CHENNAI: It’s often said that everything comes back into style eventually, and if you live long enough, you’ll probably see the trends of your youth cycle back into fashion a few times. It may feel like the cycle is spinning too quickly, and old trends hardly have time to be missed before they’re revamped into something shiny and new. City Express rounds up a few trends that are topping the charts but find their root in another era.
The pyjama
Streetwear has grown increasingly casual throughout history, and most of us wear everything from jeans to yoga pants everyday. Sporting pyjamas in public is one of the biggest recent trends, think Selena Gomez’s Derek Rose London outfit. But in the 1980s, we saw knitwear sweatpants, hosiery being worn in public as clothing - with leotards, leggings and leg warmers.
The cold shoulder
We have used and abused the cold shoulder drift. Think Katrina Kaif’s elegant ensembles throughout the promotions of Fitoor. Interestingly, the look originated with Brigitte Bardot in the 1950s-60s, and her signature look was off-the-shoulder tops and dresses. The trend was initially even called The Bardot. While the style has evolved to a variety of shoulder cut-outs, all find their roots to the same place.
The fringe
It might surprise you that something with such a modern textural and architectural feel as the fringe actually originated back in the 70s. Tracing its beginnings to a time when all anyone cared for was living a hippie life, the style is back taking ramps world-over by storm. Priyanka Chopra’s Sally LaPointe outfit is a case in point.
The choker
Unless you’re living under a rock, you would have seen variations of the raved 90s choker everywhere. What started of as a black netted plastic wrapped around the neck has evolved to ribbons, shoe laces and even velvet variants, particularly making it into many of Taapsee Pannu’s looks this season.
The bell-bottom
Flared sleeves, platform shoes and the 70s bell bottoms have made their return time and again.Taking a leaf out of Kendall Jenner’s styling for the Coechella Festival, this trend also features flared pants.
Lace
If there’s ever a fabric that never ages, it’s lace! It wasn’t just a trend in the Victorian era; it was also popular in the 1920s and 1960s, in the flapper and hippie eras respectively. Zendaya’s all-lace ensemble at the Golden Globes last year is worth emulating.
Palazzos and long shirts
The same palazzos that are wardrobe mandates today were raved and popularised in India in the 1980s, sported by the likes of Zeenat Aman, Sharmila Tagore and more recently, Sonakshi Sinha. These outfits were teemed with long shirts, A-line cuts in block colours, with the prints and the style making a comeback global fashion.
Denim on denim
No one aces the all-denim look like Alia Bhatt, whether it’s a jacket with jeans, jeggings with a vest, or denim cutoffs paired with a button-up flannel. The double denim look became popular in the 1970s though, when it first become socially acceptable for people to wear jeans everyday. This decade also saw the debut of new kinds of denim, including Daisy Dukes.