, khakis, and anything else you would wear today. sOme people even wore fancy clothing brands like Calvin Klein's, Ralph Lauren and others.People in the 80’s liked these clothing and thought they were a great style(Feinstein) . The fashion of the 1980’s is mostly like present day fashion, but the fads are very different then what they are like today but they will be

The Years between the 1950’s and 1960’s was an explosive time in fashion. The 50’s represented an out coming of the new generation. People began to gain their own personal style and appearance, influenced by films and singers (“Vintage Fashion”). Their styles incorporated leather, jeans, corduroy, and the ballet shoes for the girls. Men’s wear began to drastically change. Men would wear a leather jacket, with jeans that narrowed at the bottom, and a simple t-shirt (Peacock 210-211). This was the first time in history that jeans were not just worn by the working class but by all men (“Brief History”). The man’s lust for flesh grew during this time, so women’s skirts began to get shorter and the bikini was invented. Clothes were made to glorify the female body and emphasize every curve. It wasn’t until the Barbie doll was created in the late 50’s that young girls began to have a separate fashion from their mothers. Young girls would wear sweaters with full skirts or pants