Last night I was a guest at a 40th High School reunion. What fun! Great old music (we’ve all heard it) and photos of mid-Seventies “fashion” (is there such a thing?). Anyway, the trivia contest was fun and interesting to see how many of the answers I could know.
Every clothing era has become so much a part of the culture through media of all sorts and, if you’re savvy and observant, the tendency for style to repeat itself every decade or so. The originals are always the “best” from a purist point of view, but sometimes a copycat will surprise with an improvement of some kind.
Frankly, it’s not surprising that true Seventies fashion has not tended to repeat, excepting at the least expensive, faddish level. Excepting, maybe, for Cher’s interesting get-ups by Bob Mackie we really fell off the fashion train during that decade and don’t seem to have really gotten back on in any consistent way since then. Your thoughts? . . . . . . .
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Traditional, classic lines keep coming back, decade after decade.
I guess it’s just the high neckline. Lots of dresses from the early ’70’s (except the hippy/prairie/boho styles that were popular then) have a very innocent, girlish look about them. Have you seen the Prom dresses from that time? Watch the movie Footloose.
This one is unremarkable in its tailoring, but it was just that ’70’s cache’ that made me bring it home. I must admit, it is a very classic style and can be done beautifully if it’s with quality materials and exceptional workmanship. But this one just takes us on a daydream journey back 40 years.
It’s fun to watch old movies from that time (or That ’70s Show, I guess), just to see how awful some of the clothing was. Uh, oh – I’m going to get myself into some big trouble here.
But seriously, the dance scene from Footloose is a good tutorial on ’70’s Prom dresses…
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It’s still cool enough to enjoy wearing this glitzy true vintage ensemble.
Disco Days again! This silver-sparkly knit dress and jacket are for dancing the night away.
The dress is bare shoulders with rhinestone-studded straps and trim, back zip and a side slit for doing the boogie. The jacket has rhinestone-studded buttons. I have some silver and black platform sandals from the same era that go perfectly!.
This is another of those specialty outfits from a small shop in South Beach Miami, Florida. It has the hallmarks of the late ’70’s – mostly in the fabric and some of the construction details.
Not a high-end garment this time in terms of its quality, but I’ll bet it was expensive because of where it was sold – even back then. Fortunately, all the rhinestones in the buttons and trimming are in place so we can’t fault the value of those items – they didn’t tend to fall apart.
I’m always pleasantly surprised to…
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Love sweaters and knits? Our grandmothers wore them year-round! Here’s a beautiful example . . . . . .
These types of sweaters/capes/ponchos were popular in the ’60’s and a lot of women knitted them themselves. This one is made by the Banff company, which produced a lot of really nice knits. I have a beaded sweater, knit dresses and suits by them, too.
The greatest feature, to me, is the armholes that allow you to have hands free. Any cape with this design is wonderful because it raises the convenience level big time!
Another nice thing is the button front. Also convenient. The fringe is lovely and the acrylic yarn also great because it washes so nicely and gives warmth but doesn’t have the weight and care issues of most wool items.
Sweet little sweater things, whether cardigans, pull-overs, jackets & coats, dresses and skirts,etc. were really popular in the ’60’s and early ’70’s and are very different from the things made now.
I love finding these beautiful…
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Super Spring & Summer Shirts for the Guys . . .. ..
I LOVE these shirts! Of course, I can’t wear them (WAY too big), but I couldn’t resist anyway. The photo doesn’t show you the details well, so I’ll describe. Let’s start with the true vintage shirt on the right.
This one was made in Hawaii in the 1960’s or ’70’s. Beautiful heavy 100% cotton fabric that is so characteristic of true vintage garments made there before about 1975. Since that time, the fabric usually isn’t so nice, nor the construction. My apologies to Hawaiian clothing-makers if there are exceptions.
The prints on these materials are also superb – nice designs and astounding colors. The label and the buttons used are also good clues as to the age of the shirt.
The shirt on the left is retro – probably 1980’s – but it is such a nice reproduction of a 1950’s to early 1960’s men’s shirt that I decided to…
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,Zooming into Spring and Summer now, you may be looking around for outfits to wear this Easter weekend . . … .
A beautiful gown in a pastel floral print, perfect for a Spring dance, dinner, theater event, etc. – anything that this week’s celebrations or events might throw at you.
This one has an empire waistline seam, a sheer layer of fabric over an opaque lining and a center back zipper. No slip necessary, though I do have a true vintage long crinoline underneath in this picture. I’ll show that to you later as it is very interesting, itself.
I’m not sure whether this dress was made in the ’60s or ’70s. I lean toward the ’60s, but it is a classic style with only one tag left inside that is not a definite answer to the question. But, the fabric just has a ’60s feel to it …
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