The 80s was a decade full of style, with bold colours and silhouettes everywhere. With trends ranging from coloured leggings, leather trousers and ripped jeans to shiny oversized jackets, the style icons of those years ranged from Joan Jett to Joan Collins.
Just like sheer tights, leggings and stirrup pants were quite popular in the 80s. Olivia Newton-John was the one to kickstart this trend along with her apparition in Grease. Wearing skin-tight leggings made you look both comfortable and hot.
The 1980s was a decade of excess, and fashion was no exception. Women's 80s fashion was characterized by bold colors, oversized silhouettes, and a fearless attitude towards mixing patterns and textures. It was a time when bigger was better, and subtlety took a back seat to statement-making ensembles.
The man we have to thank for our activewear obsession is American chemist Joseph Shivers, who invented spandex (sold under the brand name Lycra) in 1958. Following this invention, the women's fashion industry embraced the fabric and began popularising slim, stretchy pants in the 1960s.
Though they trace as far back as the 14th century, leggings first became really popular back in the late 1950s, when chemist Joseph Shivers created the first Lycra pair. Come the '80s, leggings got a little more edgy, like the shiny black pair that Olivia Newton-John wears with a moto jacket in Grease.
The girls were apparently told leggings were “too distracting to boys,” the Evanston Review reported at the time. Critics have called such policies against leggings sexist and have repeatedly condemned the bans.
The decade, characterized by eye-straining fabric colors and patterns, acid wash jeans, shoulder pads, massive, dramatic earrings, pearls, and big hair, had people confidently expressing themselves with their Style. Big, vibrant, and brilliant certainly capture the essence of 1980s fashion.
Bleached and ripped jeans or black leather pants will bring back all those '80s vibes! To complete your outfit, throw on a tight t-shirt with ripped-off sleeves or a spandex tank top - then accessorize with a long-haired wig for that iconic hair metal style. Get ready to rock out in this stylish costume!
Popular clothing in the early 1980s worn by men included tracksuits, v-neck sweaters, polyester and velour polo-neck shirts, sports jerseys, straight-leg jeans, jeans rolled to show off their slouch socks, polyester button-ups, cowboy boots, beanies, and hoodies.
In 80-degree weather, removable layers are your friend! A lightweight jacket or sweater is ideal for warm weather activities like cycling, rock climbing , or hiking. Make sure your base layer is made from a breathable, moisture-wicking fabric like Tencel or a polyblend.
Whether you are currently in a yoga studio, at the mall or out to dinner, workout-wear has finally become day-wear. Both comfortable and stylish, leggings can be worn anywhere and have the possibility of being elevated into a runway look. Just put a blazer on, you'll thank us later.
In the 80s, the baggy, high-waisted jeans we know as mom jeans were just called jeans. They were worn by everyone from models to pop stars. But as they went out of style in the 90s, the baggy, blue, and belted high-rise jeans had become a staple in the wardrobe of suburban moms instead.
JEWELRY STYLES
As the decade opened, the focus in jewelry was on gold and diamonds. Thin gold chains were worn in multiples as bracelets and, in various lengths, as necklaces, often with gold charms and small gem-set pendants.
80s fashion icons
Worn alone or jointly, the daring designer labels, including over-the-knee black leather boots, body-con, acid wash jeans, jelly bracelets, beaded necklaces, and shoulder pads, materialized outstanding and modish.
Popular 80s fashion trends included bold colors, oversized silhouettes, shoulder pads, neon clothing, and chunky jewelry.
These 'Casuals' as they became known, prided themselves on dressing in smarter clobber than the average football fan, wearing tracksuits, Lois jeans, cagoules and pristine trainers. The 80s was also the era of the tennis superstar.
Hairstyles in the 1980s included the mullet, tall mohawk hairstyles, jheri curls, flattops, and hi-top fades, which became popular styles. Amongst women, large hair-dos, puffed-up styles, permanent waves, and softer cuts typified the decade.
In the 1970s and 1980s, bell-bottom trousers were a rage among men and women. Alas, gone perhaps for good are those halcyon days in the 1970s and 1980s when bell-bottom trousers were the rage among men and women, young and old alike.
Bright neon pink, yellow, blue, and light green hues are used in this color scheme, reminiscent of the '80s and its "bigger is better" fashion trends.
The linen pantalettes worn by girls and women under crinolines in the mid-19th century were also a form of leggings, and were originally two separate garments. Leggings became a part of fashion in the 1960s, as trousers similar to capri pants but tighter.
Indeed, leggings remain on-trend in 2024. The staple black legging is a season-less classic wardrobe staple and a must-have in 2024. At Lysse, we love our signature center seam legging & the denim legging!
Leggings are often thin compared to pants like jeans or slacks, which makes them slightly more questionable. Yet while leggings may not be considered part of the professional attire wardrobe, they can still be professional.