I went to go pick up some school clothes for the kiddos today. I'm expecting the usual - you know, rugby shirts, jumpers, etc. Instead I found that the store appeared to be a victim of a time warp. All of the sudden I was back in the 80s again. There were leg warmers, mini skirts, and velour everywhere. There were also *cringe* acid-washed jeans. They even had zippers at the ankles. What is the fashion world coming to?? I'm drawing the line at teasing my daughter's hair 6 inches above her head.
space opera
Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
*runs screaming*
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
I remember teaching at a boarding school where kids had to do barn chores at 6:30 AM when it was below zero.
Parachute pants. They wore parachute pants, and complained of the cold.
Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
Leg warmers were so rad, man. Why wouldn't you want to go back to that...and leggings and spandex and fluorescents (Hang Ten!). Ahh, the memories.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
You know, I find that as horrifying as you do. The other day I was standing in line to get in someplace, and the girl ahead of me was wearing a pink izod type shirt with the collar turned up. I was like "gag me with a spoon!".
Next thing you know pinstripe jeans will be making a comeback.
And the really horrible thing is that if you give us all about 3 years, most of us will decide that that stuff was cool after all. Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
Noemon,
Izod shirts have always been popular in certain circles. Some of us stick with a classic, preppie look, knowing that it is neither in nor out of fashion, and that, every so often, it is the cool thing to wear.
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
Do I need to re-learn how to peg my pants?
Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
You mean you forgot?
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
I saw a skirt in Walmart last fall. It was the commercial version of an old 70's "cool as can be" thing. You took your jeans and ripped out the seams. You sewed in a triangular flap of lovely material, preferably rainbow or tie-dye, or a sweet Laura Ingalls Wilder calico pattern.
Spiffy.
Posted by ludosti (Member # 1772) on :
My mom and I were laughing the other day as I bemoaned my difficulty in finding pants that are long enough (it's hard to find women's pants, especially jeans with a 33"+ inseam). She had to go and remind me of when I was in junior high and how I, with my short, pegged pants, made fun of her long, baggy pants.... Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
I have in-between-length legs. They're too long for short length but too short for regular length.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Oh, sure, you see that style of shirt all the time. It practically defines some of my coworkers' "office casual" wardrobes. This shirt, though, was a hot, almost neon pink, and the collar was up. Both halmarks of 80s hidiousness, I've always thought.
I'm a bit of a holdout from the grunge period of the 90s, myself. I try to keep fairly current with my clothing choices, but I wear an open flannel button down over a t-shirt, along with jeans and hiking boots as often as I can get away with. Of course, I also wore that as often as I could get away with before it was a look with a name, so take that "holdout" bit with a grain of salt.
You know, it's kind of funny--you look at the elderly, and the majority of them are wearing what was in fashion when they were in their early 20s. At some point, society as a whole will associate the grunge look with what the elderly people wear. "Hey, look at that old fogie in the hiking boots! Do much hiking with that walker there, old-timer?"
Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
That's when I'd give him a good whack WITH my walker.
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
Noemon,
When I met my husband, he was wearing jeans with holes in the knees, and long underwear poking through. This was BEFORE the fashion where kids bought rippied jeans with red cloth underneath that looked like long underwear.
My husband says he is a trendsetter.
I tell him that wearing plaid shorts with his black work socks pulle dup to the knee with white sneakers is not ever, ever going to be in fashion.
Please, America, prove me right!
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
Puh-leaze. 80s fashion was much better than 70s fashion. I'd be thrilled to see parachute pants come back if it meant bell-bottoms could finally go back to the fashion graveyard from whence they mysteriously arose, and take platform shoes and dull earth tones with them. Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
You can tell when somebody was born by which fashions they find hideous.
The real truth is that all "in" fashions are hideous. If they aren't , they can never be "in".
Think plain jeans and a t-shirt. That's never "in", but it's never "out", either. You have to do something ugly to it before it can become really "in" during part of the cycle, and therefore "out" during another part.
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
Jeans on men, and not those Travolta atrocities, are simply the sexist things ever, and always will be.
Except for fire pants.
Posted by Mabus (Member # 6320) on :
What is this "fashion" thing of which you speak?
Posted by Sara Sasse (Member # 6804) on :
"fire pants"? (I must have been asleep during that year. Then again, I've never ever been an arbiter of fashion.)
I'm quite happy about the revival of the well-made leg warmer. For winter draft protection under a long woolen skirt, they're hard to beat (pantaloons get too bunchy), and if you do ballet barre work, they really do help keep muscles warm right where you need them.
Form following function. Nice.
As an accessory, though, I agree that they look pretty silly.
[ August 30, 2004, 08:26 AM: Message edited by: Sara Sasse ]
Posted by Space Opera (Member # 6504) on :
If we don't stop it now, thousands of schoolchildren will begin wearing sequined gloves on their right hands.
I wonder why it is that fashion revolves. Is it because designers are too lazy to think up anything new? And why is it that we only hit certain decades? I've yet to see the poodle skirt on runways.
space opera
Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
If we're going to relive another fashion era, let's go back to the twenties or something (or Napoleanic, or French Revolution). Far enough back so the fashion will be 'new'. Re-using fashion from 20 years ago is just plain unimaginative! Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
quote:The real truth is that all "in" fashions are hideous. If they aren't , they can never be "in".
Maybe I'm showing my bias, but 1991 (just before grunge exploded) had some nice clothes.
No, not the MC Hammer pants, the pants with the fly and button on a triangular piece of fabric that (seemed to) wrap around your waste, or the "tail-less" jacks (remember, they buttoned right at the waste and went no lower). Those are definetely dated. Nor the "Stussy" (or O'Neil) turtlenecks. And the cardigan sweaters are borderline.
I'm thinking of the girls in their nice, form fitting jeans (tapered leg, of course, not pegged) and a nice flannel shirt (tucked in, optional), with maybe a turtleneck shirt underneath and hiking boots.
Not grunge. More like something a hiker might wear in the cold, but not dirty or holey. And was in a central CA high school at the time, so it's not like the rocky mountains where right outside the door.
Maybe it's just because they look so darn cute.
My dad always went on about cute girls in their "low cut hip hugger bell bottoms", which I never got. So unattractive to a woman's form.
I'm just getting older, I guess. My son will probably look at me the same way.
Ian
Posted by TMedina (Member # 6649) on :
While I do enjoy a cute woman in low-cut hip huggers, those are not a style of jeans that can easily be worn by a large portion of women.
My buddy still wears the "waist coat" fashion when he goes out - because it highlights his backside, of which he is particularly proud. Although it's usually a suede coat with zipper or leather with zipper.
-Trevor
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
I am very glad to be married to a woman whose body is very flattered by low-cut hip huggers. Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
Yeah, I find low cut bell bottoms about as attractive as the 70's bikinis, very low cut. I always thought clothes were supposed to accentuate the woman's form. These fashion create an artificial horizontal line right below the womans naval and completely ruins (for me) the flowing curve between ribcage and hips.
The waste coats I remember were all some mottled grey or black. And of course, among African Americans (hip-hop fashion) there was the Theo Huxtable overalls shorts, with one or both straps unhooked. The "African" colors (blacks, oranges, greens and red), the Africa map dangling from the neck. And what I called "throw-away suits" (because they were made of such flimsy materials that they looked like they could be worn only once or twice) in bright colors with "stiffness" to them that gave shape to the body.
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
Good for you, Tom.
My ex-wife looked fantastic in that "hikers" look I described.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
I can appreciate a good pair of bell-bottoms.
I cannot for the life of me see the sense in parachute pants.
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
They help with the "Hammer" can't-touch-this crab dance.
And you can keep stuff in all those pockets
Like anyone did. Bulging parachute pants pockets looked even worse.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Just to be clear, I was never went for the "unbathed, tattered" grunge look. Maybe "grunge" is the wrong word for what I wore/wear--it was more like the male version of what you're describing Ian.
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
I dressed that way, too. I like the look. Of course, I need to lose a little weight before it'll look good on me again .
As much as I loved grunge music, the clothes were ugly.
Posted by katharina (Member # 827) on :
I saw a guy in a parking lot on Saturday wearing a white polo shirt with the collar turned up.
I thought he'd simply lost his mind or was careless.
I am terrified to find that he hadn't and wasn't.
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
Whoo-hoo! The clothes I kept from the 80s will still be back in style!
Heh, like I care about what is "in style".
Posted by TheTick (Member # 2883) on :
Does this mean my brother can bust out his Milli Vanilli and A Flock of Seagulls albums again??
Posted by Bob the Lawyer (Member # 3278) on :
Only if he busts out "The Flock" hairstyle and lipsyncs along with Vanilli.
Posted by Turgan (Member # 6697) on :
DO THE CRAB DANCE!!!!
*dun dududu... duh duh.. duh duh* Can't touch this.
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
He was so cool. It's funny now, but back then, he was cool (I thought so, at least)
Of course, that's when rap was in its fun and playful stage, just before gangsta rap became popular.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
IanO, you didn't listent to Too Short, did you?
Posted by Turgan (Member # 6697) on :
Hammer is STILL cool. Didn't you ever watch 'The Surreal Life"?
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
Too Short doesn't ring a bell with me. And I'd remember a name like that, being short and all.
I wish I was a little bit taller - Skee Lo
What did he do?
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
Yeah, he was good in Surreal life. Had a certain dignity (at least as much as any cast member of a reality tv show that mocks "B" celebrities can have), as did Emmanuel Lewis.
Cory Feldmen, on the other hand...
[ August 30, 2004, 11:33 AM: Message edited by: IanO ]
Posted by Turgan (Member # 6697) on :
ha ha ha h ah ah h ahhahahhahhha STOOOOOOOPID cory feldmen. He was SOOO good in Stand By Me, too. AND Goonies. Go figure.
[ August 30, 2004, 11:45 AM: Message edited by: Turgan ]
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
Yeah he was.
I forgot how much I love Stand By Me.
Posted by zgator (Member # 3833) on :
I saw a guy the other day with a sport coat with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows. I wanted to stop and tell him that trend died long ago.
I'm glad I didn't.
Posted by Turgan (Member # 6697) on :
dude. Trends NEVER die. They're just forgotten. If i saw a guy that was dressed in a white sport coat with a blue no collar shirt and loafers, I'd DEMAND that he hang out with me. Same with Afro's. Bell bottoms. Beads. Trends don't die, people are just ignorant and think they do. they really just go into hybernation, waiting for some brave soul to awaken them again.
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
Not exactly gangster rap, but close.
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
"fire pants"?
Sara, I mean actual fire pants, the ones firemen wear when going in to burning buildings. And the jackets and hats, too. I do not, however, like the dress uniform look.
Posted by Yozhik (Member # 89) on :
quote:And why is it that we only hit certain decades? I've yet to see the poodle skirt on runways.
I think this already happened, in the mid-1980s.
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
I took my kids to a show of Grease in Phoenix, and all the kids were dressed in poodle skirts and fifties guys' outfits. It was a costume contest, but still, I saw poodle skirts.
Posted by Derrell (Member # 6062) on :
I suppose that everyone's gonna start wearing mullets again. Posted by TheTick (Member # 2883) on :
They stopped?
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
First of all, I still pegged my jeans well into the late 90s. I just stopped wearing jeans and since I married, have given up on fashion.
I not only had parachute pants, but even the matching parachute jacket by this new clothing company, Bugle Boy. Those were the days. I also cling possessively to 2 Michael Jackson jackets: one from Thriller and one from Beat It.
Rock on.
[ August 30, 2004, 07:49 PM: Message edited by: Alucard... ]
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
You just go with your bad parachute pant-wearing self, Alucard.
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
It is time for my some paracute pant exhibition. Fancy any of these, Alucard?
Edit: I remember them as being very flimsy. These look pretty thick.
[ August 30, 2004, 09:03 PM: Message edited by: Elizabeth ]
Posted by PSI Teleport (Member # 5545) on :
Dude, those are snow pants.
*swishes away*
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
Elizabeth, that's not what I envisioned as parachute pants. I thought that we were talking about M.C. Hammer-style oversized, ripstop nylon pants, which were tight at the ankle. I remember a Hammer video in which he jumped off a tall building or something, and his pants inflated, lowering him gently to the ground. And then there was the cartoon commercial on Nickelodeon for a children's vitamin tablet that that included "vitamin F." The kids would pop the tablets in their mouths, and their Hammer pants would inflate.
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
That is what I thought, too. Flimsy things.
Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
Yes, THOSE are parachute pants.
Posted by katharina (Member # 827) on :
Those are NOT flattering to anyone with any curves. They aren't terribly flattering to people without curves either, but the travesty is less noticeable.
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
From what I remember, parachute pants were baggier and oversize than the ones in the pictures. Hence, the name. Granted, they have the zippers. But they don't have the "puffiness".
Parachute pants also had a military look to them, and, well, got kind of cold since they didn't trap warm air. And if you put things in the zippered pockets on the side (of any bulk) it sort of deflated the "puffiness" of the look and looked goofy- if that is possible.
We were so cool, eh?
Posted by Turgan (Member # 6697) on :
Yeah. I agree with everyone above me. Parachute pants they AIN'T!
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
Did I mention I hate fashion?
Posted by Foust (Member # 3043) on :
So what about early 21st century clothing will be hideous 20 years from now?
Posted by Sara Sasse (Member # 6804) on :
Scroll down for "MC Hammer and his big honkin' pants."
Posted by IanO (Member # 186) on :
Bell bottoms and low rise jeans
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
It's a repeating cycle. In the early 80's, the 50's were rockin' cool. Then in late 80's early 90's the 60's were hip and happnin' again. Late 90's to early 00's, the horrid, ugly, nauseating 70's were back in. Now we've come back around to the 80's again. My question is, are we going to repeat to the 50's next, or go on to the 90's?
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
Bev--I think the answer to your question is...yes.
Posted by eslaine (Member # 5433) on :
Psst, bev. I had to deal with the 50's resurgence after American Graffiti and Happy Days in the seventies.
But at least that was straight-legged jeans and tee shirts. For the most part, anyway.
Everything gets glommed up together with fashion anymore. My advice: ignore it.
<--Wins no "hip" prizes.
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
Yeah, I think the 50s love must have started in the 70s. It follows the prescribed pattern, doesn't it? I was too young then to realize or understand.
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
I remember Bruce in fifth grade, making up a play based on American Graffiti. I was not allowed to see it, and I forget what character he made me. Then there was Happy Days.
But what about Grease? Did that predate American graffiti? I think it did.
Posted by cyruseh (Member # 1120) on :
I dont care if guys where pink. But when it goes from no one wearing pink, to every guy of every creed (hiphop, emo, prep, you name it) wearing pink all over the mall, well, something has got to be done.
If you encounter my friends and I and you are wearing pink, you may just get a simple, "aww pink, so lovely..." But if you are wearing a tight pink shirt with your collar popped, prepare to be pointed at and loudly laughed at.
another great past-time of ours, is running in to the different trendy shops in the malls, and popping ALL of the collars on ALL of the racks... Im 23 now, and still find behavior like this incredibly fun...
Posted by Jess N (Member # 6744) on :
I don't mind 80s resurgence as long as we can avoid the huge shoulderpads and the equally huge hair.
Posted by beverly (Member # 6246) on :
Nah, baby, it's ALL comin' back!
Posted by Jess N (Member # 6744) on :
![[Angst]](graemlins/angst.gif)
![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Confused]](confused.gif)
(I must have been asleep during that year. Then again, I've never ever been an arbiter of fashion.)![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
So unattractive to a woman's form.![[Smile]](smile.gif)
![[Dont Know]](graemlins/dontknow.gif)
Go figure.![[Cry]](graemlins/cry.gif)