Fashion has always existed but in the years it has changed a lot. Firstly it’s an element that was born from the need of man to cover himself with fabrics and leathers, which then, with time, has developed into a real social function that allows distinguishing the various social classes. We are going to analyze women’s different styles and trends from the second half of the 1900s. In the 1950s the television stars helped to dictate the fashions, which in these years represented a period of rebirth and also of Rock ‘n roll. On women of the time, there were the vintage look and the Bon Ton look; frequently you could see rounded skirts, blouses and lace clothes; a must be a scarf at the neck and ballerinas at the feet and for the first time were customary prints like zebra and leopard. Much different is the situation in the ’60s, that is the period that influenced the most fashion with innovative styles and new aesthetic standards. Miniskirts, colorful dresses, polka dots, stripes, geometric prints, with also short and extravagant hairstyles were the main trends of the time. Common was heavy eye make-up, big rounded glasses, knee-high boots and plastic jewelry; in 1968 Yves Saint Laurent introduced its nude look, which was an evening gown, almost completely see-through except for the part at the hips, that was covered by ostrich feathers. In the ’70s the hippies came along with a movement called “flower power”. This time fashion is characterised by Mexican blouses, military clothing, flared trousers and ponchos. The dresses were called ‘maxis’ and usual were long skirts up to the ankle; the colors were bright and the accessories were rich in natural objects such as shells, stones, wood and leather. These years marked the begging of a new era with tight tops, bomber jackets, tube skirts and much more. Fashion in the ’80 was extreme, with colours, rock and music icons such as Madonna that introduced fashion trends to these years of rock. Worn in everyday life: leg warmers, headbands, oversize hairstyles, fluo colours on leggings, or any other piece of clothing. Most common were big earrings and lots of jewelry; in the field of make-up, the eyes were surrounded by flashy colors just like the lips redrawn with pencil and lipstick; the hair was feathered, then embellished with bows, clips, bands and ribbons. Then the ’90s came through with a fusion of different styles, the most important was The grunge where ripped jeans were combined with a t-shirt and a plaid shirt on and at the foot could not miss the amphibians. At the time bands like Nirvana and Oasis were the main ones and a new musical phenomenon was born: the Techno. Makeup-wise, smokey eyes started to be a thing, with lots of mascara and red lipstick. In the 2000s-2010s fashion was inspired by music icons like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera that wore crop tops that left their stomach showing, with low-waisted jeans or skirts. The tracksuit was used a lot preferably flared pants, Dr. Martins was the most used shoe along with platform shoes and sabot. Arriving at today were a lot of trends from the past are coming back, such as flared pants but high-waisted, layered hair with bangs, and a lot of branded clothes such as Nike, Moschino, Calvin Klein, and Alexander Mcqueen. Serpentine or leopard print are coming back and are popular. In make-up, fake eyelashes to make them long and eyeshadow that make you have almond eyes, along with bronzer to have higher chick bones. We can say that fashion has changed a lot and it will continue to change over the years, making the past trends a part of history.
Asia Isawi 4N
