Are shoulder pads coming back? - YouLookFab Forum

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Are shoulder pads coming back?

Joyce B

Veteran

I though shoulder pads were way past their prime but now I am seeing them in a few garments, one from BR and one from CM for example. Are they back in style?
I am not sure I would wear them, maybe I would give them a chance if they are not too prominent.
What do you all think? Would you wear them? Should we bring the old tops and jackets back?

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Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

YES. I mentioned sharp shoulders in my trend report.

http://youlookfab.com/2016/09/.....nter-2016/

El Cee

Veteran

Hooray for their return!!! ('80's gal at heart.)

Dottie

I'm not sure about the shoulder pads, but I'd be willing to give them a try. I LOVE the color of that coral sweater.

Joyce B

Veteran

Thanks for the info, Angie, I am off to check the link, it may not have sinked in for me at the time that shoulder pads were a trend. El Cee, it's great to see your enthusiasm and Dottie, I also love that color, it is very happy looking.
I was thinking of finally donating some items with shoulder pads. That's what happens when you wait too long, you may be able to donate to yourself!

Joy

Veteran

My friends with narrow shoulders loved shoulder pads. They also balance wide hips. I already have wide shoulders so am not enthusiastic about them returning. Maybe the right ones would add length to my torso though

Isabel

Veteran

I have never completely gave up on them....ssshhhhh...I have very narrow shoulders. Many blazers seem to have small ones. Now, I am not sure that I would go for really obvious ones a la David Bowie.

Style Fan

Veteran

I have patiently been waiting for their return. Shoulder pads were my best friend. I recently noticed that many of my coats don`t actually sit on my shoulders but are out in the air. Shoulder pads will remedy that problem.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

My most frequently worn jackets have a defined shoulder, and yes, the BCBG jacket I wear constantly has shoulder pads! I like a moderate shoulder pad because they help balance out my hips and also can help disguise how asymmetrical my shoulders are (one is slightly sloping while the other is quite square). Yay scoliosis. So I welcome the return of defined shoulders.

April

Veteran

As with all trends, this one will look a little different than it did in the 80s.

So if you're a packrat thinking you'll haul out those dresses you wore to weddings back in the day, I'm sorry to say I'm here to burst your bubble and to sternly insist that you let them go.

(Don't feel singled out -- I insisted that my own mother do the same when we cleaned out her closets a few years back. She truly had the dresses from her eldest children's first weddings. 1989, folks. That shoulder line and those polyesters will not look au courant again in our lifetime, I promise. Let them go.)

Colette

Veteran

Yes, I like a defined, sharp shoulder. Like Isabel and Janet, I never really stopped wearing them in jackets.

LaPed

Veteran

I remember my mother cutting the shoulder pads out of everything in the 80s and using them as cleaning rags. We have big square shoulders in our family, no need for extra padding!

Anonymous

I won't be wearing them the second time around. I didn't look good in them the first time around. I can only wear the small ones they put in blazers, and even then, I look better without them.

Anonymous

I am glad they can help and look good on the narrow shouldered, but as one in the opposite camp, I will pass on this trend.

L'Abeille

Veteran

I for one am happy to see them back because once again I can cut them out and things will hang properly because they'll be shaped to fit the shoulders I already have.

Anonymous

It's not so easy to cut them out. The problem I ran into (in the '80s) was that once the shoulder pads were cut out, the sleeves were too long. The stupid thing, too, was that shoulder pads were in everything--sweaters, blouses (even sheer blouses!), etc.

Joyce B

Veteran

Thanks to everyone for chiming in.
I think ladies with well defined shoulders look very elegant in jackets and coats and may not need shoulder pads. I can always use a little extra help in that department. I always see comments in the forum as to how jackets should fit properly at the tip of the shoulders. Well if I do that the rest of the jacket is too tight and uncomfortable, it looks good but feels terrible. I think shoulder pads will help me with that.
April, I do not have any fancy dresses with shoulder pads. I have a few printed tops which would look nice these days, a jumpsuit and a few jackets with shoulder pads. I will check with you for the little extra push to just donate clothing that is not really useful, I can use that at times

Joyce B

Veteran

Yes. BC, they did over-do it with shoulder pads then. I also remember blouses that did not need shoulder pads and when you removed them there was an excess of fabric that made them unwearable.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

I bat for Team Shoulder Pads too.

Ginger

Veteran

It's going to be hard to train my eye (growing up when all women wore big ones!) but objectively shoulder pads make So Much Sense. They even out the shoulder line and provide definition, help some garments hang better, and can be adjusted for the wearer.

A lot of early 1940s sewing patterns, including dresses and blouses, include instructions for making light shoulder padding or shaping. Often it's as simple as several layers of thin, stiff fabric. Very little height or width added to the shoulders, but the change in shape is amazing. It goes from Frump to Fabulous.

Ginger

Veteran

And then there's this new-to-me coat, which is in a whole 'nother league entirely.

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kkards

Veteran

I'm on the fence with this one...i do like and appreciate a small shoulder pad, but i can also remember so many garments not laying correctly after washing or dry cleaning. they really require careful handling.

Joyce B

Veteran

That coat is fab on you! What you said about instructions for light shoulder pads from 1940s patterns is very interesting. People with sewing skills have a definite advantage. I also like the light shoulder pads, they are just right and not overwhelming.

Joyce B

Veteran

Kkards, you are right, the cleaning can be a problem. Some shoulder pads can be removed before cleaning but if not the wrong laundering can really ruin the garment.

AviaMariah

Veteran

I sure hope so.

bj1111

Veteran

ginger...love the coat. sooo 40s

Ginger

Veteran

Thanks, Joyce! I was really surprised to see it, but it made a huge difference to the finished garments. Oddly, there are few frumpier garments than a not-quite-finished 40s dress. It needs the right hem length, belt, and shoulder definition. And then suddenly then it all works.

My mother is a pear with a tiny waist and quite narrow shoulders. She never wore huge shoulder pads even back in the day, but to balance out her figure she does prefer medium-sized ones. For years she wore small ones (less than 1/2" thick at most) even in her tees; her shoulders are shaped so that it wasn't really noticeable. It just balanced. From her I learned how to make pads from concentric circles of light fusible fleece, building up just enough thickness. Cheaper and more subtle than bought ones.

It is, bj1111. Right about 40-42 is my guess. Quite warm with a heavy interlining, and small collar so I can wear a fur over or not. The fastenings are so neat - matching mulberry plastic, twisted loops that hook over prongs on the other side. The fabric is nubbly wool in rows, too, like giant terry cloth. So much texture and color! I'm looking forward to wearing it.

Elle

Veteran

Love the coat! Wonderful style on you.

I plan to skip shoulder pads this time around. Not a good look for me.

catgirl

Veteran

No shoulder pads here - mine are built in already.
Although it's a bonus if the look is in, because I have it no matter what!

minimalist

Veteran

What AG said!
Once, when trying on coats, I was admonished by the SA not to wear shoulder pads because they looked comically disproportionate on me. She didn't want to believe I wasn't wearing any.

Some shaping at the shoulders does make a positive difference, as Ginger says, in tailored jackets. To my eye, that bit of definition can make my shoulders look present and intentional rather than infinite. But please, no linebacker padding in dresses!

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