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Fashion in the 1970s was about
individuality An individual is one that exists as a distinct entity. Individuality (or self-hood) is the state or quality of living as an individual; particularly (in the case of humans) as a person unique from other people and possessing one's own needs or g ...
. In the early 1970s, ''Vogue'' proclaimed "There are no rules in the fashion game now" due to
overproduction In economics, overproduction, oversupply, excess of supply, or glut refers to excess of supply over demand of products being offered to the market. This leads to lower prices and/or unsold goods along with the possibility of unemployment. T ...
flooding the market with cheap synthetic clothing. Common items included
mini skirt A miniskirt (or mini-skirt, mini skirt, or mini) is a skirt with its hemline well above the knees, generally at mid-thigh level, normally no longer than below the buttocks; and a dress with such a hemline is called a minidress or a miniskirt ...
s,
bell-bottoms Bell-bottoms (or flares) are a style of trousers that become wider from the knees downward, forming a bell-like shape of the trouser leg. History Naval origins In the early 19th century, when standardised uniforms for British ratings in the ...
popularized by
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
s,
vintage clothing Vintage clothing is clothing that originates from a previous era, as recent as the 1990s. The term ''vintage clothing'' can also be applied in reference to second-hand retail outlets, e.g. in "vintage clothing store". While the concept origina ...
from the 1950s and earlier, and the
androgynous Androgyny is the possession of both masculine and feminine characteristics. Androgyny may be expressed with regard to biological sex or gender expression. When ''androgyny'' refers to mixed biological sex characteristics in humans, it often r ...
glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...
and
disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...
styles that introduced
platform shoe Platform shoes are shoes, boots, or Sandal (footwear), sandals with a thick sole, usually in the range of . Platform shoes may also be high heels, in which case the heel is raised significantly higher than the ball of the foot. Extreme heights ...
s, bright colors, glitter, and satin. New technologies brought about advances such as mass production, higher efficiency, generating higher standards and uniformity. Generally the most famous silhouette of the mid and late 1970s for both genders was that of tight on top and loose at the bottom. The 1970s also saw the birth of the indifferent, anti-conformist
casual chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Etymology ''Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English dictionaries classified i ...
approach to fashion, which consisted of sweaters, T-shirts, jeans and sneakers. One notable fashion designer to emerge into the spotlight during this time was
Diane von Fürstenberg Diane von Fürstenberg (born Diane Simone Michele Halfin; 31 December 1946) is a Belgian fashion designer best known for her wrap dress. She initially rose to prominence in 1969 when she married into the German princely House of Fürstenberg ...
, who popularized, among other things, the
jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...
"
wrap dress "Wrap dress" is a generic term for a dress with a front closure formed by wrapping one side across the other, and is fastened at the side or tied at the back. This forms a V-shaped neckline. A faux wrap dress resembles this design, except that it ...
". Von Fürstenberg's wrap dress design, essentially a robe, was among the most popular fashion styles of the 1970s for women and would also be credited as a symbol of
women's liberation The women's liberation movement (WLM) was a political alignment of women and feminism, feminist intellectualism. It emerged in the late 1960s and continued till the 1980s, primarily in the industrialized nations of the Western world, which resu ...
. The French designer Yves Saint Laurent and the American designer
Halston Roy Halston Frowick (April 23, 1932 – March 26, 1990), known mononymously as Halston, was an American fashion designer, who rose to international fame in the 1970s. Halston's minimalist, clean designs, which were often made of cashmere or ...
both observed and embraced the changes that were happening in society, especially the huge growth of women's rights and the youth
counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Ho ...
. They successfully adapted their design aesthetics to accommodate the changes that the market was aiming for. Top fashion models in the 1970s were
Lauren Hutton Lauren Hutton (born Mary Laurence Hutton; November 17, 1943) is an American model and actress. Born and raised in the southern United States, Hutton relocated to New York City in her early adulthood to begin a modeling career. Though she was ini ...
,
Margaux Hemingway Margaux Louise Hemingway (born Margot Louise Hemingway; February 16, 1954 – July 1, 1996) was an American fashion model and actress. The granddaughter of writer Ernest Hemingway, she gained independent fame as a supermodel in the 1970s, appear ...
,
Beverly Johnson Beverly Ann Johnson (born October 13, 1952) is an American model, actress, singer, and businesswoman. Johnson rose to fame when she became the first Black model to appear on the cover of American '' Vogue'' in August 1974, after Donyale Luna w ...
,
Gia Carangi Gia Marie Carangi (January 29, 1960November 18, 1986) was an American supermodel, considered by some to be the first supermodel. In 2023, Harpers Bazaar ranked her 15th among the greatest supermodels in the 1980s. She was featured on the cover o ...
,
Janice Dickinson Janice Doreen Dickinson (born February 16, 1955)As per Dickinson in NNDB aJanice Dickinson profilegives February 15, 1955, noting, "Although Dickinson has maintained in several interviews and her autobiography ''No Lifeguard on Duty'' that she ...
,
Patti Hansen Patricia Alvine Hansen (born March 17, 1956) is an American model and actress. Biography Early life and career Hansen, who is of Norwegian ancestry, was born and raised in Tottenville, Staten Island, New York City, the youngest of six children. ...
,
Cheryl Tiegs Cheryl Rae Tiegs (born September 25, 1947) is an American model and fashion designer. Frequently described as America's first supermodel, Tiegs made multiple appearances on the covers of the ''Sports Illustrated'' Swimsuit Issue and ''Time'' ma ...
,
Jerry Hall Jerry Faye Hall (born July 2, 1956) is an American model and actress. She began modeling in the 1970s and became one of the most sought-after models in the world. She transitioned into acting, appearing in the 1989 film ''Batman''. Hall was the ...
, and
Iman Iman, Imann, Imaan, Eman, Eiman, Imane, Emaan, or Imman may refer to: Places * Iman, Iran, a village in Kalashi District, Kermanshah Province * The Iman River, the former name of the Bolshaya Ussurka River, a tributary of the Ussuri River in ...
.


Women


Early 1970s (1970–1973)


Hippie look

* The 1970s began with a continuation of the
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
look from the
1960s File:1960s montage.png, Clockwise from top left: U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War; the Beatles led the British Invasion of the U.S. music market; a half-a-million people participate in the Woodstock, 1969 Woodstock Festival; Neil Armstrong ...
, giving a distinct ethnic flavor. Popular early 1970s fashions for women included
Tie dye Tie-dye is a term used to describe a number of resist dyeing techniques and the resulting dyed products of these processes. The process of tie-dye typically consists of folding, twisting, pleating, or crumpling fabric or a garment, before binding ...
shirts, Mexican 'peasant' blouses, folk-embroidered Hungarian blouses, ponchos, capes, and military surplus clothing. Bottom attire for women during this time included
bell-bottoms Bell-bottoms (or flares) are a style of trousers that become wider from the knees downward, forming a bell-like shape of the trouser leg. History Naval origins In the early 19th century, when standardised uniforms for British ratings in the ...
, gauchos, frayed
jeans Jeans are a type of trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with the addition of copper pocket rivets added by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and patented by ...
,
midi skirt A skirt is the lower part of a dress or a separate outer garment that covers a person from the waist downwards. At its simplest, a skirt can be a draped garment made out of a single piece of fabric (such as pareos). However, most skirts are fit ...
s, and ankle-length
maxi dress A dress (also known as a frock or a gown) is a one-piece outer garment that is worn on the torso, hangs down over the legs, and is primarily worn by women or girls. Dresses often consist of a bodice attached to a skirt. Dress shapes, silh ...
es. Hippie clothing during this time was made in extremely bright colors, as well as Indian patterns, Native American patterns, and floral patterns. * Women's hippie accessories of the early 1970s included chokers, dog collars, handcrafted neck ornaments, and accessories made from natural elements like wood, shells, stones, feathers, Indian beads and leather. All of these replaced standard jewelry. Unisex hippie accessories included headbands, floppy hats, flowing scarves,
Birkenstock Birkenstock Holding plc is a German shoe manufacturer known for its sandals and other shoes notable for contoured cork footbeds (soles), made with layers of suede and jute, which conform to the shape of their wearers' feet. Founded in 1774 by J ...
s,
earth shoe The Earth Shoe (also known as the Kalsø Earth Shoe) was an unconventional style of shoe invented circa 1957 by Danish yoga instructor and shoe designer Anna Kalsø. Its unique "negative heel technology" design featured a sole that was thinner a ...
s, authentic beaded and fringed Native American buckskin moccasins, including knee-high boot versions, and sandals, including tire-soled versions and huaraches. The back-to-nature direction of the times meant that there was also a lot of going barefoot.


Glamour wear

* Although the hippie look was widespread, it was not adopted by everyone. Many women still continued to dress up with more glamorous clothes, inspired by 1940s movie star glamour. Other women just adopted simple casual fashions, or combined new garments with carefully chosen secondhand or
vintage clothing Vintage clothing is clothing that originates from a previous era, as recent as the 1990s. The term ''vintage clothing'' can also be applied in reference to second-hand retail outlets, e.g. in "vintage clothing store". While the concept origina ...
from the 1930s, 1950s and 1960s. * Glamorous women's accessories of the early 1970s included
cloche hat The cloche hat or simply cloche () is a fitted, bell-shaped hat for women that was invented in 1908 by milliner Caroline Reboux. They were especially popular from about 1922 to 1933. Its name is derived from ''cloche'', the French word for "bell ...
s or
turbans A turban (from Persian دولبند‌, ''dolband''; via Middle French ''turbant'') is a type of headwear based on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear by people of various cultures. Communities with promi ...
,
pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle (mollusc), mantle) of a living Exoskeleton, shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pear ...
earrings, necklaces, bracelets, feather boas, black-veiled hats,
clogs Clogs are a type of footwear that has a thick, rigid sole typically made of wood, although in American English, shoes with rigid soles made of other materials are also called clogs. Traditional clogs remain in use as protective footwear in a ...
, wedgies, cork-soled platforms, and chunky high heels. Golden chains, gold-button earrings and rhinestone clips started to become popular again in 1973 after several years of homemade jewelry.


General trends

* More simple early 1970s trends for women included fitted blazers (coming in a multitude of fabrics along with wide lapels), long and short dresses, mini skirts, maxi evening gowns,
hot pants Hotpants or hot pants are extremely short shorts. The term was first used by ''Women's Wear Daily'' in 1970 to describe shorts made in luxury fabrics such as velvet and satin for fashionable wear, rather than their more practical equivalents t ...
(extremely brief, tight-fitting shorts) paired with skin-tight T-shirts, his & hers outfits (matching outfits that were nearly identical to each other), and flared pants. Pastel colors were most commonly used for this style of clothing, such as
mauve Mauve ( ; ) is a pale purple color named after the mallow flower (French: ). The first use of the word ''mauve'' as a color was in 1796–1798 according to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', but its use seems to have been rare before 1859. ...
,
peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and Agriculture, cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called necta ...
,
apple green Varieties of the color green may differ in hue, chroma (also called saturation or intensity) or lightness (or value, tone, or brightness), or in two or three of these qualities. Variations in value are also called tints and shades, a tint be ...
, pink, yellow, white,
wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...
,
camel A camel (from and () from Ancient Semitic: ''gāmāl'') is an even-toed ungulate in the genus ''Camelus'' that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. Camels have long been domesticated and, as livestock, they provid ...
, gray, and
baby blue Baby blue, also known as light blue, is a tint of azure, which is one of the pastel colors. The first recorded use of ''baby blue'' as a color name in English was in 1892. Variations of baby blue Beau blue Beau blue is a light tone of ba ...
.
Rust Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH) ...
,
tangerine The tangerine is a type of citrus fruit that is orange in colour, that is considered either a variety of the mandarin orange (''Citrus reticulata''), or a closely related species, under the name ''Citrus tangerina'', or yet as a hybrid (''Citr ...
,
copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...
,
forest green Forest green is a green color said to resemble the color of the trees and other plants in a forest. This web color, when written as computer code in HTML for website color display, is written in the form forestgreen (no space). The first reco ...
, and
pistachio The pistachio (, ; ''Pistacia vera'') is a small to medium-sized tree of the Anacardiaceae, cashew family, originating in Iran. The tree produces nut (fruit)#Culinary definition and uses, seeds that are widely consumed as food. In 2022, world ...
became more popularized from 1973 onwards. Sweaters were a huge phenomenon in the early 1970s, often outfits being judged entirely by the sweater. This fragmented into more styles, such as turtleneck sweaters, sweater coats, sweater dresses, floor-length sweaters, and even sweater suits. Many of them were trimmed with fur, especially faux. Chunky, shawl-collared, belted cardigans, often in brown and white, were also commonplace. Jeans were ubiquitous, characteristic of the period. On the feet, platform shoes were widespread in a variety of styles, including clog-like forms and sandals, with relatively wide straps. The young paired these with colorful, often brightly striped knee-socks, some with separate toes like gloves for the feet, called toe socks. * In the early 1970s boots were at the height of their popularity, continuing onward from the mid-1960s. Women had boots for every occasion, with a wide variety of styles being sold in stores for affordable prices. Despite the wide variety, the most popular boots were
Go-go boots Go-go boots are a low-heeled style of women's fashion boot first introduced in the mid-1960s. The original go-go boots, as defined by André Courrèges in 1964, were white, low-heeled, and mid-calf in height, a specific style which is sometimes ...
, crinkle boots (boots with a shiny wet look that was wrinkled), stretch boots, and granny boots (1920s style lace-up boots that ended just below the knees).


Mid-1970s (1974–1976)


Casual looks

* By 1974, the T-shirt was no longer considered underwear, and was by then made in elaborate designs such as slogans, sports teams, and other styles. Around the same time the looser, more flowy shirts of the early 1970s had given way to fitted tops. * By the mid-1970s, the hippie look had completely disappeared, although casual looks continued. In the mid-1970s women wore
sweater A sweater (North American English) or pullover, also called a jersey or jumper (British English, Hiberno-English and Australian English),
s,
T-shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt, or tee for short) is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a '' crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shir ...
s,
cardigans The Cardigans are a Swedish rock band formed in Jönköping, Sweden in 1992. The main lineup of the band consisted of guitarist Peter Svensson, bassist Magnus Sveningsson, drummer Bengt Lagerberg, keyboardist Lars-Olof Johansson and lead singer ...
,
kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn Garment collars in hanfu#Youren (right lapel), left side wrapped over ri ...
, graphic T-shirts and sweaters, jeans, khakis, gauchos, workmen's clothes, and
vintage clothing Vintage clothing is clothing that originates from a previous era, as recent as the 1990s. The term ''vintage clothing'' can also be applied in reference to second-hand retail outlets, e.g. in "vintage clothing store". While the concept origina ...
. A denim emphasis continued from the early seventies, particularly strong in 1973 to '75, with denim and denim-look fabrics of various intensities of indigo paired with blue jeans, usually flared, and denim skirts in below-knee lengths. In 1975, the slim-legged jean style known as the cigarette-leg was introduced, a style that would dominate the end of the decade. Around 1976, casual fashion adopted a Parisan peasant look. This included capes,
turban A turban (from Persian language, Persian دولبند‌, ''dolband''; via Middle French ''turbant'') is a type of headwear based on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear by people of various cultures. Commun ...
s, puffy skirts and shirts with billowing sleeves. * In the mid-1970s, accessories were generally not worn, adopting a minimalistic approach to fashion akin to that of the 1950s. The most commonly seen form of jewelry was a simple, thin, unobtrusive gold neckchain, sometimes in silver, worn under the collar against the skin by both men and women throughout the decade but becoming really ubiquitous starting in the mid-seventies. White pukka shell necklaces were also worn by both sexes. Small leather shoulder bags were worn by women everywhere, and popular shoes included
Mary Janes Mary Jane shoes (also known as bar shoes, strap shoes or doll shoes) are a style of closed, low-cut shoe with one or more straps across the instep. Classic Mary Janes for children are typically made of black leather or patent leather and have ...
,
knee-high boots Knee-high boots are boots that rise to the knee, or slightly thereunder or over. They are generally tighter around the leg shaft and ankle than at the top. Originally made of leather, versions made of a synthetic rubber (PVC, Neoprene, etc.), t ...
with rounded toes, including Dingo boots and Frye boots (often with pants tucked in),
platform shoes Platform shoes are shoes, boots, or sandals with a thick sole, usually in the range of . Platform shoes may also be high heels, in which case the heel is raised significantly higher than the ball of the foot. Extreme heights, of both the sol ...
and sandals, wedge-heeled espadrilles that often had long cords to wrap around the ankle, Birkenstocks,
Famolare Famolare is a footwear company founded in 1969. It was active for several years before its hiatus, and multiple designs appear in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC. History The shoe company was founded in 1969 by Joe Famolare Jr., featuring ...
s, and loafers. Despite the lack of accessories, the
mood ring A mood ring is a finger ring that contains a thermochromic element, or "mood stone", that changes colors based on the temperature of the finger of the wearer. Finger temperature, as long as the ambient temperature is relatively constant, is si ...
was a big fad in the mid-1970s.


Active wear

* Clean-cut, all-American active wear for women became increasingly popular from 1975 onwards. The biggest phenomenon of this trend was the
jumpsuit A jumpsuit is a one-piece garment with sleeves and legs and typically without integral coverings for feet, hands or head. The original jump suit is the functional one-piece garment used by parachutists. The original skydivers' jumpsuits were ...
, popular from 1975 onwards. Jumpsuits were almost always flared in the legs, and sleeves varied from being completely sleeveless to having extremely long bell-sleeves. Other sportswear trends included
tracksuit A tracksuit is an article of clothing consisting of two parts: trousers and a jacket usually with a front zipper. Also known as ''sweatsuits'' or ''trackies'', tracksuits are designed to keep the body warm during and after athletic activity. It w ...
s, tunic shirts,
crop top A crop top (also half shirt, midriff top, belly shirt or cutoff shirt) is a top that reveals and exposes the waist, navel, or abdomen. History Women The origins of the clothing are unknown, but midriff tops go back to at least the Bronze Age, d ...
s,
tube top A tube top is a shoulderless, sleeveless garment primarily worn by women that wraps around the upper torso. It is generally tight over the breasts, and usually uses elastic bands at its top and bottom to prevent it from falling. The tube top's pr ...
s, sweatshirts,
hip-huggers Hip-huggers are pants worn by both men and women, generally made of denim and fitted tightly around the hips and thighs, while usually having flared or bell-bottom lower legs. Hip-huggers were first designed by Irene Kasmer in 1957 in Los Angele ...
, low rise pants, and
leisure suit A leisure suit is a casual attire, casual Suit (clothing), suit consisting of a shirt-like jacket and matching trousers (pants),
s. This continued into the 1980s. * Accessories were less of an importance during this time, but two very desirable accessories included sneakers and tennis
headband A headband or hairband is a clothing accessory worn in the hair or around the forehead, usually to hold hair away from the face or eyes. Headbands generally consist of a loop of elastic material or a horseshoe-shaped piece of flexible plast ...
s.


Tailored styles

* As the divorce rate rose and the marriage rate declined in the mid-70s, women were forced to work in order to support the
nuclear family A nuclear family (also known as an elementary family, atomic family, or conjugal family) is a term for a family group consisting of parents and their children (one or more), typically living in one home residence. It is in contrast to a single ...
. The progressive addition of women to the work force altered shopping styles and fashion. Working women shopped on weekends and in the evenings. Feminized men's business suits such as tailored jackets, midi-skirts, and fitted blouses were their go-to choice as to "dress for success." * Starting in 1975, women's semi-formal wear became more tailored and sharp. This included a lot of layering, with women wearing two blouses at once, multiple sweaters, pants underneath
tunic A tunic is a garment for the torso, usually simple in style, reaching from the shoulders to a length somewhere between the hips and the ankles. It might have arm-sleeves, either short or full-length. Most forms have no fastenings. The name deri ...
dresses, and
jumpers Jumper or Jumpers may refer to: Clothing *Jumper (sweater), is a long-sleeve article of clothing; also called a top, pullover, or sweater **A waist-length top garment of dense wool, part of the Royal Navy uniform and the Uniforms of the United St ...
worn over long, fitted dresses. The 1970s also featured some of the most scandalous dresses worn publicly in American history up to that point. Other clothes worn in this style include suede coats,
peacoat A pea coat is an outer coat, generally of a navy-coloured heavy wool, originally worn by sailors of European and later American navies. Pea coats are characterized by short length, broad lapels, double-breasted fronts, often large wooden, metal ...
s,
blazer A blazer is a jacket worn as part of a smart casual or business casual look. Similar to a sport jacket, a blazer is not part of a formal suit, and the terms "sport coat" and "blazer" may be used interchangeably in daily life. A nautical bl ...
s, cowl-neck sweaters,
pencil skirt A pencil skirt is a slim-fitting skirt with a straight, narrow cut. Generally the hem falls to, or is just below, the knee and is tailored for a close fit. It is named for its shape: long and slim like a pencil. Style The pencil skirt may be worn ...
s, backless dresses, extremely low-cut dresses,
palazzo pants Palazzo pants (, Indian English: pantada) are long unisex pants cut with a loose, extremely wide leg that flares out from the waist. Palazzo pants are popular as a summer season style, as they are loose and tend to be flattering in light, flowin ...
, tube dresses, evening gowns, jacket dresses, and pinstriped
pantsuit A pantsuit, also known as a trouser suit outside the United States, is a woman's suit of clothing consisting of pants and a matching or coordinating coat or jacket. In the past, the prevailing fashion for women included some form of a coat, pai ...
s. Women's dresses in the mid-1970s were dominated by
pastel colors Pastels or pastel colors belong to a pale family of colors, which, when described in the HSV color space, have high value and low or medium saturation. They are named after the artistic medium made from pigment and solid binding agents, simil ...
, but Asian patterns were also common. * Accessories for the more formal styles included high-heels (both low and high, mostly thick-heeled), turbans, and leather shoulder bags. Boots continued their popularity in the mid-1970s. This trend expanded to other styles, most notably the wedge heel (arguably the most popular women's shoe of the mid-1970s). Boots became rounder, chunkier, heavier, and thicker, and were more expensive than they were in the early 1970s. Popular boots of the mid-1970s included wedge boots,
ankle boot A fashion boot is a boot worn for reasons of style or fashion (rather than for utilitarian purposes – e.g. not hiking boots, riding boots, rain boots, etc.). The term is usually applied to women's boots. Fashion boots come in a wide variety of ...
s,
platform boot Platform shoes are shoes, boots, or sandals with a thick sole, usually in the range of . Platform shoes may also be high heels, in which case the heel is raised significantly higher than the ball of the foot. Extreme heights, of both the sole ...
s, and
cowboy boot Cowboy boots are a specific style of riding boot, historically worn by cowboys. They have a High-heeled footwear#Men and heels, high heel that is traditionally made of stacked leather, rounded to pointed toe, high shaft, and, traditionally, no l ...
s. The A/W Haute Couture Collection "Opium Collection" by the French designer Yves Saint Laurent was inspired by the Chinese culture and history.


Disco look

* The
disco music Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightlife, particularly in African-American, Italian-American, Gay and Latino communities. Its sound features four-on-the-floor ...
genre spawned its own fashion craze in the mid- to late 1970s. Young people gathered in nightclubs dressed in new disco clothing that was designed to show off the body and shine under dance-floor lights. Disco fashion featured fancy clothes made from man-made materials. The most famous disco look for women was the jersey
wrap dress "Wrap dress" is a generic term for a dress with a front closure formed by wrapping one side across the other, and is fastened at the side or tied at the back. This forms a V-shaped neckline. A faux wrap dress resembles this design, except that it ...
, a knee-length dress with a cinched waist. Essentially a robe, it became an extremely popular item, as it flattered a number of different body types and sizes, and could be worn both to the office by day, and to nightclubs and discos by night. * Disco fashion was generally inspired by clothing from the early 1960s. Disco clothes worn by women included tube tops, sequined
halterneck Halterneck is a style of women's clothing strap that runs from the front of the garment around the back of the neck, generally leaving the upper back uncovered. The name comes from livestock halters. The word "halter" is of Germanic origin and me ...
shirts, blazers, spandex
short shorts "Short Shorts" is a song written and performed by Tom Austin, Bill Crandell, Bill Dalton, and Bob Gaudio, members of The Royal Teens. It reached #2 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, U.S. R&B chart and #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, U.S. pop chart in ...
, loose pants, form-fitting
spandex Spandex, Lycra, or elastane is a synthetic fiber known for its exceptional elasticity. It is a polyether- polyurea copolymer that was invented in 1958 by chemist Joseph Shivers at DuPont. Name The name ''spandex'', which is an anagram of t ...
pants, maxi skirts and dresses with long thigh slits, jersey
wrap dress "Wrap dress" is a generic term for a dress with a front closure formed by wrapping one side across the other, and is fastened at the side or tied at the back. This forms a V-shaped neckline. A faux wrap dress resembles this design, except that it ...
es, and evening dresses. Shoes ranged from knee-high boots to kitten heels, but the most commonly worn shoes were ones that had thick heels and were often made with transparent plastic.


The Big Look or Soft Look

* The leading high-fashion trend of the mid-seventies, extending from 1973 and 1974 through the first half of 1978, was known as the Big Look or Soft Look, with big meaning voluminous. This was a loosening and increase in scale of the popular, casual peasant styles of the late sixties and early seventies and a reduction and elimination of internal structure like linings and padding to achieve what was known as an unconstructed look and feel. Introduced by designer Kenzo Takada in 1973, carried further by
Karl Lagerfeld Karl Otto Lagerfeld also called Kaiser Karl (; 10 September 1933 – 19 February 2019) was a German fashion designer, photographer, and creative director. Lagerfeld began his career in fashion in the 1950s, working for several top fashion hous ...
in 1974, adapted for the US by
Geoffrey Beene Geoffrey Beene (born Samuel Albert Bozeman Jr.; August 30, 1924 – September 28, 2004) was an American fashion designer. Beene was one of New York's most famous fashion designers, recognized for his artistic and technical skills and for creatin ...
shortly thereafter, and endorsed in silhouette the same year by the most influential designer of the time, Yves Saint Laurent, it came to influence everyone from
Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...
to
Mary McFadden Mary McFadden Charlotte Curtis, "Mary McFadden Married to Philip Harari at St. Bartholomew's; Former Dior Aide is Wed to Director in De Beers Group", The New York Times, September 26, 1964 (October 1, 1938 – September 13, 2024) was an American ...
to
Givenchy Givenchy (, ) is a French luxury fashion and perfume house. It hosts the brand of haute couture and ready-to-wear clothing, accessories, perfumes and cosmetics of Parfums Givenchy. The house of Givenchy was founded in 1952 by designer Hubert d ...
to
Perry Ellis Perry Edwin Ellis (March 3, 1940 – May 30, 1986) was an American fashion designer who founded his eponymous sportswear house in the mid-1970s. Ellis' influence on the fashion industry has been called "a huge turning point" because he in ...
, who was probably the look's biggest US exponent. * The Big Look relied on loose, billowy, oversized shapes; comfortable, thin, gossamer-weight, natural-fiber fabrics like cotton gauze, crepe de chine, and challis, often left naturally wrinkled; a mostly neutral or earthtone, forest-tone, or wine-tone color palette, with prints small, muted, and often floral; layering; drawstrings, wrapping/tying, and rope-cords as opposed to hardware like buttons, zippers, and belts; capes, serapes, and shawls more than structured coats; oversized, unlined jackets and vests; extensive use of hoods and cowlnecks; full sleeve cuts like raglan, dolman, batwing, and bishop; big, rustic-textured sweaters; blouson tops; full, often ruffled blouses cut so large that they slid off the shoulder; camisoles; smock tops and smock dresses; bubble dresses or bag dresses; tent dresses; full sundresses; and mostly longer lengths in skirts, high-fashion versions generally ranging from mid-calf to ankle, though mini-tunics and mini-blousons were also part of the picture. Occasional slits or slashes allowed for some show of leg amid all the billowing fabric. Skirts were almost entirely dirndls, with tiered or flounced versions called gypsy skirts or peasant skirts particularly popular. Skirts were also sometimes layered, with, say, a white underskirt beneath a hiked-up, floral-print top skirt. Pant shapes varied from full dungarees to full culottes and gauchos to full shorts called paper bag shorts, but most were tapered from full, pleated or drawstring-closed waists to narrow ankles, a style called "pegged" at the time, sometimes cut too long so they bunched up at the ankle. Dhotis, zouaves, and harem pants were also frequently shown. Comfort and ease were watchwords during this period, reflected in the Big Look's ubiquitous rolled-up sleeves. * Accessories worn with the Big Look were minimal, things like unobtrusive hemp-cord necklaces maybe strung with a very few earthy-looking beads, stickpins to hold layers of shawls together, and tasseled fiber cords worn instead of belts, the ends dangling over tunic hems and layers of skirts. When actual belts were worn, they tended to be in leather, narrow, and sometimes long enough to be double-wrapped. On the legs, you might find more of the kind of layering seen above, called the "layered leg": thick, warm tights, socks, stockings, and legwarmers in substantial knits in earthy colors for fall/winter, and perhaps white anklets and occasionally even layered cotton socks worn in spring/summer, even with sandals. Footwear was almost entirely either very bare sandals; rope-soled, canvas espadrilles, often wrapping around the ankle; or very full-shafted boots known as baggy boots or Cossack boots, usually knee-high but in a range of heights from ankle to thigh, with the fullness intended to bunch up in horizontal wrinkles at the ankle for what was referred to as a "crushed" look. Heels, often stacked during this period, could be any height from flat to high, the shape ranging from wedges to blocks to more tapered, but never stilettos. Makeup and hairstyles tended to be natural-looking, though smoky blush was common. Hair combs and flowers tucked into the hair were widespread, but headwear was minimal, consisting mostly of the occasional squishy beret or knit cap worn during winter and a brief vogue for tilted straw boaters in early 1978. * Though the thin fabrics, sliding-off-the-body volume, spaghetti straps, occasional straplessness, and slits/slashes in skirts and tops could reveal the body to some extent, the voluminous shapes and multiple layers of the Big Look resulted in some calling it shapeless, droopy, and rumpled. Others pointed out the impracticality of flyaway capes and shawls and considered the extensive fabric required for these styles extravagant. Nonetheless, its comfort and ease did suit women's lives and its rejection of man-focused coquetry reflected the powerful feminist influence in society at the time and resulted in the look dominating high fashion for several years and also influencing popular tastes, as it seemed an outgrowth of the moves toward natural fibers and comfort that were already widespread in society.


Late 1970s (1977–1979)


Relaxed look

* In 1977, mass-market fashion became more baggy as the Big Look that had been dominant in high fashion since 1974 filtered down to the public. This caused much controversy, as women with trim figures bemoaned not being able to flaunt them while heavier women complained the looser clothes made them look even larger. To make up for this, it became fashionable to show more skin. This resulted in shirts being unbuttoned, sleeves being rolled up, and tops being strapless, transparent, and lacy. Shiny satin and gold colors were also used to make up for the lack of tighter clothing. By 1977, pants were only flared slightly and sometimes not flared at all. * Women's fashions in the late 1970s included cowl-neck shirts and sweaters,
pantsuit A pantsuit, also known as a trouser suit outside the United States, is a woman's suit of clothing consisting of pants and a matching or coordinating coat or jacket. In the past, the prevailing fashion for women included some form of a coat, pai ...
s,
leisure suit A leisure suit is a casual attire, casual Suit (clothing), suit consisting of a shirt-like jacket and matching trousers (pants),
s,
tracksuit A tracksuit is an article of clothing consisting of two parts: trousers and a jacket usually with a front zipper. Also known as ''sweatsuits'' or ''trackies'', tracksuits are designed to keep the body warm during and after athletic activity. It w ...
s,
sundress A sundress or summer dress is an informal or casual dress intended to be worn in warm weather, typically in a lightweight fabric, most commonly cotton, and usually loose-fitting. It is commonly a bodice-style sleeveless dress, typically with a w ...
es worn with tight T-shirts, strapless tops, lower-cut shirts, cardigans, velour shirts,
tunic A tunic is a garment for the torso, usually simple in style, reaching from the shoulders to a length somewhere between the hips and the ankles. It might have arm-sleeves, either short or full-length. Most forms have no fastenings. The name deri ...
s,
robe A robe is a loose-fitting outer garment. Unlike garments described as capes or cloaks, robes usually have sleeves. The English word ''robe'' derives from Middle English ''robe'' ("garment"), borrowed from Old French ''robe'' ("booty, spoil ...
s, crop tops, tube tops, embroidered vests and jeans, knee-length skirts, loose satin pants, designer jeans, culottes, daisy dukes, and tennis shorts. This continued into the 1980s. * Accessories included scarves, gold jewelry, flowers, ankle boots, 1940s style hats (often tilted), skinny and wide belts, boas, braceleted gloves, spike-heeled sandals, mules, ankle-strapped shoes,
waist cincher A waist cincher (sometimes referred to as a waspie) is a belt worn around the waist to make the wearer's waist physically smaller, or to create the illusion of being smaller. Today Waist cinchers and waspies from the 1980s are a type of wide, lac ...
s, and obi wraps. Color had almost completely faded from fashion in the late 1970s, with earthy tones like browns, light blues, tans, grays, whites, and blacks making a comeback. * The frenzy for boots had cooled down by the late 1970s, but they remained popular, especially in the winter. They became less flamboyant by that point in time, and they mostly came in black, brown, or
burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...
. The most popular boots were either knee-high or reached the mid-calf, and were made in leather, suede, urethane, or rubber. The toes were rounded, and zippers were on the side. The heels were usually only 2–4 inches, and the heels were sometimes even flat. Women continued to wear wedge heels and ankle boots, as well as knee-high boots with thick kitten heels. * In
Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
, Afghanistan and Iran, many liberal women wore short skirts, flower printed
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
dresses, flared trousers, and went out in public without the
hijab Hijab (, ) refers to head coverings worn by Women in Islam, Muslim women. Similar to the mitpaḥat/tichel or Snood (headgear), snood worn by religious married Jewish women, certain Christian head covering, headcoverings worn by some Christian w ...
. This changed following the military dictatorship in Pakistan, the
mujahideen ''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' (), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' (), an Arabic term that broadly refers to people who engage in ''jihad'' (), interpreted in a jurisprudence of Islam as the fight on behalf of God, religion or the commun ...
government in Afghanistan, and
Iranian revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...
of 1979, when traditional conservative attire including the
abaya The abaya (colloquially and more commonly, ', especially in Literary Arabic: '; plural ', '), sometimes also called an aba, is a simple, loose over-garment, essentially a robe-like dress, worn by some women in the Muslim world including m ...
, jilbab and
niqab A niqāb, niqab, or niqaab (; ), also known as a ruband () or rubandah (), is a long garment worn by some Muslim women in order to cover their entire body and face, excluding their eyes. It is an interpretation in Islam of the concept of ...
made a comeback.


One-piece swimsuits

* In 1977, American actress
Farrah Fawcett Farrah Fawcett (born Ferrah Leni Fawcett; February 2, 1947 – June 25, 2009) was an American actress. A four-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee and six-time Golden Globe Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she played a ...
popularized the one-piece
swimsuit A swimsuit is an item of clothing designed to be worn by people engaging in a water-based activity or water sports, such as swimming, diving and surfing, or sun-orientated activities, such as sun bathing. Different types and styles may be worn ...
which in turn launched the trend for the
maillot The maillot (; ''Oxford English Dictionary'' 3rd Ed. (2003)) is the fashion designer's name for a woman's one-piece swimsuit, also called a tank suit. A maillot swimsuit generally consists of a tank-style torso top with high-cut legs. However ...
. This was, when it resurged in the 1970s, a sexy, tight swimsuit, with deep neckline and high-cut legs, worn by young women and girls in lieu of the bikini, although it did not entirely replace the latter. This continued into the 1980s.


The pantsuit

* By the late 1970s the
pantsuit A pantsuit, also known as a trouser suit outside the United States, is a woman's suit of clothing consisting of pants and a matching or coordinating coat or jacket. In the past, the prevailing fashion for women included some form of a coat, pai ...
had become acceptable business wear for executive women. This was due to the success of Yves Saint Laurent's "Le smoking" tuxedo with silk lapels designed to allow any ash falling from cigarettes to slide off, keeping the jacket clean. ''
Business Insider ''Business Insider'' (stylized in all caps: BUSINESS INSIDER; known from 2021 to 2023 as INSIDER) is a New York City–based multinational financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Inside ...
'' pointed out that wearing the pantsuit was more of a political statement than a fashion one. "So, dressing in a YSL trouser suit declared the wearer was irreverent, daring, and on the cutting edge of fashion, whilst suggesting their alignment with burgeoning feminist politics – le smoking effectively demanded: 'If men can wear this, why can't I?'" With the increase of women entering the workface, they were in search for a new symbol that proved they were as serious and powerful as the men they shared elevators with. The only solution to convince male-dominated workspaces was to copy their tailored suits. The jacket could be either short and shapely or long and lean. * Movies like ''
Annie Hall ''Annie Hall'' is a 1977 American satirical romantic comedy-drama film directed by Woody Allen from a screenplay written by Allen and Marshall Brickman, and produced by Allen's manager, Charles H. Joffe. The film stars Allen as Alvy Singer ...
'' fought gender ideals by portraying a woman who wore men's clothing on the daily basis. This movie took a big inspiration from the decade and because of its success, continues to influence fashion. Skirts, when worn, were often knee-length and could possibly have a front or side slit that put a subtle emphasis on the legs. To offset the more traditionally masculine look of "business suit style", women like
Margot Kidder Margaret Ruth Kidder (October 17, 1948 – May 13, 2018) was a Canadian and American actress and activist. She amassed List of Margot Kidder performances, several film and television credits in her career spanning five decades, including her bes ...
in ''
Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...
'' experimented with hats, high heels, ruffles that peaked out from the jacket and large jewelry to keep a confident, yet feminine, look intact.


Designer jeans

* In 1978, the first designer jeans were introduced and immediately became popular, designers like
Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...
,
Gloria Vanderbilt Gloria Laura Vanderbilt (February 20, 1924 – June 17, 2019) was an American artist, author, actress, fashion designer, heiress, and socialite. During the 1930s, she was the subject of a high-profile child custody trial in which her mother, ...
, and
Fiorucci Fiorucci () is an Italian fashion label founded by Elio Fiorucci in 1967. The first Fiorucci shop exposed Milan to the styles of Swinging London and to American classics, such as the T-shirt and jeans. By the late 1970s, the direction of stylis ...
advertising their name on the back of the fashionable cigarette-leg, usually dark blue denim jean of the time. In the US in 1978, they were often worn with hems rolled up to or just above the ankle to show off the popular
Candie's Candie's is an American women's clothing brand launched in 1978. Originally a shoe brand, it has increased its range of products, currently commercializing T-shirts, blouses, dresses, jackets, pants, lingerie, sweaters, etc. History Candie's w ...
slides on the feet.


"Baggies" (baggy jeans)

* From 1979 to 1981, a popular style was jeans with a high-ish waist and full cut through the hips and thighs that tapered to a narrow but not tight hem hitting at the ankle or just above, called "baggies." They were paired in the fall with rustic-looking sweaters with shoulders fashionably widened via single, top-of-the-sleeve tucks or pleats called "dimples" by their creator
Perry Ellis Perry Edwin Ellis (March 3, 1940 – May 30, 1986) was an American fashion designer who founded his eponymous sportswear house in the mid-1970s. Ellis' influence on the fashion industry has been called "a huge turning point" because he in ...
, and the shoes worn with them were often high-vamped pumps with low cone heels inspired by
Maud Frizon Maud Frizon de Marco (born Danielle Maud Frizon; 1941 in Paris, France) is a fashion designer specializing in women's shoes. She began her career in the 1960s as a model for Parisian Haute Couture Houses of Nina Ricci, Jean Patou, and André ...
, jazz oxfords, or flat, lace-up ankle boots.


Shoulder pads

* Styles became curvier for fall of 1978, with
shoulder pads The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone) as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder m ...
, tighter skirts, and narrower waistlines. The silhouette that resulted was an inverted triangle. This change did not arise from women's demands, nor from what women on the street were wearing, the way miniskirts, jeans, pants, hippie clothing, office blazers, and more comfortable undergarments had in the 1960s and earlier '70s. Though decades later it would be claimed that the big shoulders of this period were part of an attempt by women to assert a "power" look as they worked their way up career ladders, big-shoulder looks did not come about because women were wanting to look more powerful for the boardroom; women already had appropriate but comfortable blazers for that. Big-shoulder looks didn't come from women on the street at all. The hugely shoulder-padded look came solely from designers, who united in showing the look in Fall 1978, a few presenting shoulders literally three feet wide, and there was strong resistance. Since the clothes were less comfortable and more restrictive than the clothes of the '70s and resembled too much the man-focused styles of the 1940s and '50s, this shoulder-padded look was initially a hard sell to the public, but some designers, notably
Perry Ellis Perry Edwin Ellis (March 3, 1940 – May 30, 1986) was an American fashion designer who founded his eponymous sportswear house in the mid-1970s. Ellis' influence on the fashion industry has been called "a huge turning point" because he in ...
,
Norma Kamali Norma Kamali (born June 27, 1945) is an American fashion designer and entrepreneur best known for the "Sleeping Bag" Coat, sweats as everyday sportswear, and swimwear. She lives in New York City. Early life and education Norma Arraez was bor ...
,
Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...
, and
Giorgio Armani Giorgio Armani (; born 11 July 1934) is an Italian fashion designer and a billionaire. He first gained renown working for Cerruti 1881. He formed his company, Armani, in 1975, which eventually expanded into music, sport, and luxury hotels. By 200 ...
, made it more appealing by keeping it comfortably wearable and just adding reasonably proportioned shoulder pads to slightly slimmed-down versions of the easy clothes women had been wearing during the decade, and this approach was positively received by the general public. So many designers continued to present really huge shoulders into the eighties, however, that women were left with little option but to conform to it, which they did, so much so that big shoulder pads became common in and characteristic of the 1980s, seen on everyone from political leaders to actors in TV shows like ''Dynasty'' to your coworkers and family. At the end of the seventies, though, in 1978 and '79, much of the public still considered it strange, though they had gotten the message that it was to be the new look. * Footwear worn with these styles initially, in 1978, continued the very bare, high-heeled sandal that had been popular throughout the mid-seventies, now with a slightly higher heel and in more dressed-up materials and colors like black and metallics. These often had ankle straps and the heel fell straight down in the back rather than being underslung. In 1979, the higher-vamped, vaguely 1950s-looking pump that would characterize the eighties would appear, often in bright colors and marked by the underslung cone heels introduced by
Maud Frizon Maud Frizon de Marco (born Danielle Maud Frizon; 1941 in Paris, France) is a fashion designer specializing in women's shoes. She began her career in the 1960s as a model for Parisian Haute Couture Houses of Nina Ricci, Jean Patou, and André ...
. Open-toed pumps were a particular focus in 1979. After dominating fashion since the early 1960s, knee-high boots were no longer in with designers, replaced by boots that rose no higher than mid-calf and usually didn't rise above the ankle, resembling the demi-boots of the 1950s and barely distinguishable from the new high-vamp pumps. * Another accessory trend that arrived with this new-old look was a determined attempt by designers to revive the wearing of dressy hats and gloves. For fall 1978, designers showed a plethora of mostly small forties- and fifties-looking hats, particularly small, tilted pillboxes, often with veils, and the fashion press claimed that there was an increase in hat sales. Though hats and gloves of this type were only rarely seen among the public in 1978 and '79, mainly as an occasional accessory with a disco outfit, these revived hat and glove styles, like big shoulder pads, would continue to be shown during the following decade and would be taken up by people for whom hat- and glove-wearing was customary, particularly royalty.


Men


Early 1970s (1970–1972)


Peacock revolution

* With well-paid jobs and booming businesses, young men in the UK and America explored beyond the conventional social standards of dress. In the early 1970s,
satin A satin weave is a type of Textile, fabric weave that produces a characteristically glossy, smooth or lustrous material, typically with a glossy top surface and a dull back; it is not durable, as it tends to snag. It is one of three fundamen ...
shirts in black, and grey were popular, and often featured lace ruffles on the cuffs and neckline. Due to the colorful nature of menswear, the time period was described as the Peacock Revolution, and male trendsetters were called "
Dandies A dandy is a man who places particular importance upon physical appearance and personal grooming, refined language and leisurely hobbies. A dandy could be a self-made man both in person and ''persona'', who emulated the Aristocracy, aristocrati ...
", "
Dude ''Dude'' is Regional vocabularies of American English, American slang for an individual, typically male. From the 1870s to the 1960s, dude primarily meant a male person who dressed in an extremely fashionable manner (a dandy) or a conspicuous ...
s" or "Peacocks". Typical casual wear for this time included
Nehru jacket The Nehru jacket is a hip-length tailored coat for men or women, with a mandarin collar, and with its front modelled on the Indian achkan or sherwani, a garment worn by Jawaharlal Nehru, the prime minister of India from 1947 to 1964. History ...
s, ethnic inspired
tunic A tunic is a garment for the torso, usually simple in style, reaching from the shoulders to a length somewhere between the hips and the ankles. It might have arm-sleeves, either short or full-length. Most forms have no fastenings. The name deri ...
s,
turtleneck A polo neck, roll-neck (South Africa), turtleneck (United States, Canada), or skivvy is a garment—usually a sweater—with a close-fitting collar that folds over and covers the neck. It can also refer to the type of neckline, the sty ...
s, candy striped
blazer A blazer is a jacket worn as part of a smart casual or business casual look. Similar to a sport jacket, a blazer is not part of a formal suit, and the terms "sport coat" and "blazer" may be used interchangeably in daily life. A nautical bl ...
s,
winklepicker Winklepickers or winkle pickers are a style of shoe or boot worn from the 1950s onward, especially popular with British rock and roll fans such as Teddy Boys. The feature that gives both the boot and shoe their name is the very sharp and long ...
boots with Cuban heels, and hip-hugging elephant bell-bottoms. Accessories like color-matching nylon zippers and bright braided belts were common and also fitted in with the Peacock style. Suits were available in bright colors and unorthodox styles from 1970 to 1976, including shawl collars, three pieces with
peak lapel A lapel ( ) is a folded flap of cloth on the front of a jacket or coat below the collar. It is most commonly found on formal clothing and suit jackets. Usually it is formed by folding over the front edge of the jacket or coat and sewing it to th ...
s, and
double breasted A double-breasted garment is a coat, jacket, waistcoat, or dress with wide, overlapping front flaps which has on its front two symmetrical columns of buttons; by contrast, a single-breasted item has a narrow overlap and only one column of button ...
suits made from
corduroy Corduroy is a textile with a distinctively raised "cord" or wale texture. Modern corduroy is most commonly composed of tufted cords, sometimes exhibiting a channel (bare to the base fabric) between them. Both velvet and corduroy derive from fu ...
, paisley
brocade Brocade () is a class of richly decorative shuttle (weaving), shuttle-woven fabrics, often made in coloured silks and sometimes with gold and silver threads. The name, related to the same root as the word "broccoli", comes from Italian langua ...
, wool blends with wide
pinstripe Pinstripes are a pattern of very thin stripes of any color running in parallel. The pattern is often found in fashion. The pinstripe is often compared to the similar chalk stripe. Pinstripes are very thin, often in width, and are created with ...
s, or crushed velvet in
burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...
,
teal alt=American teal duck (male), Green-winged teal (male) Teal is a greenish-blue color. Its name comes from that of a bird—the Eurasian teal (''Anas crecca'')—which presents a similarly colored stripe on its head. The word is often used ...
, black,
bottle green Spring Green or spring green may refer to: Colors * Spring green ** Spring bud, formerly known as spring green Plants * Spring greens, edible young leaves of certain plants * Spring greens (Brassica oleracea), vegetables Places in the United S ...
, and
peacock Peafowl is a common name for two bird species of the genus '' Pavo'' and one species of the closely related genus '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae (the pheasants and their allies). Male peafowl are referred t ...
blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...
. A rise of 4.4 percent in suit sales was reported by ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' magazine. Stylish continental suits by designers ''
Lanvin Lanvin () is a French luxury fashion house founded in 1889 by Jeanne Lanvin in Paris. It is the oldest French fashion house still in operation. Since 2018, it has been a subsidiary of Shanghai-based Lanvin Group. Lanvin Group includes Lanvin, S ...
'', '' Yves Saint Laurent'' and ''
Pierre Cardin Pierre Cardin (born Pietro Costante Cardin; 2 July 1922 – 29 December 2020) was an Italian-born naturalised-French fashion designer. He is known for what were his avant-garde style and Space Age designs. He preferred geometry, geometric shap ...
'' were welcomed by young men while classic suits were loved by first-timers.


Bright colors

* For the first time in decades, there was a significant shortage of raw materials and fabrics, including synthetics like
vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...
and
nylon Nylon is a family of synthetic polymers characterised by amide linkages, typically connecting aliphatic or Polyamide#Classification, semi-aromatic groups. Nylons are generally brownish in color and can possess a soft texture, with some varieti ...
. As a result, everyday designers kept things simple. The early 1970s were a continuation of late 1960s hippie fashion. For men this particularly meant bell bottom jeans,
tie dye Tie-dye is a term used to describe a number of resist dyeing techniques and the resulting dyed products of these processes. The process of tie-dye typically consists of folding, twisting, pleating, or crumpling fabric or a garment, before binding ...
shirts, and military surplus clothing. Other early 1970s clothes for men included tweed sports jackets, khaki
chinos Chino cloth ( ) is a twill fabric originally made from pure cotton. The most common items made from it, trousers, are widely called chinos. Today it is also found in cotton-synthetic blends. Developed in the mid-19th century for British and Fren ...
, chunky sweaters in cream, dark green, beige and sky blue, storm coats, tartan jackets,
peacoat A pea coat is an outer coat, generally of a navy-coloured heavy wool, originally worn by sailors of European and later American navies. Pea coats are characterized by short length, broad lapels, double-breasted fronts, often large wooden, metal ...
s,
flannel Flannel is a soft woven fabric, of varying fineness. Flannel was originally made from carded wool or worsted yarn, but is now often made from either wool, cotton, or synthetic fiber. Flannel is commonly used to make tartan clothing, blankets, ...
shirts, pleated pants,
baseball jacket In sports or activities in the United States, a letterman is a high school or college student who has met a specified level of participation or performance on a varsity team. Overview The term comes from the practice of awarding each such part ...
s, corduroy pants, crocheted waistcoats, striped pullover sweaters and
sweater vest A sweater vest (known as a ''tank top'', ''sleeveless jumper'', ''sleeveless sweater'', ''sleeveless pullover'' or ''slipover'' in the UK) is an item of knitwear that is similar to a sweater, but without sleeves, usually with a low-cut neckline. ...
s,
tassel A tassel is a finishing feature in fabric and clothing decoration. It is a universal ornament that is seen in varying versions in many cultures around the globe. History and use In the Hebrew Bible, the Lord spoke to Moses instructing him to ...
s, belted
cardigans The Cardigans are a Swedish rock band formed in Jönköping, Sweden in 1992. The main lineup of the band consisted of guitarist Peter Svensson, bassist Magnus Sveningsson, drummer Bengt Lagerberg, keyboardist Lars-Olof Johansson and lead singer ...
, and
hip-huggers Hip-huggers are pants worn by both men and women, generally made of denim and fitted tightly around the hips and thighs, while usually having flared or bell-bottom lower legs. Hip-huggers were first designed by Irene Kasmer in 1957 in Los Angele ...
. * The most popular accessories of the early 1970s for men were homemade, with necklaces, headbands, and bracelets being made from all-natural materials such as wood, hemp, flowers, leather, shells, stones, and Indian beads. Unisex hippie accessories included headbands, floppy hats, and flowing scarves. Men's footwear in the early 1970s included
flip-flops Flip-flops are a type of light sandal-like shoe, typically worn as a form of casual footwear. They consist of a flat sole held loosely on the foot by a Y-shaped strap known as a toe thong that passes between the first and second toes and around ...
,
oxfords An Oxford shoe is a type of shoe characterized by shoelace eyelet tabs that are attached under the vamp, a feature termed "closed lacing". This contrasts with Derbys, or bluchers, which have shoelace eyelets attached to the top of the vamp. ...
, Birkenstocks, platform shoes,
earth shoe The Earth Shoe (also known as the Kalsø Earth Shoe) was an unconventional style of shoe invented circa 1957 by Danish yoga instructor and shoe designer Anna Kalsø. Its unique "negative heel technology" design featured a sole that was thinner a ...
s, and cowboy boots.


Eastern fashion

* Due to the ongoing
Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...
in China, Western style clothing was suppressed and both sexes wore grey
Mao suit The modern Chinese tunic suit is a style of male attire originally known in China as the Zhongshan suit () after the republican leader Sun Yat-sen (Sun Zhongshan). Sun Yat-sen introduced the style shortly after the founding of the Republic of ...
s until the early 1980s. The suit, unchanged since the 1940s, typically had four external pockets, five buttons, and a turn-down collar. In contrast to China, many people in
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
and
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
abandoned the Zhongshan suit during the early 1970s due to its association with
Communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...
,
leftists Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social ...
, and anti-Westerners. * In the UK, France, India and Australia, green, blue or beige
safari jacket A safari jacket or bush jacket is a garment traditionally made of khaki color lightweight cotton (drill or poplin) with a self-belt, epaulets, and four expandable bellows pockets. Also known as a sahariana, it was originally designed for going ...
s similar to the Mao suit became popular among liberal men due to their association with socialist values, travel to exotic locations, 1930s Hollywood, and
Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the actor to portray Ian Fleming's fictional secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in the Eon Productions/MGM Studios film series, playing the ...
's portrayal of
James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...
and
Simon Templar The Saint is the nickname of the fictional character Simon Templar, featured in a List of works by Leslie Charteris, series of novels and short stories by Leslie Charteris published between 1928 and 1963. After that date other authors collaborat ...
. These were also worn in place of the business suit in
decolonised Decolonization is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. The meanings and applications of the term are disputed. Some scholars of decolon ...
African countries, including
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
,
Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...
, and
Mobutu Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu wa za Banga ( ; born Joseph-Désiré Mobutu; 14 October 1930 – 7 September 1997), often shortened to Mobutu Sese Seko or Mobutu and also known by his initials MSS, was a Congolese politician and military officer ...
's
Zaire Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1971 to 18 May 1997. Located in Central Africa, it was, by area, the third-largest country in Africa after Sudan and Algeria, and the 11th-la ...
where it was known as an
Abacost The abacost, a blending of the French ''"à bas le costume"'' (), was the distinctive clothing for men that was promoted by Mobutu Sese Seko as part of his '' authenticité'' programme in Zaire, between 1972 and 1990. Zairians were banned from ...
and paired with a leopardskin fez resembling an
Astrakhan cap The Karakul hat (), also known by other names, is a hat made from the fur of the Karakul breed of sheep. It originally comes from Bukhara, Uzbekistan. The fur from which it is made is referred to as ''Astrakhan'', ''broadtail'', ''qaraqulcha'', o ...
.


Mid-1970s (1973–1976)


Glam rock

* By 1974, androgynous
glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...
fashion had gone mainstream for young British people of both sexes. These included embroidered Western shirts,
velvet Velvet is a type of woven fabric with a dense, even pile (textile), pile that gives it a distinctive soft feel. Historically, velvet was typically made from silk. Modern velvet can be made from silk, linen, cotton, wool, synthetic fibers, silk ...
sports coats,
Royal Stewart tartan The Royal Stewart or Royal Stuart tartan is the best-known tartan retrospectively associated with the royal House of Stewart. It is also the personal tartan of the British monarch; the present monarch is King Charles III. The sett was first pu ...
as worn by the
Bay City Rollers The Bay City Rollers are a Scottish pop rock band known for their worldwide teen idol popularity, as a band in the 1970s. One of many 70s acts heralded as the "biggest group since the Beatles", they were called the "tartan teen sensations fro ...
, red or blue shawl collar
tuxedo Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and North American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal ...
jackets, frilly shirts, high necked
nehru jacket The Nehru jacket is a hip-length tailored coat for men or women, with a mandarin collar, and with its front modelled on the Indian achkan or sherwani, a garment worn by Jawaharlal Nehru, the prime minister of India from 1947 to 1964. History ...
s, synthetic fabrics like
satin A satin weave is a type of Textile, fabric weave that produces a characteristically glossy, smooth or lustrous material, typically with a glossy top surface and a dull back; it is not durable, as it tends to snag. It is one of three fundamen ...
, wide
kipper tie A kipper tie is a type of necktie primarily fashionable in Britain in the mid-1960s to late 1970s. The primary characteristics of the kipper tie are its extreme breadth (normally ) and often garish colours and patterns. Design origin Wide neck ...
s, black or tan
leather jacket #REDIRECT leather jacket "Leather Jacket" is a single released from Mick Taylor's self titled album ' Mick Taylor' ...
s, silk
scarf A scarf (: scarves or scarfs) is a long piece of fabric that is worn on or around the neck, shoulders, or head. A scarf is used for warmth, sun protection, cleanliness, fashion, religious reasons, or to show support for a sports club or team. ...
s or ascots, shawl collar sweaters, satin shirts with oversized collars,
drainpipe trousers Slim-fit pants or skinny jeans (when made of denim) are tight trousers that have a snug fit through the legs and end in a small leg opening that can be anywhere from 9" to 20" in circumference, depending on size. Other names for this style inclu ...
as worn by
Mud Mud (, or Middle Dutch) is loam, silt or clay mixed with water. Mud is usually formed after rainfall or near water sources. Ancient mud deposits hardened over geological time to form sedimentary rock such as shale or mudstone (generally cal ...
, and
platform shoes Platform shoes are shoes, boots, or sandals with a thick sole, usually in the range of . Platform shoes may also be high heels, in which case the heel is raised significantly higher than the ball of the foot. Extreme heights, of both the sol ...
of the type favored by
Slade Slade are a rock band formed in Wolverhampton, England in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The '' British Hit Singl ...
,
Kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...
,
Alvin Stardust Bernard William Jewry (27 September 1942 – 23 October 2014), known professionally as Shane Fenton and later as Alvin Stardust, was an English rock singer and stage actor. Performing first as Shane Fenton in the 1960s, Jewry had a moderately ...
,
Gary Glitter Paul Francis Gadd (born 8 May 1944), better known by his stage name Gary Glitter, is an English former singer who achieved fame and success during the 1970s and 1980s. His career ended after he was convicted of downloading child pornography i ...
,
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...
, and
Sweet Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketones, ...
. Unisex men's and women's outfits with few differences often came together in matching sets, and popular colors included cream, burgundy, brown, and orange.


Informal attire

* Fashion in the mid-1970s was generally informal and laid back for men in America. Most men simply wore
jeans Jeans are a type of trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with the addition of copper pocket rivets added by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and patented by ...
,
sweater A sweater (North American English) or pullover, also called a jersey or jumper (British English, Hiberno-English and Australian English),
s, and
T-shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt, or tee for short) is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a '' crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shir ...
s, which by then were being made with more elaborate designs. Men continued to wear flannel, and the
leisure suit A leisure suit is a casual attire, casual Suit (clothing), suit consisting of a shirt-like jacket and matching trousers (pants),
became increasingly popular from 1975 onwards, often worn with gold
medallion A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be in ...
s and oxford shoes.
Vintage clothing Vintage clothing is clothing that originates from a previous era, as recent as the 1990s. The term ''vintage clothing'' can also be applied in reference to second-hand retail outlets, e.g. in "vintage clothing store". While the concept origina ...
, khaki
chinos Chino cloth ( ) is a twill fabric originally made from pure cotton. The most common items made from it, trousers, are widely called chinos. Today it is also found in cotton-synthetic blends. Developed in the mid-19th century for British and Fren ...
, workmen's clothes, sweatshirts, leather coats, and all-denim outfits were also desired among young men. Other trends include printed shirts, zip-up
cardigans The Cardigans are a Swedish rock band formed in Jönköping, Sweden in 1992. The main lineup of the band consisted of guitarist Peter Svensson, bassist Magnus Sveningsson, drummer Bengt Lagerberg, keyboardist Lars-Olof Johansson and lead singer ...
, western shirts marketed to capitalise on the nostalgia for
1950s fashion Year 195 ( CXCV) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known in Rome as the Year of the Consulship of Scrapula and Clemens (or, less frequently, year 948 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 195 f ...
, Birkenstocks,
mood ring A mood ring is a finger ring that contains a thermochromic element, or "mood stone", that changes colors based on the temperature of the finger of the wearer. Finger temperature, as long as the ambient temperature is relatively constant, is si ...
s, and
raincoat A raincoat is a waterproof or water-resistant garment worn on the upper body to shield the wearer from rain. The term rain jacket is sometimes used to refer to raincoats with long sleeves that are waist-length. A rain jacket may be combined wit ...
s. Many of the printed shirts worn from circa 1972 to 1975 were in a silky nylon with a slightly glossy finish called Qiana, made in button-front styles with medium-wide collars and in a variety of prints – photographic prints, artwork prints, etc. Decades later, these Qiana shirts would be referred to as "disco shirts," but they were not called that at the time, as they were worn almost everywhere. They accompanied both casual styles like jeans and corduroys and dressier slacks and leisure suits, usually tieless and with the top couple of buttons left open. * Around 1975, American suits started to resemble the slimmer European suit. This new model, named the quasi-European suit, featured padded shoulders, higher arm holes, a smaller waist, open patch pockets, and a small flare to the pants and jacket. In 1976, it became fashionable for men to wear velvet tuxedo jackets with more casual pants to formal events, and vests came back into vogue. It was this year that men's pants started to feature smaller flares or no flares at all. This continued into the 1980s. * In
Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev (19 December 190610 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1964 until his death in 1982 as well as the fourth chairman of the Presidium ...
's
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
, used Western clothing, especially
sheepskin Sheepskin is the Hide (skin), hide of a Domestic sheep, sheep, sometimes also called lambskin. Unlike common leather, sheepskin is Tanning (leather), tanned with the Wool, fleece intact, as in a Fur, pelt.Delbridge, Arthur, "The Macquarie Diction ...
coats and flared trousers, became readily available due to the
détente ''Détente'' ( , ; for, fr, , relaxation, paren=left, ) is the relaxation of strained relations, especially political ones, through verbal communication. The diplomacy term originates from around 1912, when France and Germany tried unsucces ...
. Previously,
jeans Jeans are a type of trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with the addition of copper pocket rivets added by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and patented by ...
had to be imported on the black market.
Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the highest organ of the central committee in communist parties. The term is also sometimes used to refer to similar organs in socialist and Islamist parties, such as the UK Labour Party's NEC or the Poli ...
members continued to wear the black, grey or brown suits and fur lined overcoats of the 1960s, with grey
Astrakhan cap The Karakul hat (), also known by other names, is a hat made from the fur of the Karakul breed of sheep. It originally comes from Bukhara, Uzbekistan. The fur from which it is made is referred to as ''Astrakhan'', ''broadtail'', ''qaraqulcha'', o ...
s.


The high-fashion Soft Look

* The Big Look/Soft Look that was high fashion in womenswear from 1973 to 1978 also extended to menswear, spearheaded by
Giorgio Armani Giorgio Armani (; born 11 July 1934) is an Italian fashion designer and a billionaire. He first gained renown working for Cerruti 1881. He formed his company, Armani, in 1975, which eventually expanded into music, sport, and luxury hotels. By 200 ...
in 1976, who followed womenswear's lead and eliminated the lining and padding from his men's jackets, suits, and trousers, cutting them in natural fibers with enough ease that sleeves and even trouser hems could be easily rolled or pushed up and collars could be turned up. Collars, lapels, and ties were narrow, the tie, when worn, often not pulled up high but knotted low to allow for an easy, open neck. Trousers were straight-legged, sometimes even tapered, and often with soft pleats. Band-collared shirts were often worn with the look. This style remained dominant in high-fashion menswear through 1978 and then menswear again followed womenswear's lead and adopted the new big-shoulder looks for 1979. The Soft Look's pushed-up jacket sleeves and turned-up collars, though, would continue into the 1980s in bigger-shouldered, more colorful form.


Late 1970s (1977–1979)


Sportswear

* By the late 1970s, most men and women were wearing sports clothing as everyday apparel. This was primarily based on
tracksuit A tracksuit is an article of clothing consisting of two parts: trousers and a jacket usually with a front zipper. Also known as ''sweatsuits'' or ''trackies'', tracksuits are designed to keep the body warm during and after athletic activity. It w ...
s,
jumpsuit A jumpsuit is a one-piece garment with sleeves and legs and typically without integral coverings for feet, hands or head. The original jump suit is the functional one-piece garment used by parachutists. The original skydivers' jumpsuits were ...
s, velour or terry cloth shirts (often striped and low-cut), sweaters,
cardigans The Cardigans are a Swedish rock band formed in Jönköping, Sweden in 1992. The main lineup of the band consisted of guitarist Peter Svensson, bassist Magnus Sveningsson, drummer Bengt Lagerberg, keyboardist Lars-Olof Johansson and lead singer ...
, sweatshirts, puffer vests, flare jeans, straight-leg jeans, and collared shirts, both long sleeve and short sleeve. Around this time it also became fashionable for men to leave their shirts untucked. This continued into the 1980s. During the late '70s, long and popped collars became a staple part of men's fashion. * Late 1970s accessories included low-top sneakers, tennis
headband A headband or hairband is a clothing accessory worn in the hair or around the forehead, usually to hold hair away from the face or eyes. Headbands generally consist of a loop of elastic material or a horseshoe-shaped piece of flexible plast ...
s, puka shell necklaces, and wristbands.


Disco style

* From 1977 to 1979, menswear became affected by the disco style. Men began to wear three-piece suits (which became available in a variety of colours including
powder blue __NOTOC__ Powder blue is a pale shade of blue. As with most colours, there is no absolute definition of its exact hue. Originally, ''powder blue'', in the 1650s, was powdered smalt (cobalt glass) used in laundering and dyeing applications, and i ...
, beige, white as worn by
John Travolta John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He began acting in television before transitioning into a leading man in films. List of awards and nominations received by John Travolta, His accolades include a Primetime Em ...
in ''
Saturday Night Fever ''Saturday Night Fever'' is a 1977 American Dance in film, dance Drama (film and television), drama film directed by John Badham and produced by Robert Stigwood. It stars John Travolta as Tony Manero, a young Italian Americans, Italian-America ...
'', brown polyester, and shiny silver
sharkskin Sharkskin, or grisaille (from French ''gris'', meaning grey) describes a specific woven or warp-knitted fabric with a distinctive sheen. Sharkskin is a twill weave fabric created using acetate, rayon, worsted wool, lycra, and other plastic fi ...
) which were characterized by wide lapels, wide-legged or flared trousers, and high-rise waistcoats (US vests). Influenced by the popularity of aviator sunglasses in disco, many wore glasses in the shape of aviators but with clear prescription lenses. Neckties became wider and bolder, and shirt collars became long and pointed.


Big shoulders

* Starting with a few designers in 1978 and becoming the main trend in 1979, high-fashion menswear designers at the end of the seventies adopted the big
shoulder pads The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone) as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder m ...
that had debuted in womenswear in 1978, showing exaggeratedly padded shoulders that tapered to low closures at narrow, often ventless hips in jackets and suits, along with trousers that were straight-legged or tapered to narrow ankles. Jackets were also sometimes presented short and boxy like spencers or bellhop jackets. Unlike in womenswear, the exaggerated shoulders didn't appear in shirts but only in jackets and coats, with avant-garde designers like
Thierry Mugler Manfred Thierry Mugler (; 21 December 1948 – 23 January 2022) was a French fashion designer, creative director and creative adviser of Mugler. In the 1970s, Mugler launched his eponymous fashion house; and quickly rose to prominence in the fol ...
also presenting an occasional retro-futuristic (like something from 1950s sci-fi), outer space-looking jumpsuit with big shoulders, often marked with trapunto stitching, a style seen only on the most avant-garde. Lapels and ties for these new jacket styles were initially mostly narrow, said to help emphasize the increased shoulder width, but the most influential menswear designer of the time,
Giorgio Armani Giorgio Armani (; born 11 July 1934) is an Italian fashion designer and a billionaire. He first gained renown working for Cerruti 1881. He formed his company, Armani, in 1975, which eventually expanded into music, sport, and luxury hotels. By 200 ...
, relatively quickly widened his lapels and ties – not as wide as in the early seventies, though, more like the 1940s. As the 1970s became the 1980s, both narrow and wider 1940s-width lapels and ties could be seen simultaneously. In 1979, though, these big-shouldered styles were just starting to be seen and wouldn't yet be common except among the avant-garde.


Youth fashion


Mods

* During the early 1970s, the
Northern soul Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged in Northern England and the Midlands in the early 1970s. It developed from the British Mod (subculture), mod scene, based on a particular style of African American music, Black American ...
and
suedehead "Suedehead" is the debut solo single by English singer Morrissey, released on 15 February 1988. Co-written by Morrissey and former Smiths producer Stephen Street, the song was Morrissey's first solo release after the Smiths break-up. Morrisse ...
subcultures emerged in response to the
psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...
, Bohemian and
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
influences on the mainstream peacock
mod subculture Mod, from the word ''modernist'', is a subculture that began in late 1950s London and spread throughout Great Britain, eventually influencing fashions and trends in other countries. It continues today on a smaller scale. Focused on music and f ...
. Seeking a return to the music and fashions of the mid and late 1960s, members of these British subcultures wore
Ben Sherman Ben Sherman is a British clothing brand selling shirts, sweaters, suits, outerwear, shoes and accessories predominantly for men. Ben Sherman has been described as an 'iconic British brand'. Ben Sherman designs sometimes feature the Royal Air Fo ...
shirts, slim fit pants, tank top sweaters,
turtleneck A polo neck, roll-neck (South Africa), turtleneck (United States, Canada), or skivvy is a garment—usually a sweater—with a close-fitting collar that folds over and covers the neck. It can also refer to the type of neckline, the sty ...
sweaters, vintage striped boating blazers, basket weave
brogue shoes The brogue (from Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic , both meaning "shoe") is a style of low-heeled shoe or boot traditionally characterised by multiple-piece, sturdy leather uppers with decorative perforations (or "broguing") and serration alon ...
, black leather driving gloves,
pork pie hat A pork pie hat is one of several different styles of hat that have been worn since the mid-19th century. The pork pie hat gained further popularity in the 20th century, being worn by famous actors and musicians. This style of hat features a flat ...
s,
Irish walking hat A bucket hat (variations of which include the fisherman's hat, Irish country hat and session hat) is a hat with a narrow, downward-sloping Brim (hat), brim. Typically, the hat is made from heavy-duty cotton fabric such as denim or canvas, or h ...
s, and loose fitting
Oxford bags Oxford bags were a loose-fitting baggy form of trousers favoured by members of the University of Oxford, especially undergraduates, in England from the mid-1920s to around the 1950s. The style had a more general influence outside the universi ...
for dancing. Secondhand mod clothing was also worn by many early
garage punk A garage is a covered structure built for the purpose of parking, storing, protecting, maintaining, and/or repairing vehicles. Specific applications include: *Garage (residential), a building or part of a building for storing one or more vehicl ...
and
protopunk Proto-punk (or protopunk) is rock music from the 1960s to mid-1970s that foreshadowed the punk rock genre and movement. A retrospective label, the musicians involved were generally not originally associated with each other and came from a variet ...
bands from the mid-1970s onwards, especially the
Flamin Groovies Flamin' Groovies is an American rock music, rock musical ensemble, band that formed in San Francisco in 1965, originally co-led by Roy Loney and Cyril Jordan. After the Groovies released three albums, on Epic (''Supersnazz'') and Kama Sutra (''Fl ...
and
Television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
due to its cheapness and wide availability. The release of the cult film ''
Quadrophenia ''Quadrophenia'' is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Who, released as a double album on 26 October 1973 by Track Records. It is the group's third rock opera, the previous two being the "mini-opera" song "A Quick One, While ...
'' in 1978 sparked a large scale
Mod revival The mod revival is a subculture that started in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and later spread to other countries (to a lesser degree). The Mod Revival started with disillusionment with the punk scene when commercialism set in. It was f ...
among a younger generation of
Lambretta Lambretta () was a brand of motor scooters, manufactured in Milan, Italy, by Innocenti. The name is derived from the word Lambrate, the suburb of Milan named after the river Lambro which flows through the area, and where the factory was locat ...
and
Vespa Vespa () is an Italian brand of scooters and mopeds manufactured by Piaggio. The name means wasp in Italian. The Vespa has evolved from a single model motor scooter manufactured in 1946 by Piaggio & Co. S.p.A. of Pontedera, Italy, to a ...
scooter enthusiasts influenced by
punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
and
new wave music New wave is a music genre that encompasses pop music, pop-oriented styles from the 1970s through the 1980s. It is considered a lighter and more melodic "broadening of Punk subculture, punk culture". It was originally used as a catch-all fo ...
.


Teddy boys

* Due to a resurgence in nostalgia for the 1950s, the
Teddy boy The Teddy Boys or Teds were a mainly United Kingdom, British youth subculture originating in the early 1950s to mid-1960s and then revived in the 1970s who were interested in rock and roll and Rhythm and blues, R&B music, wearing clothes part ...
subculture made a comeback in the UK during the early 1970s. A similar
rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...
subculture known as
Raggare Raggare is a subculture found mostly in Sweden and parts of Norway and Finland, and to a lesser extent in Denmark, Germany, and Austria. Raggare are related to the American greaser and rockabilly subcultures and are known for their love of ...
underwent a revival in Sweden and Germany at the same time.
Brothel creepers Brothel creepers, sometimes shortened to creepers, are a style of shoe that has thick Crepe rubber, crepe soles, often in combination with suede uppers. This style of footwear became fashionable in the years following World War II, seeing resurge ...
,
drainpipe trousers Slim-fit pants or skinny jeans (when made of denim) are tight trousers that have a snug fit through the legs and end in a small leg opening that can be anywhere from 9" to 20" in circumference, depending on size. Other names for this style inclu ...
,
bolo tie A bolo tie (sometimes bola tie or shoestring necktie) is a type of necktie consisting of a piece of cord or braided leather with decorative metal tips (called aiguillettes) and secured with an ornamental clasp or slide. Popularity In the United ...
s and drape jackets were popular, typically with contrasting
velvet Velvet is a type of woven fabric with a dense, even pile (textile), pile that gives it a distinctive soft feel. Historically, velvet was typically made from silk. Modern velvet can be made from silk, linen, cotton, wool, synthetic fibers, silk ...
collars and cuffs. Influenced by
glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...
bands like
Showaddywaddy Showaddywaddy are a rock and roll group from Leicester, England. They specialise in revivals of hit songs from the 1950s and early 1960s, while also issuing original material. They have spent 209 weeks on the UK Singles Chart, and have had 10 ...
, the Teds of the 1970s wore bright colors like electric blue, leopardskin or brocade
waistcoat A waistcoat ( UK and Commonwealth, or ; colloquially called a weskit) or vest ( US and Canada) is a sleeveless upper-body garment. It is usually worn over a dress shirt and necktie and below a coat as a part of most men's formal wea ...
s, and styled their hair with
hair spray Hair spray (also hair lacquer or spritz) is a common cosmetic hairstyling product that is sprayed onto hair to protect against humidity and wind and have it stay in a desired shape. Hair sprays typically consist of several components for the ...
rather than
brylcreem __NOTOC__ Brylcreem () is a British brand of hair styling products for men. The first Brylcreem product was a hair cream created in 1928 by County Chemicals at the Chemico Works in Bradford Street, Birmingham, England, and is the flagship prod ...
. In the late 1970s the Teds became the arch enemies of the punk subculture and Mod revivalists.


Hippies

* One of the most ubiquitous subcultures of the early and mid-1970s were the
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
s. Typically middle class youths from Britain, America and New Zealand, these practitioners of free love favored a unisex look with long hair,
tie dye Tie-dye is a term used to describe a number of resist dyeing techniques and the resulting dyed products of these processes. The process of tie-dye typically consists of folding, twisting, pleating, or crumpling fabric or a garment, before binding ...
and
flower power Flower power was a slogan used during the late 1960s and early 1970s as a symbol of passive resistance and nonviolence. It is rooted in the Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War, opposition movement to the Vietnam War. The ex ...
motifs, Bob Dylan caps,
kurta A ''kurta'' is a loose collarless shirt or tunic worn in many regions of South Asia, (subscription required) Quote: "A loose shirt or tunic worn by men and women." Quote: "Kurta: a loose shirt without a collar, worn by women and men from South ...
s, hemp waistcoats, baja jackets,
bell bottoms Bell-bottoms (or flares) are a style of trousers that become wider from the knees downward, forming a bell-like shape of the trouser leg. History Naval origins In the early 19th century, when standardised uniforms for British Naval rating, r ...
, sandals, and maxi skirts for the girls. Due to the United States' active involvement in the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
from 1955 to 1975, American teenagers wanted to make an antiwar
counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Ho ...
statement through the way they dressed. Old military uniforms and washed off navy bell-bottoms were commonly purchased from secondhand stores, and then embellished with floral embroideries and brightly colored peace symbol patches at home. In reaction to the conservative
ivy league fashion ''Hedera'', commonly called ivy (plural ivies), is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to Western Europe, Central Europe, Southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern ...
s favored by their parents, American hippies of both sexes rejected designer brands in favor of a unisex style, often making use of
corduroy Corduroy is a textile with a distinctively raised "cord" or wale texture. Modern corduroy is most commonly composed of tufted cords, sometimes exhibiting a channel (bare to the base fabric) between them. Both velvet and corduroy derive from fu ...
,
hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a plant in the botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial and consumable use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest ...
, and
vintage clothing Vintage clothing is clothing that originates from a previous era, as recent as the 1990s. The term ''vintage clothing'' can also be applied in reference to second-hand retail outlets, e.g. in "vintage clothing store". While the concept origina ...
from
charity shops A charity shop is a retail establishment run by a charitable organization to raise money. Charity shops are a type of social enterprise. They sell mainly used goods such as clothing, books, music albums, shoes, toys, and furniture donated by ...
. Although
glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...
had largely supplanted the hippie movement in urban areas during the mid to late 70s, offshoots such as the
New Age travellers New Age Travellers (synonymous with and otherwise known as New Travellers) are people located primarily in the United Kingdom generally espousing New Age beliefs with hippie or Bohemian culture of the 1960s. New Age Travellers used to travel be ...
,
Freak scene The freak scene was originally a component of the Bohemianism, bohemian subculture which began in California in the mid-1960s, associated with (or part of) the Hippies, hippie movement. The term is also used to refer to the post-hippie and pre ...
,
Nambassa Nambassa was a series of hippie-conceived New Zealand festivals held from 1976 to 1981 on large farms around Waihi and Waikino in the Waikato. They were music, arts and alternatives festivals that focused on peace, love, and an environmenta ...
housetrucker Housetruckers are individuals, families and groups who convert old trucks and school buses into portable homes called housetrucks and live in them, preferring an unattached and transient lifestyle to more conventional housing. These vehicles bega ...
s and surfers continued until the 1990s.


Heavy metal

* During the early and mid-1970s, members of the
hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...
and
heavy metal subculture Fans of heavy metal music, commonly referred to as "Metalheads", have created their own subculture that encompasses more than just appreciation of the style of music. Fans affirm their membership in the subculture or scene by attending metal conce ...
favored typical
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
fashions like earth tones,
tie dye Tie-dye is a term used to describe a number of resist dyeing techniques and the resulting dyed products of these processes. The process of tie-dye typically consists of folding, twisting, pleating, or crumpling fabric or a garment, before binding ...
T-shirts, and flared trousers of the type worn on stage by Jethro Tull or
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
. This changed later in the decade, when many fans of
Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Judas Priest have also been referred to as one of the p ...
,
AC/DC AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, although the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formativ ...
and
Meat Loaf Michael Lee Aday (born Marvin Lee Aday; September 27, 1947 – January 20, 2022), known professionally by his stage name Meat Loaf, was an American singer and actor. He was known for his powerful, wide-ranging voice and theatrical live shows. ...
began imitating the clothing of greasers,
outlaw biker An outlaw motorcycle club, known colloquially as a biker club or club (in Australia), is a motorcycle subculture generally centered on the use of cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers, and a set of ideals that purpo ...
s,
punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
ers and leathermen due to the association of such fashions with toughness. Typical
heavy metal fashion Heavy metal fashion is the style of dress, body modification, make-up, hairstyle, and so on, taken on by fans of heavy metal, or, as they are often called, metalheads or headbangers. While the style has changed from the 1970s to the 2020s, cert ...
s in the UK, US and Australia included faded jeans, leather battle jackets,
combat boot Combat or tactical boots are military boots designed to be worn by soldiers during combat or combat training, as opposed to during parades and other ceremonial duties. Modern combat boots are designed to provide a combination of grip, ankle ...
s, studded belts, black
leather jacket #REDIRECT leather jacket "Leather Jacket" is a single released from Mick Taylor's self titled album ' Mick Taylor' ...
s like the
Schott Perfecto Perfecto is a secondary brand of "lancer fronted" leather motorcycle jackets designed by Irving Schott and manufactured by the American clothing company, Schott NYC. The first jacket was introduced in 1928,Fashion in Popular Culture: Literatu ...
, and
iron cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...
es frequently pilfered from their father's war souvenirs. Beards, moustaches and shoulder length hair were popular among men, while female metal fans sometimes imitated the brightly dyed, teased and
backcombed Backcombing, also known as teasing or ratting, is a way of styling hair to create volume. It is done by repeatedly combing the hair towards the scalp, causing the hair to tangle and knot. Notable wearers * Russell Brand, English podcaster and f ...
punk hair of the late 1970s.


Black power

* Urban
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
youths frequently imitated the
paramilitary A paramilitary is a military that is not a part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "paramilitary" as far back as 1934. Overview Though a paramilitary is, by definiti ...
uniforms of the
Fruit of Islam The Fruit of Islam (FOI) is the paramilitary wing of the Nation of Islam. The Fruit of Islam wear distinctive blue, brown, or white uniforms and caps and have units at all NOI temples. Louis Farrakhan, as head of the Nation of Islam, is commande ...
, anti-colonialist African insurgents, and early 1970s
black power Black power is a list of political slogans, political slogan and a name which is given to various associated ideologies which aim to achieve self-determination for black people. It is primarily, but not exclusively, used in the United States b ...
groups like the
Black Panthers The Black Panther Party (originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense) was a Marxist–Leninist and black power political organization founded by college students Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton in October 1966 in Oakland, California ...
. The Panthers' French counterparts called themselves the
Del Vikings The Del-Vikings (also known as The Dell-Vikings) were an American doo-wop musical group that recorded several hit singles in the 1950s and continued to record and tour with various lineups in later decades. The group is notable for the hit songs ...
and
Black Dragons ''Black Dragons'' is a 1942 American film directed by William Nigh and starring Bela Lugosi, Joan Barclay, and George Pembroke. The cast includes Clayton Moore, who plays a handsome detective. The Black Dragon Society also appears in '' Let's Ge ...
, listened to
rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...
and
punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
, and fought against
neonazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and racial supremacy (often white supremacy), to attac ...
skinhead A skinhead or skin is a member of a subculture that originated among working-class youth in London, England, in the 1960s. It soon spread to other parts of the United Kingdom, with a second working-class skinhead movement emerging worldwide i ...
s during the late 70s and early 80s. * Typical clothing included black
leather jacket #REDIRECT leather jacket "Leather Jacket" is a single released from Mick Taylor's self titled album ' Mick Taylor' ...
s, vests, black driving gloves, leather
peaked cap A peaked cap, peaked hat, service cap, barracks cover, or combination cap is a form of headgear worn by the armed forces of many nations, as well as many uniformed civilian organisations such as law enforcement agencies and fire departments. It d ...
s embellished with chains and metal studs, African
folk costume Folk costume, traditional dress, traditional attire or folk attire, is clothing of an ethnic group, nation or region, and expresses cultural, religious or national identity. An ethnic group's clothing may also be called ethnic clothing or ethnic ...
like the fez or
dashiki The dashiki (, ) is a colorful garment that covers the top half of the body, worn mostly in West Africa. It has formal and informal versions and varies from simple draped clothing to fully tailored suits. A common form is a loose-fitting pullove ...
, traditional African colors like black, red, yellow or green,
Ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...
ian jewelry such as the
Ankh The ankh or key of life is an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol used to represent the word for "life" and, by extension, as a symbol of life itself. The ankh has a T-shape topped by a droplet-shaped loop. It was used in writing as a tri ...
, gold chains, and railroad stripe pants for women. Due to the poverty in the ghetto, black children often wore secondhand clothing that was too big or too small, inspiring the
baggy pants Wide-leg jeans, colloquially called baggy pants, are a style of clothing popular from the early 1980s to the 2000s, and also during a revival in the 2020s. History Early modern period Historically, the cut of pants has varied by period. From ...
worn as
hip-hop fashion Hip-hop fashion (also known as rap fashion) refers to the various styles of clothing, dress that originated from Urban African Americans, Black America and inner city youth in American cities like New York City, Los Angeles, and Atlanta. Being a m ...
during the 1980s and 1990s. In the UK, US and Jamaica Afro hair and
dreadlocks Dreadlocks, also known as dreads or locs, are a Hairstyle, hairstyle made of rope-like strands of matted hair. Dreadlocks can form naturally in Hair#Texture, very curly hair, or they can be created with techniques like twisting, Backcombing, ba ...
became popular from 1972 to 1976 among
Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...
,
soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in African-American culture, African-American African-American neighborhood, communities throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps ...
and
reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...
fans, as a rejection of the straightened hairstyles associated with white culture.


Cholos

* Following the
recession of 1973 In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction that occurs when there is a period of broad decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be tr ...
, the
zoot suit A zoot suit (occasionally spelled zuit suit) is a men's Suit (clothing), suit with high-waisted, wide-legged, tight-cuffed, wikt:pegged pants, pegged trousers, and a long coat with wide lapels and wide padded shoulders. It is most notable for its ...
ed
pachuco Pachucos are male members of a counterculture that emerged in El Paso, Texas, in the late 1930s. Pachucos are associated with zoot suit fashion, jump blues, jazz and swing music, a distinct dialect known as '' caló'', and self-empowerment in re ...
look declined due to its association with comedic
Blaxploitation In American cinema, Blaxploitation is the film subgenre of action movie derived from the exploitation film genre in the early 1970s, consequent to the combined cultural momentum of the black civil rights movement, the black power movement, ...
pimps. Instead, working class Mexican youths began dressing in a more casual style inspired by the clothing of prison gangs, left wing
counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Ho ...
groups like the
Brown berets The Brown Berets (Spanish: ''Los Boinas Cafés'') is a pro-Chicano paramilitary organization that emerged during the Chicano Movement in the United States during the late 1960s. David Sanchez and Carlos Montes co-founded the group modeled af ...
, the
antiwar movement An anti-war movement is a social movement in opposition to one or more nations' decision to start or carry on an armed conflict. The term ''anti-war'' can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conf ...
, and the 1960s
greaser subculture Greasers are a youth subculture that emerged in the 1950s and early 1960s from predominantly working class and lower-class teenagers and young adults in the United States and Canada. The subculture remained prominent into the mid-1960s and ...
. White T-shirts,
winklepicker Winklepickers or winkle pickers are a style of shoe or boot worn from the 1950s onward, especially popular with British rock and roll fans such as Teddy Boys. The feature that gives both the boot and shoe their name is the very sharp and long ...
s, double denim " Texan tuxedos," ringer Tees, plaid shirts, Aviators, black wool
tuque A knit cap, colloquially known as a beanie, is a piece of knitted headwear designed to provide warmth in cold weather. It usually has a simple tapered shape, although more elaborate variants exist. Historically made of wool, it is now often mad ...
s, brown
beret A beret ( , ; ; ; ) is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap made of hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre. Mass production of berets began in the 19th century in Southern France and the north of History of Spain (1808 ...
s, green
military surplus Military surplus is goods, usually materiel, that are sold or otherwise disposed of when held in excess or are no longer needed by the military. Entrepreneurs often buy these goods and resell them at surplus stores. Usually the goods sold by th ...
field jackets, sheepskin coats, Castro hats, untucked white shirts, and
khaki The color khaki (, ) is a light shade of tan (color), tan with a slight yellowish tinge. Khaki has been used by many armies around the world for uniforms and equipment, particularly in arid or desert regions, where it provides camouflage rela ...
Dickies Williamson-Dickie Mfg. Co. is an American apparel manufacturing company primarily known for its largest brand, Dickies. Williamson-Dickie Europe, originally called Clares, was founded in 1900 in Wells, Somerset, U.K. to provide the agricultural ...
pants were commonly worn by these
cholo ''Cholo'' () was a racial category used in 18th-century Spanish America to refer to people who were three-quarters Amerindians, Amerindian by descent and one-quarter Spanish people, Spanish. Its origin is a somewhat derogatory term for Multi ...
s and
chicano Chicano (masculine form) or Chicana (feminine form) is an ethnic identity for Mexican Americans that emerged from the Chicano Movement. In the 1960s, ''Chicano'' was widely reclaimed among Hispanics in the building of a movement toward politic ...
s, together with slicked-back pompadour hairstyles and large
sideburns Sideburns, sideboards, or side whiskers are facial hair grown on the sides of the face, extending from the hairline to run parallel to or beyond the ears. The term ''sideburns'' is a 19th-century corruption of the original ''burnsides'', named ...
.


Punks

*
Punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...
was a musical genre that greatly influenced fashion in the late 1970s. A great deal of punk fashion from the 1970s was based on the designs of
Vivienne Westwood Dame Vivienne Isabel Westwood (; 8 April 1941 – 29 December 2022) was an English fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream. In 2022, ''Sky Arts'' ranked her the ...
and her partner
Malcolm McLaren Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren (22 January 1946 – 8 April 2010) was an English fashion designer and music manager. He was a promoter and a manager for punk rock and new wave bands such as New York Dolls, Sex Pistols, Adam and the Ants, and ...
, McLaren opened a stall at the back of vintage American clothing store, which taken over 430 King's Road and called it 'Let it Rock'. By 1974, 430 had renamed the store, which became famous as 'SEX'. McLaren described SEX as 'a haven phenomenon known as punk rock.' Punk emerged in London, and spread into the United States. A complex amalgam of various stylistic influences, Punk had its roots in the streets of London and the music scene of New York. Street
punk fashion Punk fashion is the clothing, hairstyles, cosmetics, jewellery, and body modifications of the punk counterculture. Punk fashion varies widely, ranging from Vivienne Westwood designs to styles modeled on bands like The Exploited to the dressed-dow ...
generally consisted of ripped clothes, black
turtleneck A polo neck, roll-neck (South Africa), turtleneck (United States, Canada), or skivvy is a garment—usually a sweater—with a close-fitting collar that folds over and covers the neck. It can also refer to the type of neckline, the sty ...
s,
drainpipe jeans Slim-fit pants or skinny jeans (when made of denim) are tight trousers that have a snug fit through the legs and end in a small leg opening that can be anywhere from 9" to 20" in circumference, depending on size. Other names for this style inclu ...
, tight leather pants, leather jackets (often embellished with chains, spikes, studs, and paint), jackets and shirts with taboo images or messages, dog collars,
safety pin A safety pin is a variation of the regular Pin (device), pin which includes a simple Spring (device), spring mechanism and a clasp. The clasp forms a closed loop to properly fasten the pin to whatever it is applied to and covers the end of the p ...
s,
kilt A kilt ( ) is a garment resembling a wrap-around knee-length skirt, made of twill-woven worsted wool with heavy pleats at the sides and back and traditionally a tartan pattern. Originating in the Scottish Highland dress for men, it is first r ...
s, and
Doc Martens Dr. Martens, also known as Doc Martens, Docs, or DMs, is a British footwear and clothing brand. Although most known for its footwear, it also makes a range of accessories, including clothing and bags. The footwear is distinguished by its air-c ...
. A tamer, less threatening version of the Punk style called "New Wave", which featured jagged hems on clothing and more elaborate embroidery went mainstream in the early 1980s.


Hairstyles


Women's hairstyles

Throughout much of the decade, women and teenage girls wore their hair long, with a centre or side parting. ''
Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' (stylized as ''Harper's BAZAAR'') is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. Bazaar has been published in New York City since November 2, 1867, originally as a weekly publication entitled ''Harper's Bazar''."Corporat ...
''s Lindy Segal attributed the popularity of long, straight hairstyles in the 1970s to
Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...
, whose distinctive look became associated with what is now sometimes referred to as "Cher hair". Other hairstyles of the early to mid-1970s included the wavy "gypsy" cut, the layered
shag Shag or Shags may refer to: Animals * Shag or cormorant, a bird family ** European shag, a specific species of the shag or cormorant family ** Great cormorant another species of the family Persons * Shag (artist), stage name of the American a ...
, and the "flicked" style, popularly referred to as "wings", in which the hair was flicked into resembling small wings at the temples. This look was popularised by the stars of the television series ''
Charlie's Angels ''Charlie's Angels'' is an American crime drama television series created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts for ABC. It originally aired from September 22, 1976, to June 24, 1981, airing for five seasons consisting of 115 episodes. It was produ ...
''. Blonde-streaked or "frosted" hair was also popular. In 1977, punk singer
Debbie Harry Deborah Ann Harry (born Angela Trimble, July 1, 1945) is an American singer, songwriter and actress, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie (band), Blondie. Four of her songs with the band reached on the US charts between 1979 and 1 ...
of Blondie sparked a new trend with her shoulder-length, dyed
platinum blond Blond () or blonde (), also referred to as fair hair, is a human hair color characterized by low levels of eumelanin, the dark pigment. The resultant visible hue depends on various factors, but always has some yellowish color. The color can be ...
e hair worn with a long
fringe Fringe may refer to: Arts and music * "The Fringe", or Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's largest arts festival * Adelaide Fringe, the world's second-largest annual arts festival * Fringe theatre, a name for alternative theatre * Purple fri ...
(bangs), popular in the late 1970s. In the 1970s, making one of the popular hairstyles for a woman didn't take a lot of time. These hairstyles, including
Afro The afro is a hair style created by combing out natural growth of afro-textured hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" '' Ebo ...
hairstyle, Shaggy Hairdo and
Feathered hair Feathered hair is a hairstyling technique that was popular in the 1970s and the early 1980s. It was designed for straight hair. The hair was layered, with either a side or a center parting. The hair would be brushed back at the sides, giving an ...
(then known as "
Farrah Fawcett Farrah Fawcett (born Ferrah Leni Fawcett; February 2, 1947 – June 25, 2009) was an American actress. A four-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee and six-time Golden Globe Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she played a ...
hairstyle") were said to be perfect when you're on-the-go and would still keep your expressive style in-check. For
black people Black is a racial classification of people, usually a political and skin color-based category for specific populations with a mid- to dark brown complexion. Not all people considered "black" have dark skin and often additional phenotypical ...
in the United States and elsewhere, the
afro The afro is a hair style created by combing out natural growth of afro-textured hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" '' Ebo ...
was worn by both sexes throughout the decade. As the Afro entered the mainstream, Afro-enhancing products and Afro wigs emerged in the African-American beauty industry. These wigs were created and advertised as a bolder look that could conveniently be removed and put on for a night out. For Black women, it became a staple in
disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...
, with disco divas like
Diana Ross Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...
and
Gloria Gaynor Gloria Fowles (born September 7, 1943), known professionally as Gloria Gaynor, is an American singer, best known for the disco era hits "I Will Survive" (1978), "I Have a Right, Let Me Know (I Have a Right)" (1979), "I Am What I Am (Broadway mus ...
adopting it in the 1970s. Afros were also occasionally sported by
Whites White is a racial classification of people generally used for those of predominantly European ancestry. It is also a skin color specifier, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, ethnicity and point of view. De ...
, especially
Jewish American American Jews (; ) or Jewish Americans are American citizens who are Jewish, whether by culture, ethnicity, or religion. According to a 2020 poll conducted by Pew Research, approximately two thirds of American Jews identify as Ashkenazi, 3% id ...
s as an alternative to the uniform long, straight hair which was a fashion mainstay until the arrival of punk and the "disco look" when hair became shorter and centre partings were no longer the mode. Among the most iconic women's hairstyle of the 1970s is the Farrah Fawcett hairstyle. Popularized in 1976, the hairstyle was heavily imitated by many American women and girls. It incorporated waves, curls, and layers. The style mostly worn with bangs, but could also be worn with a side part. To make it even more stylish, women and girls would frost their hair with blonde streaks. By the late 1970s, the popularity of braided hairstyles for Afro-textured hair, such as
cornrows Cornrows (also called canerows) are a style of three-strand braids in which the hair is braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to make a continuous, raised row. Cornrows are often done in simple, straight lines, as the ...
, increased. These looks are exemplified by vocal group
Sister Sledge Sister Sledge was an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consists of sisters Joni, Kim, Debbie, and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. I ...
on their 1979
He's the Greatest Dancer "He's the Greatest Dancer" is a disco song by the American vocal group Sister Sledge. Released on February 3, 1979, the song was written and composed by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers, and recorded for the group's successful 1979 album '' We A ...
album cover.


Men's hairstyles

Continuing on from the 1960s, the
ducktail The ducktail is a men's haircut style popular during the 1950s. It is also called the duck's tail, duck's ass, duck's arse, or simply D.A. and is also described as slicked back hair. The hair is pomaded (greased), combed back around the sides, an ...
and Pompadour hairstyle (then known as the "
Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...
hairstyle") were popular among young
Italian-American Italian Americans () are Americans who have full or partial Italians, Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeastern United States, Northeast and industrial Midwestern United States, Midwestern ...
and
Mexican-American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United State ...
men in big cities like New York. Large quantities of grease or
brylcreem __NOTOC__ Brylcreem () is a British brand of hair styling products for men. The first Brylcreem product was a hair cream created in 1928 by County Chemicals at the Chemico Works in Bradford Street, Birmingham, England, and is the flagship prod ...
was normally used to keep the hair in place. The early and mid-1970s generally featured longer hair on men, as way of rebelling against the social norms of years past.
Sideburns Sideburns, sideboards, or side whiskers are facial hair grown on the sides of the face, extending from the hairline to run parallel to or beyond the ears. The term ''sideburns'' is a 19th-century corruption of the original ''burnsides'', named ...
were also worn around the same time. Some of the most popular hairstyles for men include "Long and Luscious" hairstyle, mod haircut, and the "
buzzcut A buzz cut, or wiffle cut, is a variety of short hairstyles, especially where the length of hair is the same on all parts of the head. Rising to prominence initially with the advent of manual hair clippers, buzz cuts became increasingly popular ...
" hairstyle popularised by action heroes like
Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...
. In the late 1970s, men went for the chop, ranging from
crew cut A crew cut is a type of haircut in which the upright hair on the top of the head is cut relatively short, graduated in length from the longest hair that forms a short pomp (Pompadour (hairstyle), pompadour) at the front hairline to the shortest a ...
s, to buzz cuts, to a shag. This was mainly done for an athletic look, and sideburns and facial hair went out of style. The
afro The afro is a hair style created by combing out natural growth of afro-textured hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" '' Ebo ...
, if able to be grown, was often a quintessential part of a man's disco club or
roller disco A roller disco is a combined discothèque and Roller rink, skating rink, where attendees are encouraged to participate in roller skating while dancing, or to observe skilled dancers from the sidelines. Quad skates and (more recently) inline skate ...
ensemble. As popular male hairstyles increased in length in the late 1960s, so too did hair within the male African-American community,Garland, Phyl
"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?"
''
Ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also includes the persimmon tree. A few ''Diospyros'' species, such as macassar and mun ebony, are dense enough to sink in water. Ebony is fin ...
'', February 1973. Retrieved February 20, 2010.
thereby the early 1970s saw an expansion in the overall size of afros. Examples of male celebrities with afros included
Maurice White Maurice White (December 19, 1941 – February 4, 2016) was an American musician, best known as the founder, leader, main songwriter and chief producer of the band Earth, Wind & Fire, also serving as the band's co-lead singer with Philip Bailey. ...
of
Earth, Wind, & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (abbreviated as EW&F or EWF) is an American band formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1969. Their music spans multiple genres, including jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, Latin and Afro-pop. They are among the best-selling ba ...
,
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
, and male members of
the Jackson 5 The Jackson 5, later known as the Jacksons, are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was formed in Gary, Indiana in 1964, and originally consisted of brothers Jackie, Ti ...
.Hair Designing - A Complete Course
by Various, Global Media, 2007, section 2. Retrieved February 20, 2010.
As popular interest in disco music increased, the afro became more of a mainstream look; however, its adoption by people of non-African descent caused the afro to lose its
radical Radical (from Latin: ', root) may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics *Classical radicalism, the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and Latin America in the 19th century *Radical politics ...
political edge (having been previously associated with the
Black Panthers The Black Panther Party (originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense) was a Marxist–Leninist and black power political organization founded by college students Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton in October 1966 in Oakland, California ...
during the 1960s). Sherrow, Victoria, ''Encyclopedia of hair: a cultural history'', Greenwood Publishing Group, 2006, pp. 21–23. Retrieved February 20, 2010. Additionally, as with women, the 1970s saw an increase in the popularity of men's braided hairstyles such as
cornrows Cornrows (also called canerows) are a style of three-strand braids in which the hair is braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to make a continuous, raised row. Cornrows are often done in simple, straight lines, as the ...
, exemplified by disco-pop musician
Rick James James Ambrose Johnson Jr. (February 1, 1948 – August 6, 2004), better known by his stage name Rick James, was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, James began his musical career in his tee ...
.


Makeup and cosmetics

Cosmetics Cosmetics are substances that are intended for application to the body for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance. They are mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either Natural product, natural source ...
in the 1970s reflected the contradictory roles ascribed for the modern woman.De Castelbajac, pp. 147–48. For the first time since 1900, make-up was chosen situationally, rather than in response to monolithic trends. The era's two primary visions were the daytime "natural look" presented by American designers and ''
Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Internationalism * World citizen, one who eschews traditional geopolitical divisions derived from national citizenship * Cosmopolitanism, the idea that all of humanity belongs to a single moral community * Cosmopolitan ...
'' magazine, and the evening aesthetic of sexualized glamour presented by European designers and fashion photographers. In the periphery, punk and glam were also influential. The struggling cosmetics industry attempted to make a comeback, using new marketing and manufacturing practices.


Legacy

As of the 1990s and the 21st century, there is
nostalgia Nostalgia is a sentimentality for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. The word ''nostalgia'' is a neoclassical compound derived from Greek language, Greek, consisting of (''nóstos''), a Homeric word me ...
for 1970s fashions, some of which have been revived.Nostalgia for the 70s: the fashion trend that's stayin' alive
The Guardian. 28 March 2021.


Image gallery

Images representing the fashion trends of the 1970s. File:1970sgirl2.jpg, The early 1970s' fashions were a continuation of the
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to dif ...
look from the late 1960s. File:Mode 70.JPG, Woman in
miniskirt A miniskirt (or mini-skirt, mini skirt, or mini) is a skirt with its hemline well above the knees, generally at mid-thigh level, normally no longer than below the buttocks; and a dress with such a hemline is called a minidress or a miniskirt ...
, 1970 File:Send to school 1970.jpg, A West German school girl with
Schultüte A Schultüte (, "school cone"), also known as a Zuckertüte (, "sugar cone") in some parts of Germany, is a large cone-shaped, cornucopia-styled container made of paper, cardboard, or plastic. When children in Germany, Austria, German-speaking p ...
in 1970, with a '
hippy A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the mid-1960s to early 1970s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States and spread to different countries around the w ...
ish' outfit on. File:Efva Attling & Lars Jacob 1971 (2).jpg, Swedish model Efva Attling in a "midi" dress,
Kings Road King's Road or Kings Road (or sometimes the King's Road, especially when it was the king's private road until 1830, or as a colloquialism by middle/upper class London residents) is a major street stretching through Chelsea and Fulham, both ...
, London, 1971. File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-L0902-114, Leipzig, Messe, neue Mode.jpg, Fashion
models A model is an informative representation of an object, person, or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin , . Models can be divided int ...
in
Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...
,
GDR East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from its formation on 7 October 1949 until its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on 3 October 1990. Until 1989, it was generally vie ...
, 1972. One of the girls is modelling a "maxi" dress. File:Sioux-edinburgh80.jpg,
Siouxsie Sioux Susan Janet Ballion (born 27 May 1957), better known by her stage name Siouxsie Sioux (, ), is an English singer and songwriter. She came to prominence as the leader and main lyricist of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, who w ...
of the English punk group
Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees ( ) were a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. Post-punk pioneers, they were widely influential, both over their contemporaries and later ...
. File:David-Bowie Early.jpg,
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...
in the early 1970s. File:PatNixon.jpg, American First Lady
Pat Nixon Thelma Catherine "Pat" Nixon (; March 16, 1912 – June 22, 1993) was First Lady of the United States from 1969 to 1974 as the wife of President Richard Nixon. She also served as the Second ladies and gentlemen of the United States, second lady ...
wears a shirt with the wide collar that was popular until the final years of the decade. File:Los Angeles girl 1973.jpg, Girl in 1973 with a "flicked" hairstyle. File:Surfer couple 1973.jpg, Los Angeles high school students, 1973. The tousled, blond surfer hair was popular for young men in southern California. File:Billy Preston.jpg, Singer
Billy Preston William Everett Preston (September 2, 1946 – June 6, 2006) was an American keyboardist, singer, and songwriter whose work encompassed R&B, rock, soul, funk, and gospel. Preston was a top session keyboardist in the 1960s, backing Little Richa ...
in 1974 wearing an
Afro The afro is a hair style created by combing out natural growth of afro-textured hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" '' Ebo ...
hairstyle. File:1974 family group.jpg, American casual attire, 1974. File:British teenagers 1975.jpg, British girls in 1975 in flared jeans File:Rod stewart 05111976 12 400.jpg, British singer
Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...
, 1976. File:English Country Cottage (2364756846).jpg, English girl in the mid-1970s wearing a wide-sleeved shirt, belted at the waist. File:Punk-27947.jpg, Two
punks Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
from the late 1970s File:Blondie (Debbie Harry) One.jpg, Debbie Harry of Blondie in 1977. File:Susana Giménez 1977 VII.jpg,
Susana Giménez María Susana Giménez Aubert (born 29 January 1944), known as Susana Giménez (), is an Argentine TV host, actress, model and businesswoman. In 2012, she was considered the biggest celebrity in Argentine television by the media firm that pub ...
wearing
hotpants Hotpants or hot pants are extremely short shorts. The term was first used by ''Women's Wear Daily'' in 1970 to describe shorts made in luxury fabrics such as velvet and satin for fashionable wear, rather than their more practical equivalents t ...
, 1977 File:Short afro 1979.jpg, Silk scarves were popular fashion accessories for women in the 1970s. File:Barry Manilow 1979.jpg, Singer
Barry Manilow Barry Manilow ( ; born Barry Alan Pincus on June 17, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer with a career that spans over sixty years. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", "Looks Like We Made It", "Brandy (Scott ...
wears his hair longish in the soft, layered style favoured by men in the 1970s. File:Lene Lovitch 1979.jpg, Punk pioneer
Lene Lovich Lili-Marlene Premilovich (born March 30, 1949), known professionally as Lene Lovich ( ), is an American-British singer. She first gained attention in 1979 with the release of her hit single "Lucky Number", which peaked at number 3 on the UK Sin ...
in 1979, with her trademark long plaited hair. File:Alan Bennett Allan Warren.jpg,
Alan Bennett Alan Bennett (born 9 May 1934) is an English actor, author, playwright and screenwriter. He has received numerous awards and honours including four BAFTA Awards, four Laurence Olivier Awards, and two Tony Awards. In 2005 he received the Socie ...
in 1973, wearing a wide necktie File:Ken Westerfield Heel Kick.jpg, Frisbee player
Ken Westerfield Kenneth Ray Westerfield is an American pioneering frisbee disc player, who achieved numerous disc sports accomplishments in the 1970s. A disc sports Hall of Fame inductee in freestyle, ultimate, and disc golf. In addition, he was voted "Top Men's ...
wearing draw string bell bottoms in the late 1970s


See also

*
Deconstruction (fashion) Deconstruction (or deconstructivism) is a fashion phenomenon of the 1980s and 1990s. It involves the use of costume forms that are based on identifying the structure of clothing - they are used as an external element of the costume. This phenomeno ...
*
1980s in fashion Fashion of the 1980s was characterized by a rejection of psychedelic colored, ornate fashions of the 1970s. Punk fashion began as a reaction against both the hippie movement of the past decades and the materialist values of the current decade. T ...
*
1990s in fashion Fashion in the 1990s was defined by a return to minimalism, minimalist fashion, in contrast to the more elaborate and flashy 1980s in fashion, trends of the 1980s. One notable shift was the mainstream adoption of tattoos, body piercings aside fro ...
*
2000s in fashion The fashions of the 2000s were often described as a global Mashup (culture), mash up, where trends saw the fusion of vintage clothing, vintage styles, global and ethnic clothing (e.g. boho-chic, boho), as well as the fashions of numerous music-b ...


References


External links


1970s Fashion History



Men's Fashion History from the 1970s

Fashion Trends in the 1970s



70’s Bollywood Retro Fashion: Iconic Style Revival

Children's clothing from the 1970s
*
Marshmallow Shoes
{{Timeline of clothing and fashion