By Lauren Goulette
Image via Click Americana
If you’ve ever worn mom jeans before in front of a 50-year old adult, you know the kind of response you’re going to get. “I wore those when I was your age!” or “I just can’t believe those are back!” And including, but not limited too – “How on earth did those ever come back in style?”
People from all sorts of generations have all seen this shift in style –how pieces are tending to become more and more focused on past influences. Soft, pastel pinks are being highlighted in a vintage style, orange and burnt siennas with flowing hair odes to the late 70s, and gold chains and bucket hats recall the 1990s. Styles come and go – but why do they always come back?
In 2021, expression is individualist. There are trends, but pretty much everything goes. If you were to wear a poodle skirt in the 80s – you’d be looked at like an old soul. These days? Anything goes!
According to the DSN English report on fashion trends, trends repeat every 20-30 years because of “generational changes as well as designers taking inspiration from styles their parents wore.” Children are being influenced by their parents' clothing and seeking inspiration to translate that into “modern” clothing. Along with this, more access to media, magazines, and film that took place around these times helps shape current styles today. Compared to earlier generations, not everyone had a tangible sense of what fashion trends were like. Adaption and practicality also have paved away the transition between clothing from the 1800s to the 2000s. Everyone’s personal perception of what they think is “cute” is different.
Fashion is always changing due to the current pop culture climate. Some trends in clothing are regarded as “classics'' and universal – that’s why some people recommended to include a couple of basics in your wardrobe to ensure a versatile and long-lasting style. That is why a plain white tee shirt can never go wrong, or polka dots and stripes have never left since they became classic renditions of fashion from the Second World War and Christian Dior’s designs on silhouettes. These pieces are considered “timeless” because they never go out of style.
Fashion trends today are spearheaded by pop culture icons and influencers, bloggers, and widely-known personalities. According to L’OFFICIEL, trends from the past can be turned popular very quickly when one influencer catches on and the trend gains popularity. This is why trends are catching on faster than any other decade –the accessibility of different styles and seeing what’s popular more often can influence a whole generation.
Written by writer Lauren Goulette
