80's fashion revival: yay or nay

Angie

A big fat YAY.

Can't tell you how I've enjoyed seeing and wearing the styles come back over the last 4 to 5 years. All more flattering incarnations this time round of course.

How about you?

15 years ago

General

43 replies

Latest reply was from eye4beauty

Louise

Veteran

Yay i'm loving skinnies, bumbags and strong shoulder jackets, thank goodness shellsuits haven't made a comeback!!! x

15 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Yes! Quite.

You enjoy banded tops and leggings too, Louise. Thank you 80's !

15 years ago

Mamapicklejuice

Veteran

So we have the 80's to thank for leggings and tunics? If so, THANK YOU 80s...I just rec'd my Boden tunics and my NAS MK leggings, and they are FAB.

15 years ago

Louise

Veteran

Ooo I'd forgotten about those x

15 years ago

taylor

Veteran

I was a stay at home MOTG in the early 80's...I loved my leggings, jackets and BIG hair...goodness I could slip back into that in a heartbeat!!

15 years ago

shana

Veteran

Hmmm, I'm a yay in terms of bring back memories & the nostalgia a bit but nay in terms of the fashions. The 80's were definitely not my favorite fashion era and though the current incarnations are definitely better in many ways, I'm not on the bandwagon. Now if we were talking about 80's music, that would be another story....

15 years ago

Michelle

(website)

Veteran

I'm a big ole neutral. I was born in the 80's and was to young to learn about fashion for the entire decade. But I too have learned to love leggings and tunics, so I'll give it a small-letters thumbs up.

15 years ago

medusa

Veteran

YES! Although really, a fashion revival of any era is fab when we take the best things and give them fresh new intepretations.

I don't think I could live without leggings. More accurately, I don't think I would wear dresses and skirts if leggings hadn't been revived. It just makes it a lot easier to run/bike/walk around and not worry about flashing everyone. As we speak I'm wearing a dress with leggings! It just makes dresses and skirts so much more accessible to me.

Tunics and banded tops have also become favorites of mine.

But when are parachute pants going to come back? I miss them soooo much. Mmmm, parachute pants, I'm dreaming of you...

15 years ago

Queen Mum

Veteran

I spent high school and college sporting 80's garb (and not very well I might add) so it has been nice to be able to redeem myself this time around. I'm still digging my heels in on the strong shoulder lines and ruffle skirts will have to be enjoyed by the younger gals, but I'm loving skinnies and tunics.
I'm with Louise on the shell suits. Nothing like announcing your arrival with the swish swish of that nylon fabric

15 years ago

Scarlet

Veteran

I always want to say I hate 80's fashion, but I do in fact have parachute pants that I wear with pride.

15 years ago

Beth

Veteran

Huge yay from me. Like Kim, I spent my high school and college years in the 80s...good times.

I don't miss the neon colors or the parachute material, but I love the strong shoulders and skinny pants. Now if only big hair would come back, I might consider letting my hair revert to it's naturally curly state.

15 years ago

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

I love the revival of 80's stuff. It's like going back home and finding it redecorated and looking so much better.

15 years ago

Beth

Veteran

Ha, Khris. That's a good way of putting it.

It's like a big circle for me. The last time I really had fun with fashion was in the 80s. Then I went to college and graduate school and lived under a pile of books. After that, I started my career and worried more about looking professional and competent than looking fashion-forward.

And now it's back to having fun again:)

15 years ago

Louise

Veteran

I think we're doing it much more stylishly this time I wonder if the looks will come back round in another 20 years and we'll be saying "WHAT did we look like back in the noughties!!!!"

15 years ago

Dawn

(website)

Active Member

Yay to the eighties! I was born in the late 80s so all of this is new for me, and I have no terrible associations with leggings or skinny jeans. I wonder if we can bring back my guilty pleasure- dodgy 80s metal and rock!

15 years ago

Kristen

(website)

Veteran

I'm going to have to go with "nay" -- i keep looking at the silhouettes now and thinking, "Boy, we are going to regret this as much as we did the first time around!"

15 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Kristen, is there ever so called "fashion-era-regret:? It was fabulous at the time, right? And its fun look back at what you wore.

Medusa, well said: "a fashion revival of any era is fab when we take the best things and give them fresh new interpretations". Exactly.

I was a teen in the 80's. THE BEST DECADE FOR MUSIC! It's not my favourite fashion era - early 60's is my favourite fashion era. But I have a very soft spot for the 80's.

15 years ago

tarzy

Veteran

Can I also have my 80's body back? (Twenty pounds lighter with a tiny waist!)

15 years ago

MsMaven

Veteran

I've been looking at old photos and I hope soon to get a few of the 80s posted. I liked the 80s. I tried leggings once and decided it wasn't for me, but shoulder pads were a blessing for many reasons. Okay, some of the huge one were silly, but the moderate ones help to balance out many women's bodies.

I still have two favorite dresses from the 80s, and if I could just get my waist back, I would love to wear them. (This is extremely unlikely at present.)

I also have a 24-year old black cashmere coat that I bought from Bergdorf Goodman's in New York. It is still in good condition and being a coat, it still skims the waist. I'll post that one too.

15 years ago

puffenstuff

(website)

Veteran

Oh wow I am in mixed minds about this. I was a teen in the 80's so was right in the thick of being "trendy" and looooooved the music - hence some previous photos that are forever lost in the archives of me looking like either the back up singers for Wham or Boy George! But I dont think I would ever revive Bubblegum jeans, ruffle skirts, fluro leg warmers, bits of rags in my hair (a la Madonna), ankle length tube skirts, spiral perms and poufed up leg of mutton sleeves.

I suppose the upside of all of that made me appreciate deconstructed clothes and it inspires me now to be more brave in making new fashion choices. But I will NOT be wearing black lace fingerless gloves no matter how hard the retailers may try (hope no-one is recording this I have been known to eat my words on these choices before!)

Gimme the 70's for fashion - cork wedges, hand crocheted ponchos (thanks mum), long loose dresses, gingham shorts and cords!

15 years ago

Kristen

(website)

Veteran

Angie, oh no in the middle of the era we usually think we all look fantastic! It's in hindsight when the cringing begins.

The bulk of my 80s were spent in prep school and then in the Ivy League, so I literally was in the midst of the preppy era with upturned Izod collars, plaid Bermuda shorts and pearls with everything. Those 80s I don't mind reliving. But I spent plenty of other years in leggings and oversized shirts (now called tunics) and blazers, and that part...you know I keep trying, but it just doesn't feel natural and I keep having acid-wash jeans flashbacks.

But I much prefer early 60s fashion, too. When will that come back?!

15 years ago

biscuitsmom

Veteran

Music in the 80's was good, but you cant beat 70's Motown!!!!!!!!! There will never be another voice like Levi Stubbs! Or Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, groups like the 4 Tops, Temptations, Jackson 5, Supremes, etc.....

15 years ago

shana

Veteran

Kristen, I'm with you - I liked that preppy look (the Laura Ashley dresses, the plaid madras shorts with polos etc) but all the trends that are resurfacing (big shouldered jackets, big on top/skinny on the bottom silhouette etc) are really not my cup of tea. I'd rather forget my awful oversized Forenza (Limited) sweaters with leggings and my goofy heavily shoulder-padded jackets!

15 years ago

Maya

Veteran

I don't honestly understand the idea that "I wore this once so I can't ever wear it again." I hope I never become like that.

I also don't understand the "But I'll regret that in 20 years" theory. I may not even be alive in 20 years. Who knows. I'd rather live in the moment and laugh at myself later on. Isn't that part of the fun? I guess I just don't take myself that seriously.

I'm enjoying it and I also plan to enjoy the 90's revival as well, even though I have done it all already.

15 years ago

Beth

Veteran

It's funny, I'm watching Pretty In Pink on cable as I write this, and having the most lovely flashbacks.

I'm sure everybody says this, but the 80s really were a fun time to be a teen:D

15 years ago

shana

Veteran

Flipping through the channels furiously to find "pretty in pink"....

15 years ago

Beth

Veteran

Shana, it ends in 15 minutes:( It's on WE.

15 years ago

shana

Veteran

Darn! Where is a John Hughes marathon when you need it?

I am curious, Angie, did you see any of these American 80's teen flicks (Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, Ferris Bueller's day off etc)? I ask because even though my husband is all about the 80's (his entire music collection consists of 80's music), those movies were apparently never that popular in Europe.

15 years ago

Beth

Veteran

Hey Shana, they're running a back-to-back repeat starting at 10:)

15 years ago

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