Spring’s blossoms have opened
with a medley of color. Now it’s time
for the summer to heat us up with more
colors, fragrant flowers, outdoor activities,
and extra special occasions. Summer
is known for thrilling events like
weddings, prom, and graduation so we
deserve to create the most incredible
fashionable memories.
Fashion radically changed in the
late 1950s and early 60s from a conservative
and uniformed era into an
independent fashion movement where
it was socially acceptable to challenge
the status quo. These fashion trends
and mentality changes were the basis of
an independent and rebellious generation.
It is apparent that throughout time
men and women have always relied on
the most popular celebrities and public
figures for their trendy wardrobe inspiration.
Although a trendy wardrobe is
an important factor of fashion, many
would agree that it’s not always what
you wear, but what you drive. Fast cars
and loud music made a huge impact on
the younger generation as well, in this
time.
The former First Lady Jackie Kennedy
inspired wardrobe was very sophisticated
and quite conservative. This
type of wardrobe collection created a
very covered up look with a high neckline,
tiny waistline, and always tailored
below the knee. Other additions were
gloves, hats, pearls, and the incognito
oversized sunglasses, which are all still
fashionable now. Women at this time
were comfortable with fitting in with
this conventional housewife persona.
However, times were changing and
fashion was changing as well.
This was the start of a new era and
women were now embracing their sexuality
and independence through their
fashion with mainstream provocative
styles. Bikinis, though they surfaced
in France in the 1940s, started to become
extremely popular by the early
60s, more socially accepted, and widespread,
especially in California because
of Hollywood and the beach culture.
The glamorous Marilyn Monroe was on
the cutting edge of fashion during this
time for her sexiness, diamonds, and
daringly provocative wardrobe. The
skin tight, flashy but elegant wardrobe
defined her into an eternal bombshell.
Her bleach blonde hair was piled high
probably with a whole can of hairspray,
curled and always parted to the side.
Her glamorous fashion sense combined
with her perfected and ageless pinup
style makeup has been envied by
women for decades. It is obvious that
the mystery blonde character driving
the corvette in American Graffiti was
inspired by Marilyn’s beautiful style.
Men’s styles are much more everlasting.
Comfort is key with them. From jeans to plaid button ups, plain
white t’s, cowboy boots, and the famous
Converse All Star shoes have all persevered
through the last half century. The
James Dean classic rebel inspired style
that gained popularity during the 50s
was also popular in the early 60s. This
greaser look always contained black or
blue fitted jeans with a white or black
t-shirt, cigarette hanging off the lip, and
a pack of smokes rolled up in the arm
sleeve, just like Milner in American
Graffiti. We cannot forget about one of
the most known attributes of this style,
the swooped up pompadour slicked
back hair.
Fashion and style are not always defined
by what you wear, but what you
drive and the music on your radio. Music
triggers emotions in all of us, while
fast cars offer an adrenaline rush and
extreme coolness. The movie American
Graffiti emblematized a new generation
of youngsters cruisin’ down the block
in their shiny and fast muscle cars striking
up flirty conversations with strangers
at stoplights. Back then this was
how guys met girls and it was possible
to embrace the highest level of confidence
and coolness by cruisin’ in your
American made, shiny, clean, and fast
hot rod. That is only if you have some
“boss” music to listen to on the radio.
At this time Rock n’ Roll and Motown
was extremely popular and folk music
was also growing. Music was helping to
break down the racial barriers and bring
people together like no other. Elvis had
swung, Johnny ignited a ring of fire,
and the barrier breaking counterculture
was born. This era of music and car lovers
triggered classic car shows and live
concerts for decades to come.
Even though these styles were
mainly of focus in the 1950s, we saw
the same styles becoming more popular
and mainstream during the early 60s
and even today. Jackie, Marilyn, and
James were idolized then for their famous
fashion trends and today they are
still some of the most influential fashion
icons. Car and music enthusiasts are
still interested in fixing up their cars to
near perfection and they enjoy installing
high quality and extremely loud sound
systems. Now looking back at these
styles I’m sure you can see how similar
they actually are to our popular present
trends. These styles have continuously
came back into style over the last half
century and will only keep flourishing
as time flies by.
