This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at NMSU chapter.
Fashion has been present in our lives since early years, it became more notable during the 1920’s and has kept changing on. The trends come and go and recently we can notice how some trends have made a comeback during these recent years. It is important to note that fashion has been changing not only for aesthetics, each decade’s fashion was highly influenced by the history of the time and it is a representation of the woman through history as well as the role we’ve had during the last 100 years. Below I will list the last 100 years of fashion and how the decade in which the trends were set were affected by history.
- 1920: During this decade women wore bob hairstyle, sleeveless dresses, high heels and cloche hats, the “Flapper Style” became popular and women began wearing shorter dresses. In 1920 women were granted the right to vote which lead to more independence and this can be seen represented in the way women dressed.
- 1930: In the 1930 women dressed in sportswear, pant suits, backless gowns and wedge heels, everything was inspired by men’s clothing items. In 1930 the Great Depression began, which meant bad economy and unemployment everywhere. By these men inspired fashion the Great Depression can also be noticed in the fashion trends, economy was bad so many women couldn’t dress as feminine as before and wore their husbands clothing.
- 1940: The trend on the 1940 consisted on shirt dresses, thick heels and military looks. From 1940-1945 WWII was taking place and women worked outside the home, by working outside the fashion trend became more practical for working. In 1942 the T-Shirt is introduced to fit into this practical trend. In 1945 when the war was over women stopped working outside the home and went back to being homeworkers, and in 1946 the bikini was introduced.
- 1950: The 1950’s fashion is my personal favorite. A lot of the trends for this decade were trends that came back from the early 1900s, cocktail dresses, bolero jackets, pencil skits, Capri pants, stiletto heels. The 1950’s was a decade in which the world had recovered from WWII and the idea of being comfortable was created. This is the first decade in which a big change of the trends is set and this is due to the available resources, a time in which the economy was good. During this decade, a lot of popular culture events took place such as the color TV being introduced, the opening of Disneyland and the introduction of Barbie.
- 1960: Pencil Skirts, Miniskirts, relaxed clothes and hippie fashion were the trends during the 1960s. Jackie Kennedy’s style was used for inspiration in trends until 1963 when her husband, president John F. Kennedy was shot. After his death, the hippie movement began spreading due to the several wars that were happening, their purpose was to give a message of peace and love which was sparked in the Woodstock concert. Fashion in this decade was also heavily influenced by the London Fashion brought to the US by the Beatles.
- 1970: Trends during the 1970’s included bell bottom pants, platform shoes, wrap dresses and gaucho pants. During the 1970’s feminism was growing and along with this growth women were beginning to dress for their own needs rather than the needs of society, it was more about individuality. They began wearing baggier clothes for their comfort and opting more for the “casual look” trend.
- 1980: In the 1980’s we se once again how trends go and come back. Fashion in this era used a lot of retro fashion from the 1950s, crop tops, exercise wear, leggings, big sweaters and balloon skirts were some of the most popular trends of the 1980s. The 1980s are mostly known for the “Preppy look”. After the feminism movement of the 1970’s women came into an era that was very flexible for their way of dressing, the 1980’s had several trends at the same time and all of them were different. Pop culture and artists played a huge role into setting this trends.
- 1990: During the 1990’s crop tops, baggy jeans, blazers, lumberjack shirts, platform tennis shoes and floral dresses were the trends. In 1993 the internet was being widely used by everyone which was an influence into these trends. Television also became a trend setter and shows like “Friends” were part of the popular culture, the haircut worn by Rachel became one of the most know hairstyles in the decade. The 1990s focused more on minimalist fashion.
- 2000: The 2000s fashion trends drew a lot of inspiration from past decades, shirtdresses from 1940, bohemian skirts and crop tops from the 1970s, skinny jeans from the 1980s and crop tops from the 1990s. Globalization influenced the trends of this decade and incorporated trends from other continents. The 2000s are known as a “global mash up” of trends in fashion. One of the most known trends of this decade is the “Hip-Hop” trends.
- 2010: During the 2010s many trends from the 2000’s is still popular and fashion from the 1960’s, 1970’s, 1980’s and 1990’s came back. Skinny pants, sundresses, midi and maxi skirts and crop tops are some of the most popular trends of this decade. The Hipster trend is the most common trend know of this decade so far. Vintage trends have also become popular.
As you can see fashion is much more than dressing with style, fashion has a high connotation with each decades history and showing how the different situations of each time affected the trends for fashion.