Fashion 70's Style!

Today, I have as my guest Ralph Hummel from Shybiker

 

We were paired together via Ashley and her Guest Post Group

Ralph has been doing some articles about past fashions and I asked if he would do the 70's for this post.  Since we are seeing so many fashion trends that have that 70's flare, I thought it would be fun.

The 1970's were an exciting time filled with creativity and fun. We're going to look at the fashion and culture of that time. I happen to know a lot about it because I lived through that period and, due to the impressionable age I was then, I was deeply influenced by it. In fact, the '70's defined my personal style in every way.

First off, the periods we call the "Sixties" and "Seventies" didn't align exactly to decade-dates. The Sixties really started in 1964 when The Beatles emerged and they ended in 1973 when President Nixon resigned. The Seventies started in 1973 and ended when Reagan was elected in 1980.

The two greatest cultural forces of the Seventies were television and music. Both had greater prominence than today because there was no Internet or other alternative for mass-communication. More people paid attention to TV and music back then because they were the main sources for information about society. For example, when sociologists say there will never be another Johnny Carson, it isn't because Johnny was a better TV host (he was), it's because no late-night show will ever command as large an audience as The Tonight Show did. Back then, two-thirds of the entire country watched the show; there simply weren't any alternatives.

Music was also a huge cultural force, more so than today. Everyone paid attention to top performers whose songs transcended art and defined cultural identity. If you told someone which musicians you liked, they instantly knew what kind of person you were.

There was a dividing line back then between rock music and disco. Rock music was continuing its popularity from the Sixties while disco emerged fresh and attracted many fans. Disco had the advantage of being eminently danceable and was played in clubs and bars where there was often a dress-code. Disco was particularly popular among women and the gay community. Many straight men hated disco for that reason and the phrase "Disco Sucks!" became an anthem for insecure males.

Both TV and disco music affected fashion and created new looks. Most of what you consider representative of the Seventies came from TV or disco. Tube-tops, for instance, first arose in the disco-scene, as did flower-print tops. Here are some examples of what people wore then:

The most popular clothing item of the Seventies, worn by both rock and disco fans, were "bell-bottoms" -- pants (usually jeans) that flared outward at the bottom, resembling the shape of a bell. Everyone, male and female, wore them. All of my male pants at that time were bell-bottomed. Bell-bottoms were often decorated; I sewed colored fringes onto mine. Many people customized clothes themselves back then.

Some of Seventies fashion is on the brink of a comeback. Bell-bottoms in particular are re-emerging, only now they're called "wide leg pants" or "flared jeans." Same look; different era.

Two fashion innovations occurred back then which seem obvious now, but had real effect on the future of clothing. First, coordinated color-schemed clothes began to enter stores. It was now possible to buy a skirt and a top in one place without having to spend hours searching other stores to coordinate items. Mix and match collections of separates became the norm in department stores for the first time during the 1970's.

Second, tank-tops like the one shown below became very popular. While they may seem laughable now, these tops paved the way for later styles. The tank top of the Seventies was a forerunner to the scoop-necked camisole top of the 1980's, the shell of the 1990's and the vest of the Millennium. A tank-top was a useful item to wear with a matching blouse.

Hair was a big deal in the Seventies. There were two styles that became hugely popular. The first was started by Farrah Fawcett, an actress/sex-symbol famous for her TV role in "Charlie's Angels." Her 1976 poster sold twelve million copies and was ubiquitous in bedrooms everywhere. Farrah's hair was long, blond and curvy -- the Seventies-version of a female bombshell. A downside to the style was heavy-maintenance; e.g., tongs (heated rollers) were often used.

A second style, equally popular, was started by figure-skater Dorothy Hamill who was seen on TV when she won the 1976 Olympic gold-medal. Innumerable girls copied her style, like the woman shown below. (Thank you, Lynette). The Dorothy Hamill look was cute and easy to maintain.

Platform shoes ("disco boots") were popular in the Seventies, even with men. I wore a pair of three-inch (rubber) platforms whose outer-edge was textured and
platforms whose outer-edge was textured and colored to look like tree-bark.
Hey, it was a wild time!


Thanks Ralph!
I confess, I had numerable "elephant" leg pants, wedge heels and a Dorothy Hamill haircut!


What do you remember wearing in the 70's?