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1970s Trends, Fads and Fashion

The 1970s were a time of fashion revolution. People exchanged their mode of dressing to keep up with the times, influenced by music, television shows, fashion magazines such as Vogue and Cosmopolitan, as well as social and political events of the times. Fashion items to be discussed include popular clothing materials, colors and styles, trends in hair and shoes, and the things that influenced these trends. To address the topic adequately, fashion can be divided into groups based on gender and age; men, women and youth, and other groups such as hippies, African-Americans, and heavy metal fans. Some of the distinct fashion styles in the 1970s include bright colors, bell-bottoms, puffed-up hairstyles, vintage clothing, satin, glitter, and platform shoes.

Women are the most prominent group when it comes to fashion because they concentrate a lot on their looks, clothes, and general appearance. The 1960s were characterized by hippie looks in women’s fashion, and the trend continued into the early 1970s. Some of the standard pieces of clothing that women preferred include tie-dye blouses, embroidered Hungarian blouses, capes, military shirts, ponchos, and Mexican peasant blouses as tops. These tops would be paired with popular bottom styles such as frayed jeans, bell-bottoms, midiskirts, maxi-dresses, and gauchos (Kim & Farrell-Beck 186). All of these items of clothing were made of extremely bright colors, Native American patterns, as well as Indian and floral patterns. Women also accessorized with items such as chokers, headbands, floppy hats, and dog collars and flowing scarves, all of which were made from natural materials such as shells, wood, stones, leather, and Indian beads.

Women’s fashion changes as the decade progressed. In the mid-70s, the hippie-look faded and was taken over by casual wear such as cardigans, sweaters, T-shirts, kimonos, khakis, jeans. Accessories became minimal, although almost all women carried shoulder bags. Popular shoe styles included loafers, Mary Janes, platform shoes and sandals, as well as knee-high boots. Marriage trends in the mid-70s also influenced fashion. Many more women got divorced and had to get work to support their families. These working women would wear midiskirts, tailored jackets, and fitted blouses, which were all feminized versions of the men’s business suit (Kim & Farrell-Beck 189). Women also began to layer their clothing, wearing multiple layers of clothing at once. Pastel colors took on more prominence with items of clothing such as pinstripe suits, palazzo pants, pencil skirts, suede coats, blazers, evening gowns, and low-cut dresses. Boots continued to be popular, including cowboy boots, platform boots, ankle boots, and wedge boots. The pantsuit became the go-to choice for women in executive positions in the late 70s as a political statement of their equality with the men at work.

The disco style of music was also trendy in the 1970s, and it had an impact on the fashion trends of the decade. Clothes worn to the disco were meant to show off one’s body, and the popular items were tube-tops, spandex shorts, wrap dresses, sequined halter neck shirts, and maxi dresses and skirts with high slits (Chapman & Johnson 12). Fashion magazines and TV shows heavily influenced 1970s hair and make-up trends. Many women wore their hair long and sleeked with a part in the middle, which came from 1960s fashion. Charlie’s Angels was a popular TV show, and it popularized the flicked hairstyle where women would flick their hair to look like wings at the temples. The Farrah Fawcett hairstyle incorporated waves, layers, and curls, and many women copied it. Women wore make-up in either minimalistic trends set by American magazines like Cosmopolitan, while others preferred the sexualized evening look promoted by European fashion (Welters 491). A smaller group went with glam and punk make-up.

Men and youth’s fashion resembled that of women in many ways; for example they also wore bright colors. The early 1970s were a time of prosperity for many young men, and they had either well-paying jobs or successful businesses. Satin shirts in the colors gray and black gained popularity among this group. The colorful fashion trends at the time led to the period being marked as the Peacock Revolution. Men wore candy-striped blazers, Nehru jackets, turtlenecks, tunics, and elephant bellbottoms that hugged the hips (Stone & Farnan 31). The mid70s were a time of casual fashion, and men opted for sweaters, cardigans, and T-shirts. Sportswear became more popular towards the end of the decade for both men and women.

Teenage fashion was controlled mainly by the music terns of the time such as punk, rock, and disco (Chapman & Johnson 13). Fashion from punk rock included ripped clothes, drainpipe jeans, black turtlenecks, tight leather pants, shirts, and jackets with taboo messages which were embellished with accessories such as studs, chains, spikes, and paint. Men preferred to keep their hair longer, probably as a sign of rebellion against earlier standards. The Elvis Presley hairstyle and the ducktail were common, and men used large quantities of Brylcreem to hold the styles in place. Men also liked sideburns at the time, although the trends faded towards the end of the decade. In conclusion, the 1970s was a time of exciting and colorful fashion choices. Men, women, and youth looked to the environment around them, such as music, politics, and social revolutions to determine their fashion choices. The most common trend among all groups includes bright colors, bell-bottoms, vintage clothing, mainly influenced by glam rock and disco music styles. Fashion was also used to make political and economic statements especially for women seeking equality with men at the workplace.

Works Cited

Chapman, Ian, and Henry Johnson, eds. Global Glam and Popular Music: Style and Spectacle from the 1970s to the 2000s. Routledge, 2016.

Kim, Eundeok, and Jane Farrell-Beck. “Fashion in context: Apparel styles worn by young women in the United States and South Korea in the 1970s.” Clothing and Textiles Research Journal 23.3 (2005): 180-202.

Stone, Elaine, and Sheryl A. Farnan. The dynamics of fashion. Bloomsbury Publishing USA, 2018.

Welters, Linda. “The natural look: American style in the 1970s.” Fashion Theory 12.4 (2008): 489-510.