Fashion Street Trends and Their Influence on the New Fashion Millineum

Street trends have inspired designers since fashion as we know it began. From Hip Hop to Hippies modern culture has created a wealth of design ideas for inspiring the looks that are shown in collections today.

The major street fashion categories for the 20th century are:  Zoot Suits (1930's-1940's), Teddy Boys (1950's), Beatniks (1950's), Mod (1960's), Hippies (1960's),  Punk (1970's), Disco (1970's-1980's), and Hip Hop (1980's)

Zoot Suits

A zoot suit (occasionally spelled zuit suit) is a suit with high-waisted, wide-legged, tight-cuffed,pegged trousers, and a long coat with wide lapels and wide padded shoulders. This style of clothing was popularized by African Americans, Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Italian Americans, and Filipino Americans during the late 1930s and 1940s.In England bright-colored zoot suits with velvet lapels that bore a slight resemblance to Edwardian clothing were worn by Teddy boys.

 

Fashion Illustration of Zoot Suits

 "Zoot Suit" Inspired Dior Homme Fall 2008

Teddy Boys

Traditionally Teddy Boys or Neo-Edwardians of the 1950’s sported the "Drape" a long knee length, single breasted wool jacket with narrow contrasting lapels and cuffs either of velvet or satin and plenty of pockets.  They wore contrast or matching narrow drainpipe trousers, brocade waistcoats, stiff shirts and shoestring ties or bootlace slim Jim ties topped off with suede shoes.  Teds also wore crepe soled shoes which helped with the dance movements of jiving. 

"Teddy Boys" circa 1950's

"Teddy Boy" inspired fashion by Band of Outsiders Fall 2010

Beatniks

As the trend for a beatnik look developed in the 1960's, oversized chunky long sweaters with huge cowl collars were worn over slim fitting pencil skirts or slacks with stirrups. The girls usually had a French pleat hairstyle or showed the start of a beehive. Wearing all black was a favorite choice for beatniks.

Bob Dylan 1960's

"Beatnik" inspired fashion by Miu Miu Fall 2010

 Mod

 An unconventionally modern style of fashionable dress originating in England in the 1960s. A youth subculture that began in London in the early 1960s; a working-class movement with highly stylized dress and short hair; listened to rhythm and blues music and travelled on motor scooters.

Color played a big role in defining the look. The muted and pastel palette of Fifties fashions gave way to bright, bold color often splayed in geometric patterns. From daywear to Day Glo in less than a decade. A word about the word - Mod. Mod for modern, which in its purest use meant minimalist. Arguably there is nothing minimal about most Mod fashion, but that is the origin.

"Mod" fashion: The Who 1970's

"Mod" inspired fashion by Commes de Garcons Spring 2010

Hippies

The hippie movement began in California, then spread throughout the United States, Canada and other parts of the world. Most of those in the movement were young, between the ages of 15 and 25, and a saying within the movement was that no one older than 30 should be trusted. While they flocked to California from middle class families, their music, fashion and arts started to influence trends in the rest of the nation.

"Hippie" fashion 1960's

"Hippie" inspired by Kenzo Spring 2011

Punk

Punk fashion first started to take hold in the 1970s, during the era of the Sex Pistols who championed the tartan, Dr. Martens and safety pin look to perfection. Punk became a symbol of anarchy in the late 70s, with offensive T-shirts, leather jackets and customized blazers all becoming popular with punk followers. Controversial slogan tees also became something of a fashion staple, along with ripped jeans and tight leather trousers too.
Biker boots were the popular choice of footwear during the 70s, although later on Dr. Martens in red and battered black were the only boot to be seen in.

"Punk" fashion 1970's

"Punk" inspired fashion by Y-K Spring 2011

Disco

Disco style was all about glitz, color and atmosphere. To fit in at a 1970s disco meant wearing clothing that could attract attention and reflect the distinctive disco lighting. From hot pants to platform shoes to polyester shirts and gold chains, the disco style was not appropriate for everyday life. But come evening, disco dress for men and women alike strove for a flashy, look-at-me style that would attract the spotlight and stand out on the dance floor.

"Disco" fashion: Grace Jones Studio 54 circa 1970's

"Disco" inspired fashion by Cynthia Steffe, Reem Acra, and Derek Lam Spring 2010

Hip Hop

In the early 1980s, established sportswear and fashion brands, such as Le Coq Sportif, Kangol, Adidas and Pro-Keds attached themselves to the emerging hip hop scene.

During the 1980s, hip-hop icons wore clothing items such as brightly colored name-brand tracksuits, sheepskin and leather bomber jackets,^[ Clarks shoes, Britishers AKA British Walkers and sneakers (usually Pro-Keds, Puma, and Adidas-brand shelltoes and often with "phat" or oversized shoelaces).

Popular accessories included large eyeglasses (Cazals or Gazelles), Kangol bucket hats, nameplates,name belts, and multiple rings. Heavy gold jewelry was also popular in the 1980s; heavy jewelry in general would become an enduring element of hip hop fashion.

Hip Hop fashion Run DMC circa 1980's

"Hip Hop" inspired fashion by Giuliano Fujiwara Fall 2008

Besides the main group of street fashion trends, there a multitude of others from all over the globe.  The influence they have on mainstream fashion in unmeasurable.  One of my favorite designers has made a definite strong brand that has a multitude of young fashionista's calling her name . . . When I look at Betsey Johnson's clothing, I see a definite influence of Tokyo's subculture called Kawaii.  

Kawaii

The rise of cuteness in Japanese culture emerged in the 1970s as part of a new style of writing. Many teenage girls began to write laterally using mechanical pencils. These pencils produced very fine lines, as opposed to traditional Japanese writing that varied in thickness and was vertical. Also, the girls would write in big, round characters and they added little pictures to their writing, such as hearts, stars, smiley faces, and letters of the Latin alphabet. These pictures would be inserted randomly and made the writing very hard to read.^[3] As a result, this writing style caused a lot of controversy and was banned in many schools. During the 1980s, however, this new "cute" writing was adopted by magazines and comics and was put onto packaging and advertising. From 1984-86, Yamane Kazuma studied the development of cute handwriting, which he called Anomalous Female Teenage Handwriting, in depth. Although it was commonly thought that the writing style was something that teenagers had picked up from comics, he found that teenagers had come up with the style themselves, as part of an underground movement.

Later, cute handwriting became associated with acting childishly and using infantile slang words. Because of this growing trend, companies such as Sanrio came out with merchandise like Hello Kitty. Hello Kitty was an immediate success and the obsession with cute continued to progress in other areas as well. The 1980s also saw the rise of cute idols, such as Seiko Matsuda, who is largely credited with popularizing the trend. Women began to emulate Seiko Matsuda and her cute fashion style and mannerisms, which emphasized the helplessness and innocence of young girls.^[4] No longer limited to teenagers, however, the spread of making things as cute as possible, even common household items, was embraced by people of all ages. Now there are airplanes painted with Pikachu on the side, and each of Japan’s 47 prefectures, the Tokyo police, and the government television station all have their own cute mascots. Currently, Sanrio’s line of more than 50 characters takes in more than $1 billion a year and it remains the most successful company to capitalize on the cute trend.

"Kawaii" street fashion Tokyo, Japan

Betsey Johnson Spring 2010

Betsey Johnson Spring 2009

 Another popular street trend as shown in Amsterdam is garments made in gingham fabric.

Gingham has come in and out of style in fashion as was last seen in the early 1990's.  It is making a comeback.

Gingham

Gingham is a medium-weight balanced plain-woven fabric made from dyed cotton or cotton-blend yarn.

The name originates from an adjective in the Malay language, ging-gang, meaning striped.^[2] Some sources say that the name came into English via Dutch.^] When originally imported into Europe in the 17th century it was a striped fabric, though now it is distinguished by its checkered pattern. From the mid 18th century, when it was being produced in the mills of Manchester, England, it started to be woven into checked or plaid patterns (often blue and white). Checked gingham became more common over time, though striped gingham was still available in the late Victorian period.

Along with muslin, gingham is often used as a test fabric while designing fashion, or used for making an inexpensive fitting shell prior to making the clothing in fashion fabric.

Gingham shirts have been worn by mods since the 1960s and continue to be identified with fans of indie and mod music with brands like Liam Gallagher's Pretty Green, Fred Perry, Rough Trade and Merc producing gingham shirts.

Amsterdam street fashion

Christopher Kane RTW 2010

Actress Christian Ricci 2010

The Influence of Japanese Culture in Today's Fashion

When we think of traditional Japanese history of costume, it consists of basic pieces such as the Kimono, Obi, and Hakama, This clothing originated in the Edo Period (1601-1867 A.D.) Japanese clothing is as remarkably simple as it is complex and elegant.  Ushered in by Tokugawa Ieyasu’s appointment as Shogun or military leader by the Emperor, the Edo period reflects a socially stable and economically prosperous time for Japan. Tokugawa shoguns held control of Japan for over 250 years during which they enforced isolation from the rest of the world by forbidding foreign literature and art and outgoing travel to western countries. Japanese fashion developed independently of other countries which is apparent as their traditional clothing remained in widespread use until post World War II.
Modern designers such as Kenzo have shown collections with the distinctive mark that Japanese costume has left on the modern designer of today  . . .

Kenzo Resort 2011

Kenzo: Resort 2011

Kenzo: Resort 2011

Fashion Trends: Spring 2011 Collections

Collections shown at fashion week for Spring 2011 showcase sexuality through use of textiles, the intricate and delicate cut of a dress, the hint of skin, the body skimming silhouettes, the rawness of an exposed back .. . When the allure of skin is showcased by a designer in a perfect way, women and men are drawn to the clothes that whisper femininity and assertive sexuality.

Collette Dinnigan Spring 2011

Elie Saab Spring 2011

Gucci Spring 2011

Alexander McQueen Spring 2011

Donna Karan Spring 2011

Louis Vuitton Spring 2011

From Street Trends to Collections . . .. .

Designers are absolutely inspired and influenced by what they see on the street.  Cities like New York City, Tokyo, Paris, and Amsterdam are always hot spots for creative trend setting people who dance to their own beat.  Not a beat that is readily understood by the masses, but eventually an aspect of their style filters down the chain from designer to designer. And in the end,  we often purchase a variation of what some random person in some random metroplex decided to wear that day . . . . . .

Inspiration Street Trend: Paris Fashion Week 2010

Menswear: Eary London 2010

Accessories: Valentino, Moiret, Castelbajac, Galliano

Art and Fashion Collide

It is often said that fashion and art have entirely no correlation . . . I could not disagree more . . .

Life through a fashion designers eyes is art.  It surrounds you everyday.  Everything is art and everything can be inspiration for clothing.

The gift of the designer is seeing what others do not and bringing that idea to life.  

I am inspired by artists as varied as Chuck Close, Gustav Klimt, Jackson Pollack, Herve Leger . . . . 

Their work inspires everything from textile design, to shape in silhouette, to color palettes.

Throughout decades designers have honored the great work of artists in their collections and eventually into our closets.

Jacket: JC de CASTELBAJAC  Dress:  Yves Saint Laurent

Artist: Piet Mondrian

Gustav Klimt: The Kiss

Nike

Jackson Pollack

Jean Paul Gaultier and Dries Van Noten

Fashion: The 1970's The Greatest Contribution to Fashion: The Punk Movement

Wikipedia defines Punk Rock as:  Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed the perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock. They created fast, hard-edged music, typically with short songs, stripped-down instrumentation, and often political, anti-establishment lyrics. Punk embraces a DIY (do it yourself) ethic, with many bands self-producing their recordings and distributing them through informal channels.

By late 1976, bands such as the Ramones, in New York City, and the Sex Pistols and The Clash, in London, were recognized as the vanguard of a new musical movement. The following year saw punk rock spreading around the world, and it became a major cultural phenomenon in the United Kingdom. For the most part, punk took root in local scenes that tended to reject association with the mainstream. An associated punk subculturestyles of clothing and adornment and a variety of anti-authoritarian ideologies. emerged, expressing youthful rebellion and characterized by distinctive

I define it as an attitude, saying "F off! I am going to be rebellious, dress how I want to dress, talk how I want to talk, do what I want to do, and I don't give a &%$$ what you think or say . . Actually I do hope you say something, so I can beat the *^%$ out of you! 

 People of every generation will always relate to that rebellion and an audience will be found for punk clothing.  The American fashion ideology is filled with an influence of rock and punk musicians through the aesthetic of rebellion and strength.

                                                         Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols

 

Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen

                                                                  The Cramps

 

 The More You Know: Johnny Rotten had a pet hamster named Sid who he described as "the softest, furriest, weediest thing on earth." The hamster bit Simon Ritchie, who said, "Sid is really vicious!" Voilà: Sid Vicious.

The punk rock music scene has heavily influenced fashion since the 1970's.  Designers such as Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, Betsey Johnson, and John Galliano have been known and expected to resurrect punk fashions throughout their collections.

                                                              Alexander McQueen British Flag Dress

                                                               Vivienne Westwood

                                                                    

                                                                      John Galliano

Ultimately the punk influences filters down to all price points of clothing including stores such as Hot Topic, Spencers, and junior departments nationwide. 

Pretty in Punk:  Punk, Rock, & Goth knitting projects for the ultimate rebellious knitter . .. .