HALLIE EPHRON: Recently I emailed this picture to my daughters. It's me and the other day care moms, taken back in the 80's when all of us were working at Curry College. My daughter's response: "All of your clothes have come back in style!"This was, of course, news to me. Baggy T-shirt with rolled sleeves? Belted jeans? Last time I wore those, my kids cringed and told me I had on "Mom jeans." Not a good thing, apparently.
All of which got me looking back at old photos to see what else I'd been wearing in the 80s...
Yikes. Baggy, high-waisted pants. Tucked-in shirts. And who thought it was a good idea to wear an extra-large T-shirt over a bathing suit, and then knot the side? A horrifying thought: if high-rise jeans are in, can low-rise jeans be far behind?
At least big hair isn't making a comeback... please, tell me it isn't.
I had a hard time believing that those pants were back in style, and yet it didn't take me long to find these, currently available for a mere $400... Sadly (or not), I no longer have the waist I once had to wear them."Too bad you didn't save anything," my daughter tells me, looking at old pictures of me. To which I say: BITE YOUR TONGUE.
I am hard pressed to come up with a single thing from my old wardrobe that I wish I still have. Except maybe a poncho I bought in college, handwoven wool, pink and red yarns, fringed edges and a cowl neck. My daughter 'borrowed' it and wore it for a few years until the moth holes grew to the size of nickels.
So what do you think? Belted baggy pants with a tucked in oversized T, anyone? Ponchos? Are 80s fashions back? And if they are, is that a good thing or an abomination? And is there anything that you wish you'd kept from way back when?Extra points if you know who this is... and what movie it's from.
Although I have nothing against oversized T-shirts [because comfortable is a good thing], I’m certainly hoping 80s fashions are not back. Can’t think of a thing I wish I’d kept, either.
ReplyDeleteMy guess on the actress / movie: Molly Ringwald, “The Breakfast Club” . . . .
Ding ding ding!
DeleteGreat picture. Mine from the eighties would look similar, especially after 86 when I had my first son. I did have a couple of drop-waisted dresses that I thought were flattering and might still be. But big hair? My hair doesn't GET big, so I skipped that entirely.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing I still have from way back when is an indigo work shirt I brought back from Japan in 1977. It must have been roomy then, because I can still wear it - and do (around the house).
I loved drop-waisted dresses--maybe they are especially flattering on a short girl??
DeleteAnd what about empire waist dresses?
DeleteI love dropped waist dresses! Empire waist? No no no :-)
DeleteNo empire waist!
DeleteRoberta - maybe that's it. The drop waist elongates us a bit. ;^)
Joan's right, it is Molly Ringwald as Claire Standish from The Breakfast Club. I used to be able to do the entire movie's dialogue from memory, because I watched it so much.
ReplyDeleteAs for things I might want from the 80's, I'd say just the 80's concert T-shirts that I had back then. Though of course, they'd be old and worn out by now at best and I wouldn't fit into them. But I'm sure I can find reproductions online if I looked hard enough.
If you still had them you could probably sell them on eBay and retire on the proceeds!
DeleteNo, not quite. But wouldn't it be nice?
DeleteI still have a really well-made shapeless wool blazer that probably dates back to the 80s. It's in the back of my closet just waiting to come back in style. When I think of the 80s, I think of Miami Vice. I had some longer pastel skirts...the full kind, not pencil skirts...that were sooo comfortable to wear in the summer. I miss those.
ReplyDeleteI just really hope shoulder pads don't come back in vogue.
bite your tongue on shoulder pads--and no bow ties either please!
DeleteI do miss the flowy skirts
DeleteFlowy skirts are totally back! Bring those out!
DeleteMy daughters used to raid their father’s closet for his plaid flannel shirts in the 1980s; now that’s what my granddaughters wear. They are comfortable and modest, if not exactly fashion statements .
ReplyDeleteI live in giant flannel shirts when I'm at home. Not that I'm a fashion influencer in any version of reality.
DeleteThe thing that cracks me up about recent fashion is animal prints. We were in New York City a month or so ago and there were leopard prints EVERYWHERE! I've saved one leopard "shell" but so far haven't dragged it out of the closet
ReplyDeleteSmiling because while reading the post and comments, I'm wearing an old faux velvet faux leopard print fur that became too big for me some decades ago. Needles to say that I wear and will wear it only at home .
DeleteGood grief, those $400 jeans were the worst in their first go-round. To revive them has to be laziness on the designers' part.
ReplyDeleteI wore foam shoulder pads under my big, tucked in t-shirts with rolled up sleeves. Which were constantly slipping out of place, sometimes comically augmenting one side of my bust.
When I was teaching sewing one of my adult students was the only woman salesperson at a big radio station. She told me about a shoulder pad that got loose and fell onto the floor while she was standing in a group after a big sales meeting. Her male co-workers were horrified--think pearl clutching, man-style--and one of them pointed to the offending object on the floor and demanded, *What's that!?"
She very coolly picked it up and shoved it back into her dress. Giving them withering looks, I'm sure, and saying "Don't be scared, it's only a shoulder pad,". That was in 1987, and it says everything about that era.
Deborah mentioned the word "modest", and that characterized this particular fashion era, didn't it? Flashdance aerobic apparel aside, the Laura Ashley years did not see a lot of excess flesh revealed.
NO! to the eighties, especially shoulder pads and high-waisted jeans.
ReplyDeleteI love shoulder pads, not the kind that are removable or floppy or huge, just elegantly shaping. Really, don’t give up on them!
ReplyDeleteBut those jeans are bad. Bad bad bad. But I do love, now how absolutely anything goes.
Trust me about the long skirts! I have mine from the 80s, and I am absolutely wearing them.
I don't have any clothes from the 80's. but I do remember going to work in the business world after a few years of mom-ing and some extra education and those shoulder-padded suits I bought. Yikes! Even funnier is that i saved a flight of fashion from the 70;s, my first time having a little money to indulge in something foolish- a yellow suede miniskirt! And one of my then-teen daughters eventually wore it for Halloween - she was a hippy, with tie-dyed tights, head scarf and my beloved miniskirt. Strange for my memories to become a "costume."
ReplyDeleteAnd when I was little I dressed for Halloween as a beatnik
DeleteYes I had a gorgeous gorgeous suit in the 70's--SO chic. Then. :-) And years later, it devolved out of current style so much that I wore it to CrimeBake, dressed as Harriet Vane.
DeleteAnd you could wear a yellow suede mini-skirt right now. But I call clothes like that: ball point pen magnets.
An Italian linen subtle plaid jacket with very slight shoulder pads--just enough to give the fabric some definition--that I made in the 80s--that's what I wish I had. Alas, I wore it out. And, like Edith, my hair doesn't do BIG, so no photo horrors that way! I did wear a lot of oversized sweaters--you'd never know there was a body in there--but they were comfortable!
ReplyDeleteI really can't think of anything I wish I'd saved out of my 80s wardrobe. Nothing.
ReplyDeleteI do wish I had a collection of 80s movies on DVD, though. John Cusack holding a boombox over his head. Sigh.
If only I had a DVD player...
DeleteI have things in my closet going back way before the '80's. My mother passed away during my freshman year in college and the things she gave me for that birthday 2 months earlier I've kept. Up until about 5 years ago, I used to pull the little plaid woolen skirt out every year and wear it on my birthday. A bit of extreme sentimentality, eventually defeated by 10 extra pounds!
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure that there is some '80's stuff here, too. If it fits, and looks nice, I'll wear it.
As far as the hairstyles, forget about it. My hair will never do that again.
I have never been very fashion conscious and so I don't think I ever wore things like have been described above. My style, if you could call it was probably more along the lines of preppy.
ReplyDeleteI did recognize her as Molly Ringwald although I don't know why; I'm pretty sure I never saw her movies or I did hear my kids talk about them all the time.
I still have a floral jacket with HUGE shoulder pads that I wore to one of my wedding showers, late 80s. Maybe I will break it out and wear it, just for kicks. I can’t wear long skirts because I am short and look like a tree stump in a short skirt, but I would love a poncho! Breaking out the Christmas wish list and adding poncho to it.
ReplyDeleteOops, that’s supposed to be a long skirt. I wear short skirts all the time, with leggings, my almost daily uniform.
DeleteLeggings! Had they been invented in the 80s?
DeleteStirrup pants, Hallie. With oversized sweaters or tops over them.
DeleteMy mother despised stirrup pants and would not buy them. She was so mad when I got a couple pairs as birthday presents.
DeleteI bought a new pair of jeans the other day--had to order them because Heaven forbid they would actually carry my size in the store! People might think people my size were normal or something. Anyway, when I got the jeans, they fit perfectly in the waist and behind, but the legs made me feel like I was wearing Hammer pants. Are jeans that hard, fashion designers? Apparently so.
ReplyDeleteLaughing! Let's see your moves, Gigi!
DeleteHammer pants?
ReplyDeleteLooked them up - not flattering
DeleteNot really, no. Also, I'm not going back to curly perms.
DeleteHate the smell
DeleteI have nothing from the 80s but have kept a few things from the 90s. Just the other day I had on a henley shirt, perfect condition, perfect fit, gucci colors, Liz Claiborne "street wear." Liz Claiborne used to be my go to brand for sports clothes, well made, nothing over the top, and, obviously lasted forever. Whatever happened to Liz?
ReplyDeleteThese days I get rid of stuff with elan, every since Hallie wrote that last book. If it doesn't bring joy, out it goes. As a result I have nothing to wear. Thank goodness for the new Talbot's outlet nearby. I love the fit of their jeans. And I certainly don't mind wearing last year's styles.
I own one dress, which doesn't not bring me joy, but which I have kept because everyone ought to have one damn dress. Maybe. It certainly is joyless. Hmmmm
Liz sold out - brand name persists but she’s not behind it
DeleteActually, Hallie, Liz Claiborne died in 2007. Her brand never recovered.
DeleteGreat post, Hallie! My hair was a fire hazard in the 80’s. Seriously, we all should have carried fire extinguishers on us at all times! Speaking of hair, the only thing I miss from the eighties is the banana clip for my hair. Oh, wait, then I’d have to have the big hair again. No. And how many of those horrible jelly shoes are filling landfills? Ugh, horrible decade.
ReplyDeleteOmigod, the 80's hair! My daughter just turned 49, and there is still a glaze of hairspray on the bathroom door from her Aussie hairspray. She and her girlfriend would spend half an hour spraying what I called their "hair fantasies" into immovable visions of insanity!
DeleteScrunchies!
ReplyDeleteLoved my stirrups! Did they look good😸, another question entirely. Just thinking of 80s as a real zenith of holiday sweaters. I had several I loved which would now win the Ugly Sweater contest I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter and I had matching Laura Ashley dresses! Not that I'd be caught dead in one now, but it was fun at the time. And I had a purple and black jumpsuit that I LOVED. Also, a bright blue long linen jacket with very slight shoulder pads. I kept that into the early nineties as I wore it in an early book jacket photo. But other than that, the clothes make me shudder. Not to mention my curly perm!! So awful. I even hated it at the time.
ReplyDeleteDeborah,
DeleteLoved Laura Ashley dresses. It still existed when I was in college and I remember modeling for Laura Ashley in a fashion show.
Though I do not think the shops still exist. I remember seeing the shops on my first trip to England.
Wonder if you have seen Laura Ashley shops in England recently?
Diana
I got married in a white cotton long Laura Ashley. Not sold as a wedding dress, but for this Quaker in the early nineties, it was perfect!
DeleteA relative got married in a Laura Ashley white dress too, Edith.
DeleteDiana
Hallie, you always look beautiful. These Brooke Shields eyebrows are gorgeous! The only difference I see is that now you wear more makeup now and you have short hair. You get better and better looking.
ReplyDeleteYes! I know who that is because I met her in person before she became famous. Molly Ringwald was part of the cast of a play that I saw on stage. We kids got a chance to meet the cast at an event. I remember that Molly looked like my cousin did at that time with long braided pigtails. Their face was similar. Now they look very different. Molly was in many many movies. Though I recall Breakfast Club, Sweet Sixteen and Pretty in Pink. More recently I met Andrew McCarthy who was in her movies at a book conference several years ago.
My Mom and I had these matching beautiful blue aqua green capes and berets that were knitted by a dear family friend. And I still have them.
My father often created a hat or a vest or moccassins with his own hands. He was very creative.
There are many wonderful photos from my childhood, despite the weird styles of the 1970s. I often went for clothes similar to clothes that I saw in children's books like Little House on the Praire or Holly the ???? I never was a fan of clothes from the 1970s.
Loved the clothes of the 1980s, especially the clothes that Princess Diana who was the Princess of Wales. I remember getting a sweater with sheep prints. I still have it.
When I find clothes that I love, I keep them! Funny story - a few years before Kate Middleton married Prince William, I did not know about Kate. I wore this beautiful ballgown to the symphony with my boyfriend. Fast forward a few years...I see a photo of the Duchess of Cambridge wearing the exact same ballgown! I bought mine off the rack at Nordstrom's.
Diana
I do not remember 80s clothes at all. I guess because I wasn't buying the "in" things. Were shoulder pads 80s or 90s? I did have some of those until I got mad and removed them. The only possible 80s survivor in my closet is an old ratty sweatshirt. It's got to be from the late 80s. It's my go-to if I need something lightweight and scruffy looking. Winking Lizard Inn in Peninsula, Ohio. I never did big hair either. It's been pretty much the same over the years, just different lengths. Now I'm thinking Dynasty and Dallas. Nope. Didn't dress like them. I have Mom's mink jacket which must date from the mid to late 60s. I have no idea what to do with it. She rarely wore it; it was a special occasion jacket. I think my son relates more to the 80s than me; he was born in 1977 so that is a big chunk of his childhood. I was just trying to survive it!
ReplyDeleteI recently lost a bunch of weight and was able to wear several classically styled ‘80s skirts that had been in the back of my closet since college... paired with modern sweaters, no one realized they were, dare I say it, “vintage”. This spring, I may haul out the Laura Ashley skirt I still have...pastel floral and all.
ReplyDeleteThe best thing in 80s fashion for me was big, bulky very colourful sweaters. (Except their sleeves were so generous, they'd get in everything)
ReplyDeleteBest story I have is wearing an outfit with oversized sweater over contrasting skirt to business event where I was asked when my baby was due!! Guess I didn’t look as fashionable as I thought...
ReplyDeleteOops!!
DeleteWhen I read the post my only memories of 80s fashions were Norma Kamali shirts with shoulders out to THERE and letting the diffuser option on the blow dryer have its way with my hair. Neither of those looks should ever come back - remember Dynasty? Ugh.
DeleteThe comments reminded me of some of my favorites though. Laura Ashley dresses, Liz Claiborne casuals, jump suits, and Diane von Furstenberg silks. Items I loved so much I actually wore them out. Ah, memories.
Better late than never.
ReplyDeleteI have broad shoulders and a barrel chest so the puffy sleeves of the 70s were out and the shoulder pads were superfluous, all I had to do was stand up straight and pull those shoulders back. In the 80s I used to wear my Dad's Pendleton wool shirt, from the 50s, over a blue turtleneck. It's in the back of my closet, wonder if it fits? My favorite dress, I actually wore dresses - amazing - was a red raw silk that looked absolutely horrible on the hanger but it was on sale so I tried it on and purchased it without hesitation. Are platform shoes from the 80s or 70s? My knees hurt just thinking about them. I have a crochet pattern for a simple poncho, made it for my sister a couple years ago. Big hair? I guess it was sort of big and it will never be that way again, too much work. To be honest, if I had anything any clothes from the 80s they wouldn't fit anymore and should be donated.
I still think the sixties had the best styles ever. That whole look from London thing was my favorite. Suede, leather and lace. Bell bottom jeans with platform leather shoes from Spain or London. I had a pair of bell bottom blue jeans I wore with white clogs and a leather jacket. Paired with a black, blue, and white beaded necklace and I thought I was the coolest thing in NYC. The leather back then was beautiful and affordable. Hallie, I have a beautiful black wool jacket from Bebe with shoulder pads. It still fits, so I'm waiting for shoulder pads to come back in. As you so clearly pointed out in your post, what goes around, comes around!
ReplyDelete