Which decade is the worst in terms of style?

[Puzzicato]

Here's a scary thought. Hoodies, sweats, sagging, jammies as daywear and all the other fashion monstrosities of today that assail our sensibilities may jolly well be considered "vintage" sometime in a (hopefully) distant future. I hope I do not live to see that day. I shudder to think what "modern" will look like by that time.

Fortunately clothes today are made so shoddily that they won't last long enough to become vintage. Although some of the fabrics will be occupying landfill for the next million years.

 

[The Good]

Here are some things I've noticed recently at my community college campus (population of about 2000 students or so):

-Excessively baggy, or too-tight jeans are more a common sight than well fitting jeans
-Bright plaid shirts and jackets are somewhat popular
-Flat-billed New Era-esque baseball caps are very popular, and stickers are almost always seen
-Baggy t-shirts, like the jeans, are commonly worn
-Fauxhawks and messy hairstyles are very popular here with guys as well
-Baggy shorts (board or basketball) that go below the knee are also common
-Maybe it's just me, but trilbies aren't as popular on campus as they were last year. These days, I see more girls wearing 'em than guys.

This is basically how the average male student dresses. One or more of these categories, etc. I did see a couple of students wearing a black and dark grey suit though (in heat!), within the last week.

EDIT: The age demographic I'm describing is obviously of typical college ages, such as late teens, early to mid twenties.

 

[Steveb1]

The world changed in the 1960's. Since then we have become more and more of a casual society. The last holdout was the corporate environment in the 80's. But even now the corporate environment is becoming more and more casual. We as a society lost something when this happened. Thank goodness some of us were brought up with a sense of good form and etiquette so that we may pass it on to future generations.
From a style standpoint I look back at the 70's through the 80's and I cannot believe the things that I wore. Ick.

 

[Yeps]

The age demographic I'm describing is obviously of typical college ages, such as late teens, early to mid twenties.

I agree, in general college campuses are pretty bad. Although, I take hope because, at least on my campus, I have seen an improvement over the past three years. I see fewer sweatpants, and almost as many real shirts as t-shirts, and more and more often, I see sport coats instead of hoodies. We might be making an impression.

*by the way, it was much easier to call you JB than The Good. I might start calling you Blondie.

 

[The Good]

You know, I don't have anything against those that choose to dress that particular way. It is their choice, after all. Many people out there just like to follow a "herd mentality," keeping up with their friends and stuff. Where I draw the line with modern fashions, is if it is blatantly obscene, flamboyant, and ugly. A guy wearing a t-shirt with explicit words, or graphic imagery for example, really shouldn't. Same goes for shorts that sit below the rear end...

I agree, in general college campuses are pretty bad. Although, I take hope because, at least on my campus, I have seen an improvement over the past three years. I see fewer sweatpants, and almost as many real shirts as t-shirts, and more and more often, I see sport coats instead of hoodies. We might be making an impression.

*by the way, it was much easier to call you JB than The Good. I might start calling you Blondie.

I can't argue against that, as I am in fact blond haired.

Anyway, the name change thing was due to too much similarity with another member's, which may have lead to confusion.

 

[jamespowers]

I agree, in general college campuses are pretty bad. Although, I take hope because, at least on my campus, I have seen an improvement over the past three years. I see fewer sweatpants, and almost as many real shirts as t-shirts, and more and more often, I see sport coats instead of hoodies. We might be making an impression.

*by the way, it was much easier to call you JB than The Good. I might start calling you Blondie.

The other side of that is the parents I see dropping off children everyday at my son's preschool. The parents drop them off still wearing PJs and some of the children are still wearing PJs as well! :eusa_doh::eusa_doh:

 

[Gilboa]

The Bad:

Without a doubt the current, soon to be, decade. I sometimes call it 'the decade of the overprotected, overfed and under-taught couch potato'.

Whenever sagging started.
Oversized clothing worn down around crotch level with 6 inches of underwear pant showing.

You're lucky!!

Over here, in towns and cities, it is usually under-sized clothing worn in that manner (and you're lucky again to have 6inches of underwear displayed for your 'viewing pleasure').

Generally, 'the oversized body with under-sized clothing' theme is considered as the ultimate hight of fasion within the general population. Apparently it is highly attractive to show off uncovered love-handles, as seen in all those highly educational 'magazines'. [huh]

Or you have the oposite end, the toothpicks 'posh' lookalikes wobbling down the highstreet in unflattering high heels. I keep having to resist the urge to run after them just in case one of them stumbles.

And what the other gender concerns, I have had enough of the t-shirt scruffy builder look when I go out for dinner!

The bit of saving grace: I find that the men are generally better dressed then the women.

I shall not get started on the style of transport and architecture!

But generally: I dispair!!



The Ugly
The 1980s. Decadent, tasteless, rude, snobish .... (all materialising itself in the clothing style of the time)




The Good:

1920 - 1930s, transportation, travelling in style!

1940s, Well cut clothing to display shapes in the right manner (or hide them)

1960s, cheeky, yet still generally pleasant on the eye


Just about acceptable:

I struggle with the 1950s style ... although I do like some of the architecture ... strange though it was

1970s ... its on the edge, a bit too loud and too boisterous (too often reaching a ridicilous level) - LOVE american muscle cars - but DISGUSTING architecture!

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

Baggy shorts (board or basketball) that go below the knee are also common

Are they long shorts or short trousers??? I can't seem to decide. Another thing that looks awful are the Empire waist-style tops that you see a lot of women wearing. It makes them look pregnant.

 

[Packin' Heat]

90's. Just lame stuff, everyone dressing like he's twelve. 70's after that.

I can't without guilt impugn the 2000's since it has seen a retro revival in a lot of ways, and my wearing of a fedora is more "cool" now as opposed to the "weird" it would be last decade. Tie fashion has changed too, going for a wider look which changes my neckties from "dated" to "vintage."

 

[Annichen]

Personally I would not wear anything from 60s to present but what I find particularly unstylish must be 70s and 2000s. platformshoes,baggy clothing..oh good grief..:eusa_doh:

 

[Berlin]

Oh. That is absolutely the 70's and the 80's. I can't pick one over the other. Both are terrible.

 

[The Lonely Navigator]

I really need to stop reading threads like this - not too long ago I had this dream where I moved into a wonderful half-double. It was an old building - one side restored the other side stuck in a 1970's time warp with the avacado green carpeting, the burnt orange burlap type wallpaper topped with dark brown 'railings'. There was some original 1920s - 30s stuff there still...sink, just like the one I have in my current apt. etc.

But man...that '70's stuff...turned what would have been an enjoyable dream into a nightmare.

 

[The Good]

I really need to stop reading threads like this - not too long ago I had this dream where I moved into a wonderful half-double. It was an old building - one side restored the other side stuck in a 1970's time warp with the avacado green carpeting, the burnt orange burlap type wallpaper topped with dark brown 'railings'. There was some original 1920s - 30s stuff there still...sink, just like the one I have in my current apt. etc.

But man...that '70's stuff...turned what would have been an enjoyable dream into a nightmare.

The funny thing is, in the last house that my family had lived in years ago, when we first moved it had what appeared to be a 1970s avocado shag carpet, and some kind of wallpaper, like what you said, in one of the bathrooms. We changed it, eventually.

 

[cotillion]

the 1980s

After reading many posts, I believe many of you have made good points about the lack of good style in the 1990s and the early 2000s. Yet I think the seeds of all the elements of bad style in the last 20 years has its roots in the late 1980s 1985-1990. Sure you might have had the whole Gordon Gecko resurgence but out at the clubs in NY, LA, SF and Chi dress codes went down and the nightlife fashions started to bifurcate into a bunch of different sloppier sub-genres.

I suppose the start of the musical branching comes earlier with rock. Particularly how rock concerts encouraged a sloppier dress code than nightlife with previous forms of music from classical to swing to jazz which all encourage greater sense of style. A scene from Mad Men might go back further when the ad executives are discussing the Kennedy-Nixon campaign and the older execs remark on how Kennedy doesn't wear hats implying it is odd and Campbell responds "You know who else doesn't wear hats? Elvis". Elvis was certainly not the sharpest dresser. So Elvis kind of lays the prototype to me for rock n roll encouraging no sense of style (exceptions can be found of course).

Anyway all the trends like pants sagging, no socks, focus on Brand Name Label over quality of material all started up in the late 1980s especially on the west coast. The east coast still always dressed better because of cold weather maybe but all sense of style in California just plummeted in the late 1980s and never really returned (with exceptions of course). Then there is influence of things like hip hop on fashion and there you go. The downhill trend all started in the late 1980s imo (at least leisure suits were still suits.

 

[The Lonely Navigator]

@ The Good: Yeah that was the type I saw in the dream. The wallpaper, hideous stuff that it was, was in the kitchen.

 

[Sweet Caroline]

uggghhh. The thing I hate about the 2000s is that no one wears pants that fit! The sagging baggy pants are horific but what is worse are sagging skinny jeans *yucky* Or skinny jeans in general... they look all right if your "skinny" but they're not for everyone! I'm kind of ranting but most of the time it's just gross to look at.

 

[Oktobr]

I say the 70s, no doubt. You had to be on acid if you thought any of that ever looked good. Although, the 80s and 90s were pretty horrible as well. Can we just kill whoever invented the neon colored fanny pack, if they're not already dead?

 

[jamespowers]

I say the 70s, no doubt. You had to be on acid if you thought any of that ever looked good. Although, the 80s and 90s were pretty horrible as well. Can we just kill whoever invented the neon colored fanny pack, if they're not already dead?

I think that was the problem. :eusa_doh:

 

[jamespowers]

I really need to stop reading threads like this - not too long ago I had this dream where I moved into a wonderful half-double. It was an old building - one side restored the other side stuck in a 1970's time warp with the avacado green carpeting, the burnt orange burlap type wallpaper topped with dark brown 'railings'. There was some original 1920s - 30s stuff there still...sink, just like the one I have in my current apt. etc.

But man...that '70's stuff...turned what would have been an enjoyable dream into a nightmare.

I could make that nightmare worse. I remember that ugly gold foil wallpaper with velvet patterns all over it. Now that was some ugly wallpaper and all your ritzy places used to have it and think it was great. :eusa_doh:
I have to ask, were all the appliances in the kitchen brown or green? :eusa_doh: lol Did you get out the rake and fluff up the shag carpeting? lol

 

[LizzieMaine]

What's really sad is that I can remember a lot of houses in the neighborhood where I grew up having their original '20s-'30s-'40s kitchens gutted during the 70s, and replaced with the harvest-gold-and-avocado appliances, fake maple beaverboard cabinets, and bogus "early american" hardware. My grandparents were among the few on the street to never even consider going in for that fad, and I will always revere their good taste.

My aunt and uncle put a red-and-gold shag carpet on their kitchen floor. For all I know, it's still there.