The Circle of Trends

It’s inevitable, isn’t it? Things come into fashion, hang around for a while and then disappear, only to reappear a couple of decades later and suddenly they are a whole “new” trend. Except they aren’t all that new because they are on their second or even third go-aorund.

Liked flared pants. Hipster pants and the combo of flared hipster pants. In the 60s, flares were called bell-bottoms and by the 70s had also dropped from standard waist to  a version of the hipster style. In the mid to late 2000s they made a comeback and the teens of that generation thought they were “new”! Ditto multiple ear piercings and earrings on boys. Sorry kids, but it had all been done around 30 years before.

But what prompted me to write about this now is a small item I spotted in the back pages of one of the Sunday newspapers; an influencer/fashionista type (male, but I can’t remember his name) had commented on a “new” hair look where women are highlighting their faux fringes and side tendrils blonde. It was the accompanying photo that got my attention though, because this was also a major fashion trend back in the 70s.  Along with the flares and the earrings…

It was so popular that pretty much every second girl you saw was sporting this look, and it did look good. No matter what their actual hair colour, the blonde fringe and side tendrils (if you wanted them done too) looked very cool. Even curly-haired girls could get away with this one.  Then came the spray-on colour and one innovative classmate of mine turned up at school one morning with her fringe sprayed silver! it got a few frowns from the nuns, but they settled down once she revealed it would brush out.  But it was a nice variation on blonde. But even girls with blonde hair did the blond fringe thingy, they had theirs bleached to frosty white!

So, it’s not a new trend at all, despite the influencer/fashionista guy believing it is.  It’s just a look that has re-emerged after 40 years and those of us who  remember when this look first hit the streets are probably like “Oh my god! I remember that! I even did this look for at least a year!” It was really popular with teenaged girls back then.

But every time an old trend has a rebirth with a new generation, the newbies think they have done it first and that their parents wouldn’t have a clue. Oh but we do! Today’s skinny jeans were called “cigarette leg” (not to be confused with the straight leg) jeans a few decades ago and we wore them with killer heels, flashy belts (which were only for show because there was no way in hell those jeans were going to fall down) and 80s hair.  All the coolest jeans labels did a “cigarette” version in pale faded denim and they were the hottest look in cool  for a while there.

Some looks though never seem to go away completely and one that has endured through the decades is the hippy look. Called boho now, this colourful, pastel, floral array of floaty garments in natural cottons and other organic fibres has remained faithful to its alternative looks and styles and is very popular in trendy coastal locations and doesn’t appear to be age-based. Anyone can wear boho and look good in it and for many wafting around in it now, it’s a look they have carried with them from the heady days of Woodstock and The Summer of Love.  It looked really good with the blonde fringe thingy too.

Which has found its way back into fashion after all this time.