Alicia S.: Get the 70's look

I decided to dedicate a post to one of my favorite decades, the 70's. First, I'll write about some general facts about this decade and then explain some of the fashion trends.

Feminism

Political awareness and awareness of woman's rights was increasing (leading to '79 British elections where Margaret Thatcher won and became the first and only female British Prime Minister to date). More and more women started were entering in the work force and it was becoming more acceptable to be a employed woman even thought the title of a breadwinner still belonged to men. The feminism movement was growing and woman started fighting for their rights.

Technology

Also, a lot of new technology has been invented or developed in the 70's, for example:

-a personal computer (desktop)

-voicemail

-email

-fiber optics

-microwave ovens etc.

Automobile industry

Because of the oil crisis '73 the automobile industry started developing smaller,fuel-efficient vehicles and there were also attempts of creating the first electric cars which were all unsuccessful. Some of the famous cars roaming the 70's roads were:

-AMC Gremlin

-Pontiac Firebird

-and my favorite cars of this decade, Cadillac Eldorado

Cadillac Eldorado

Oh and let's not forget about the music

The most popular music genre in the 70's was definitely rock. From southern rock, folk rock and soft rock to jazz rock. Music was influenced with rhythm and blues (aka R&B) and jazz. Some of the first metal, rock and hard rock artists were Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, AC/DC, Kiss, Aerosmith, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Ramones, Blondie, Sex Pistols-more or less all of my all time favorite bands.

Led Zeppelin

Fashion

Now let's pay some attention to my favorite topic- fashion. Hippies started ruling the fashion world in the late 60's and the trend continued through the 70's. Bell bottoms, mini skirts and hippie clothing are just a few trends from this decade.

1. Hippies

Hippies were members of the subculture, starting in the US which quickly spread all over the world. Their style had a mixed ethnic flavor, they wore a lot of traditional clothing from foreign cultures such as Indian, Mexican, Hungarian and Native American.

Their "traditional" clothing included tie dye shirts, folk-embroidered blouses, capes, ponchos, bell-bottoms, maxis (ankle-length dresses), a lot of color, Indian, Native American and floral patterns.

Woman's accessories were mainly made out of natural elements such as wood, shells, stones, feathers etc. They made accessories by hand into headbands, chokers, floppy hats, scarves and more. Birkenstock's were the most popular shoes back then.

2. Glamour

Another reason why I love this decade is the glamour. Not everyone was feeling the hippie vibes so they decided to stick to the 40's movie star glamour looks. Glamorous women fashion included fitted blazers, long and short dressed, mini skirts, maxi evening gowns, hot pants, flared pants, sweaters etc.

It was quite common for couples to wear almost identical outfits.

Pastel colors were really popular among this women, including peach, apple green, pink, yellow, white, camel, grey and baby blue.

Glamorous women accessories were mostly turbans, pear earrings, necklaces and bracelets, black-wailed hats, clogs, wedgies, cork-soled platforms and chunky high heels.

3. Casual looks

Unfortunately, the hippie trend almost disappeared in the mid 70's, but the casual looks continued. Women wore a lot of sweaters, t-shirts, cardigans, kimonos, jeans, khakis, gauchos, workmen's clohes, vintage clothing, capes, turbans, puff skirts etc.

Accessories weren't worn in the mid 70's, because the society started adopting a minimalistic approach to fashion. Women wore small leather shoulder bags and Mary Janes boots (knee-high boots with rounded toes), platform shoes, Birkenstocks and loafers.

Hair

Women generally wore long hair with center or a side part. Other popular hairstyles were the wavy gypsy cut, the layered shag, the flicked style (aka wings), frosted hair, feathered hair, Afro hairstyle etc.