Fashion Transition from the 80’s

During the 1980s, the influence of the music industry and MTV, Cinema, and the Arts experienced a boom of energy and innovation, that affected the Fashion industry like no other period, even the sixties and seventies.

The increase and usage of the media TV helped in magnifying the popular artists evolving at that time. Also media attention was focused on the then leader & Prime Minister of the Conservative party Margaret Thatcher (“The Iron lady”). To a lot of women remembering this period of the 80’s, it was either with disgust or with nostalgic fondness.

“Fashion has no mercy”, without a doubt what was considered being ‘in’ today, would definitely be ‘out’ tomorrow. The 80’s sound bite was all about making a statement about people’s own individuality. There was an air of adventurous freedom amongst designers to diversify, the result being the reminders that make many people cringe about the eighties.

The Denim - got a new look being acid washed and it found its way into the wardrobes of many. These streaked jeans became hugely popular with both male and female fashion enthusiasts. Teamed with red or black studded jackets (inspired by Michael Jackson) and accessorized with fingerless gloves, it was not an uncommon sight to see the teens trying their best to emulate their pop idols.

 1980’s Jazz Funk and Northern soul all dayer Top rank venue Purley

 

Power dressing of the 80’s

Saw the rise of women that wanted to be taken seriously in the hardcore business world, in politics and in the movie industry. 1980s fashion history is memorable and quite distinctive. A variety of fashion looks ran parallel to each other in the 1980s.

Women of this era began to feel they that really could at last choose from one of the many contrasting looks available. The fashion look that was the most powerful over the decade was the wide shoulder.   Fashion history reveals that the 80s fashion look was a tailored look.

It was hard to go anywhere without at least a jacket, but preferably a complete suit. This was influenced by several movements including media influence on 1980s fashion through the popularity of TV dramas like 'Dynasty' and 'Dallas'. Costume dramas brought fashion into real everyday eighties life.

    

Dynasty cast

 

 

Business and Politics

The likes of Margaret Thatcher modelled the corporate power dressing in business suit, fitted tailored and wide shoulders. Even the TV newsreaders adopted this fashion that gave them prominence in from of the camera.

Coupled with the business generation was the birth of the Yuppie (Young upwardly mobile Professional). A term used to describe someone who is young and who has a high-paying job and an affluent lifestyle.

This was more apparent in the Thatcher era, a time when she privatised many of the nationalised companies, such as British gas, British Telecom, The Railways.

 

   

  Margaret Thatcher in Parliament

 

  Sue Lawley – News reader 

 

Yuppies

Yuppie was a 1980s acronym for 'Young Upwardly Mobile Professional Person'. The word was coined by the advertising industry to capture the essence of a particular type of work hard, play hard, ambitious minded city career person of either sex.

The hectic lifestyle of a yuppie meant that after long hours of work, rare free time was spent in a self indulgent way frittering away the cash earned on anything, from expensive make up and perfume, to a bottle of fine champagne. Conspicuous wastage was part of the attitude.

For day Yuppies sported wide shouldered jackets and for weekends they wore a Barbour to affect a country aesthetic or a ball-gown to assume the appearance of a more advantaged

                 

  Yuppies of the eighties

 

 

 

Music on Fashion in the 80’s

Music from all the genres, Jazz-Funk, New Romantic wave touched the Fashion industry and thus spawned a spread of styles eclipsed from people’s Pop idols, which went to excess and outrageous fashions that seem to make the mainstream.

         

    

 

 

 

 What did people wear in the eighties

What did girls and guys wear in the 80s?  Eighties fashion for women taught us terms like jelly bracelets, jelly shoes, neon clothing, leg warmers, and Guess jeans. They also brought back polka dots, Preppie clothes and wedgies – which used to be shoes and not an underwear malfunction.  Oversized sweatshirts that could fit a truck inside over tight leggings were the norm.

1980s clothing styles for men included acid washed jeans, jean jackets, parachute pants, high top shoes and T-shirts. Let’s not forget the baggy blazer with the sleeves rolled up; Miami Vice?

Accessories were big and gaudy. Necklaces were layered on and had large pendants and medallions. Earrings were long and dangly. Purses were huge or small - no reason not to take it to extremes in both directions.

Hair for men and women was long, tall and wide. In short, blow dry it out, use a lot of hair spray (aqua net) to hold it and you were good to go.

Love the hair styles or not? They revealed an individuality that had not been seen in generations before. Girls were clamouring to look like Madonna. Boys wanted to be like Michael. And they were allowed to – this was the 80s.

The loud, big, gaudy and bright clothes in the eighties mellowed when the 90s approached. Colours were more subtle and hair miraculously flattened. But a love of the 80s fashion endures both as a totally awesome piece of nostalgia and as the next big thing. Fashion seems to renew itself on what has come before, and it seems that the 80s are due for their comeback. Tweenies can be seen in leggings and miniskirts, wedge-heeled shoes are on every shelf, the skinny jean is back, and we find that everything old (or 80s) is new again.

 

 

 

The Rise of Grunge Fashion 1990

One of the most important events in 1990s fashion was the rise of Grunge fashion in 1992. Grunge fashion was influenced by grunge music, which achieved mainstream popularity in 1992, due to the mainstream success of Nirvana and their hit single Smells Like Teen Spirit. The grunge style resulted in a decline in bright colours, and was dominated by plaid flannel shirts, stonewashed blue jeans, and dark colours like maroon, forest green, indigo, and brown. White and black were also popular colours in grunge style. It was considered the most depressing, angst filled style.

Grunge fashion popularized Doc Martens style shoes and boots, and high-top sneakers in red, indigo, forest green, and black (such as Chuck Taylor All-Stars). It emphasized long hair, which most teen and pre-teen girls already had, and which a few teen and pre-teen boys adopted. Grunge fashion was a unisex phenomenon. Although the grunge look was considered "anti-fashion", the fashion industry made it a distinct fashion style by selling plaid items like hooded sweatshirts, sweatshirt vests, long sleeved t-shirts and shorts. Grunge fashion remained popular through 1994.

Though flannel plaid shirts remained popular through 1997, fashion started to move away from many of the other plaid styles in 1994. Waffle-patterns became popular on sweatshirts and polo shirts with colours such as white, beige and red, and remained popular until 1995. Olive green t-shirts, sweatshirts and dress shirts were all the rage in 1994 and 1995. Olive green remained more or less popular through 1998. Grey also became popular, and Oatmeal and wheat started to become popular with girls and women. Bowling shirts became popular, and remained more or less popular for the remainder of the 1990s. In the fall of 1994, bell-bottom jeans were replaced with wide-leg jeans. White denim became fashionable among guys as well as girls.

 

 

      

 

Typical "Grunge" clothes wear

 

 

 

 

 

 

An interview with Megan Jasper, a sales representative for Sub Pop Records who told a reporter from the NY Times a set of made-up slang terms that she claimed were associated with the Seattle grunge scene in the early 1990's.

 

Also featured are "Grunge Fashion" and a Muzak version of Nirvana's Smells like Teen Spirit.

 

  Grunge video clip

 

 

 

Low Rise Jeans | showing the skin fad?

During the late 1990s to the present (2007) showing skin became even more acceptable in ever before. Mid-drift tops, spaghetti-strapped tops, and mini-skirts are worn quite often.

Even though excessively seductive dress has been promoted by a variety of different celebrities, the general consensus among both teens and adults is that conservative is still better. Fashion designers suggest even in the present-day that a person is going to show skin then it is better just to expose one small part modestly, such as one bare shoulder.

Even though skimpy outfits nowadays seem more acceptable in the past the general consensus from the 1990s to the early 2000s and even in the year 2007 is to keep dress flattering yet simple. Dressing too provocatively is not considered acceptable by the average person’s standards throughout the 1990s-or even today for that matter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Global Fashion Statements

Some of the designers of the 1990s that promoted international dress fashions included Michael Kors, Isaac Mizrahi, and Oscar De La Renta. These fashion artists along with Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Bill Blass, and Donna Karan all have influenced fashion around the world.

Some of the examples of fashions exhibited in America to other places in the world include silk walking shorts with bold black and white waves and matching jacket. A black camisole was worn under this ensemble.

Another black and white outfit of the 1990s is one of a mini-dress with tights with a black jacket open, with checked trim around the trim of it. The body and arms of the black jacket includes symbols such as a swirl or the six-pointed star.

International fashions from Europe as well as from the continents of Africa and Asia were becoming more and more popular in America as well. Fashions that were imported to the United States from other countries included long ethnic print skirts from eastern countries such as India.

 

 

 

 

Summer Fashion – Banana shoe 2007

This summer trend comes from nowhere, sweeping across the high street with staggering speed. And the latest phenomenon to hit the high streets is the banana shoe.

Alber Elbaz started this fanaticism for barely there flats years ago, in his very first collection for Lanvin in 2002 when he dressed petite models in beautifully soft suits and dresses with the simplest ballet pumps on their feet. Since then, the ballet slipper has become his signature

Every store from Prada to Primark has peddled some version over the past year - designers have now turned to the banana shoe - a supple, pancake-flat pump with elasticised sides - as this year's alternative.

While banana shoes are supremely comfortable there are downsides. Flat styles can play havoc with arches, as they offer no support, and, of course, they are not ideal for urbanites that spend much of their time stomping along pavements. But for the car-bound and regular travellers in search of a perfect packable pump, they are a godsend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Power Dressing - Androgynous Fashion Look 2007 - 2008

These days we’re getting lazy with our work-wear. There isn’t that many occasions which require we wear a full tailored suit with crisp shirt anymore. Most jobs today only require we look smart, which no longer means formal – a pair of black trousers and a neat top will usually suffice for the boardroom and some of us may get away with donning smart jeans or even (shock horror) a pair of flats to the office.

We’ve well and truly pushed the boundaries in the workplace, asserting our rights to wear skirts of all lengths, colourful tops and pretty shoes – but whatever happened to power dressing? With city slicking ladies leading the trend for fashionable work-wear, suits have quite simply become dull and promptly ditched in favour of more glamorous work-wear.

But a new kind of power dressing has emerged in recent months providing a stylish alternative to the classic work suit. The androgynous look has been keeping ultra-feminine fashion in check on the catwalk, seeing a trend towards nipped tailoring and bold, brash statement dressing – changing the way we dress for the office forever.

Whilst following all the current trends in the office is fun and fashionable, it also breaks the boundaries between work and play and like it or not, unless you work in the fashion industry, your boss will appreciate the smart and serious look rather than the ultra glam girl persona you may lead out of hours!

Power dressing may sound scary but it isn’t if you carefully balance your look. Sometimes you might want to look fierce in front of colleagues and at others you might want to appear part of the crowd, so why not match your look to your work mood and start making big impressions through your clothes…now that’s power dressing.

Whether you’ve tried to win over a stubborn client or wanting to impress the rest of your colleagues with your ideas, the key is to choose clothes that ooze confidence. Feel confident as well as look it by choosing slimming styles that you feel comfortable wearing. Power dressing demands a fearless attitude which you’ll never convincingly achieve if you don’t like what you see in the mirror in the morning.

Choose trousers if you’re unsure of baring your legs and leave the killer stilettos at home if you fear toppling over in the boardroom. Combine subtle pinstripe, slim leg trousers with pointed heels for a feminine, slimming look. Always wear high heels but opt for a chunkier heel rather than a stiletto for stability and a perfect, confident walk.

 Pick jackets and blazers that are nipped in at the waist to create flattering curves and choose bold colours to wear underneath– weak pastel shades are the power dresser’s major fashion faux pas; beige is anything but brave – choose an ambitious red or empowering orange.

If you’re not sure about colour, embrace monochrome which is big business this season. Experiment with tailoring that features white lining and pinstripes, or simply add chic to a black suit with a thin white belt or bright crisp shirt.

Never wear anything too detailed or patterned when power dressing (you want to be bold – don’t let your clothes steal the show). Choose straight, classic tailoring, smart, high-waist pencil skirts or trousers and find a style that you feel most confident and comfortable in.

Always keep accessories to a minimum choosing silver jewellery for subtle sparkle and a subtle leather tote or handbag to finish your confident, empowering and fashionably fierce look.

 

 

The Dressy Androgynous look

The androgynous look is a fun way to dress for work if your dress code forbids denim. You won’t need to go all out to pull the look off as single elements of the trend will be just as effective.

 

     

 

 

Definition of Androgynous as used in fashion

As a ‘look’ of a female resembling a male. Popularized by actress Diane Keaton in the 1970's movie Annie Hall, and copied as fashion apparel. Kate Bosworth and Amanda Peet recently went androgynous at New York Fashion Week.

 

 Celebrities & Fashion

Kate Bosworth and Amanda Peet embraced the menswear inspired fashion trend at the Rag & Bone Runway Show in Bryant Park yesterday.

We love hearing all of our favorite celebrity fashionistas weigh in on the spring 2008 designs, and Kate had nothing but praise for Rag & Bone's new line, saying, "I loved it! The clothes were easy to wear, effortless, chic.

 Each piece you could match with something else [you own]. It was great." We all know how great Kate is at mixing and matching outfits.

 

 Kate Bosworth and Amanda Peet

 

 

 

Fashion Update - Overview

We at SovaCollection have noticed the shift in trends since the 80’s that during the period of time fashion has been the fundamental time portal into the culture, popular art and the feeling of that given age. Whether you liked what was popular in mainstream at that time, it still left its mark forever embedded in people's memories.

Fashion as a whole is a "personal mode of expression", which was denoted by the hysteria of that time shown by the media, or by music that was popular at that time. We saw this as far back in the eighties, where the mode of feeling was innovative and experimental.

Enter the era of 'Grunge', influenced by grunge music of Nirvana of the 90's and hyped by MTV TV, the fashion style people adopted was that of dressed down attitude, soon to become 'mainstream', throughout the fashion industry, all because of the mood that influenced colors, turning from the more popular bright to the more mode of dark colors.

 

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