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I think what the OP is saying is that 'classy' has been gone from styles for a long time, and I agree - to an extent.
When I watch old movies they often make me wish that 'hats' could make a comeback. But I think the 50's had a lot of dopey-looking styles, too - I cringe when I look at photos of long skirts with bobby sox and pointy glasses. I have no real complaints about the 60's, but the 70's... well, I didn't like the hairdos, and the prairie-looking Gunne Sax styles were ugly to me. The 80's really cannot figure into this. It was the last truly 'fun' decade and, though often very outrageous, it was meant to be fun - the last decade of enjoyment before technology inserted itself.
And now, people wear their pjs out in public.
We'll probably never again see the level of classy dress that the OP hopes for. Clothes were much better made back then, and trends come 'n' go so fast. I'm glad that I hung on to some classic pieces from decades ago.
I think you may be comparing high fashion illustrations from early days with today's streetwear. If you just looked at today's high fashion, you would think nobody ever wore pjs on the street.
Similarly, streetwear from the '60s and earlier was much more casual than high fashion. Yeah, everyone wore hats; some were nice, most ranged from ridiculous to ugly. Women wore dresses and girdles and stockings when they went to meetings or church; they had "house dresses" for the rest of the time. Most didn't have jobs outside the house, so getting out was pretty special, and worth the time fussing over your appearance.
Now, most people work long hours, and need to dress quickly in easy to clean clothes. That doesn't leave much time for fussing over your appearance.
Women have rebelled against being judged on their appearance instead of ability, so don't need the armor of a girdle and shellacked hair.
Of course, rich people generally dress better than poor ones. Some people love getting dressed up, others avoid it.
And OMG, the crimes committed in the name of fashion! Sack dresses, bucket hats, hobble skirts, cargo shorts, Speedos...
There are videos of shopping malls, grocery stores, fast food restaurants taken back in the 70's and 80's and it is amazing how slim and well dressed everyone back then was. I'm sure that was even more true in the 50's and 60's. Just look at an old video or photographs of HS students from the 50's and they were very sharply dressed.
It's a real eye opener. That said, I really don't want to go back to the days when you had to be perfectly coiffed to go out in public.
Most people ate at home back then- my friend who grew up in the 1950-60s never went out for fast food until she actually took a job at a burger restaurant. Her mother was a homemaker who cooked almost every meal served at her house.
Restaurant food is fattening because of the way it is prepared. & Don't get me started on the popularity of soda pop......it became a cultural thing for kids to go to the corner store and get huge sodas, hence hidden weight gain and excess sugar consumption. People have become more reliant on premade food and other less healthy things to get by.....
Regarding school dress codes in the 1950s- students could be slapped by teachers (yes, assaulted) for deviating from what was acceptable clothing at school. That was a very different era.
The real bane of today's fashion is "fast fashion"- most of those garments are not meant to last more than a year.
Designer garments are made to be kept, whereas fast fashion items end up in a landfill pretty quickly.
I think you may be comparing high fashion illustrations from early days with today's streetwear. If you just looked at today's high fashion, you would think nobody ever wore pjs on the street.
Similarly, streetwear from the '60s and earlier was much more casual than high fashion. Yeah, everyone wore hats; some were nice, most ranged from ridiculous to ugly. Women wore dresses and girdles and stockings when they went to meetings or church; they had "house dresses" for the rest of the time. Most didn't have jobs outside the house, so getting out was pretty special, and worth the time fussing over your appearance.
Now, most people work long hours, and need to dress quickly in easy to clean clothes. That doesn't leave much time for fussing over your appearance.
Women have rebelled against being judged on their appearance instead of ability, so don't need the armor of a girdle and shellacked hair.
Of course, rich people generally dress better than poor ones. Some people love getting dressed up, others avoid it.
And OMG, the crimes committed in the name of fashion! Sack dresses, bucket hats, hobble skirts, cargo shorts, Speedos...
I started college in 1965. At the time, the guys wore slacks (no jeans) and button-up dress shirts with button-down collars (no golf shirts or tee shirts). The gals wore skirts or dresses, and us guys certainly appreciated the almost universal mini-skirts. I think pants were only allowed on the weekends for the women. Guys could come and go as they pleased, but girls had to sign in and out of their dorms. Latest was 10 pm during the week. almost everybody lived in a dorm back then. With those fashion requirements and traditions, a college campus certainly looked better than it does now where anything goes.
Right? People are expressing themselves through fashion the way that they want, and that's somehow the downfall of society.
Because the change of clothing style manifested the "liberation of women" first and utmost - liberation from life of housewives, sexual liberation - you name it.
That's why fashions changed so drastically comparably to the 50ies.
It was all about the protest.
And that's why men's fashion changed somewhat too - to look more "unisex" with women's attire.
It was particularly obvious in the 70ies with those bell bottom jeans and boho tops.
But why do the jeans have to have rips in them? Is this an anti-capitalist protest? I understand teenagers wearing them (they are always in protest mode), but why would an adult wear torn clothing as a fashion statement?
I think you may be comparing high fashion illustrations from early days with today's streetwear. If you just looked at today's high fashion, you would think nobody ever wore pjs on the street.
Similarly, streetwear from the '60s and earlier was much more casual than high fashion. Yeah, everyone wore hats; some were nice, most ranged from ridiculous to ugly. Women wore dresses and girdles and stockings when they went to meetings or church; they had "house dresses" for the rest of the time. Most didn't have jobs outside the house, so getting out was pretty special, and worth the time fussing over your appearance.
And OMG, the crimes committed in the name of fashion! Sack dresses, bucket hats, hobble skirts, cargo shorts, Speedos...
Women went outside the home several times/week: a couple of times to go grocery shopping, church on Sundays, the occasional medical or personal care appointment (haircuts), lunch with friends, the occasional shopping trip for clothes or housewares, etc. They weren't cloistered just because they didn't work.
Sack dresses are back in with Gen Z! Cargo shorts for men and women still sell! Hobble skirts for the last 10 yrs. or so have been called "pencil skirts". Fashion runs in cycles. Just when you think the worst is finally gone, it bounces back, ready or not!
As for shellacked hair, the last time I did jury duty a few years ago, most of the women had hairstyles that had been sprayed in place, but it wasn't quite as obvious, as the nature of the hairspray has changed since back then. Most of them were office workers, so perfect hair was their style for the office.
Women went outside the home several times/week: a couple of times to go grocery shopping, church on Sundays, the occasional medical or personal care appointment (haircuts), lunch with friends, the occasional shopping trip for clothes or housewares, etc. They weren't cloistered just because they didn't work.
I know that women tried more in the 60s. I was a teenager, and even I tried harder. When I went to church, or downtown to shop, I wore gloves, pantyhose and high heels.
I’m not saying that formal attire is better, but there’s a happy medium between being June Cleaver and the horrid clothing that women wear in public today.
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