One IMO very positive change I have observed over the past decade is that it seems to have become much easier to have your own look and style than it used to be. During the past 9 or 10 years, a significantly bigger variety has come about in how people dress and groom themselves than there was in any decade prior to the recently ended “new tens”. Not that there aren’t any fashion trends of any kind at all, but these seem to be more varied and less dominant and prevalent than they used to be. What is behind this change, and is it a true progress in the way of thinking of the fashion industry and people at large, or is this just an illusion with some other kind of explanation?
I would surmise that until quite recently, each decade could be visually defined by a set of trends. If you look at old photographs, until very recent times you would be hard-pressed to find a person that “has their own style”; on people from e.g. the 1930s, 40s or 50s, if there’s any individuality, it’s found in really subtle details or constricted within certain clearly defined bounds. I have seen group photos from those decades where every female has the same width of dress and practically the same hemline, and 90 percent of them seem to have the exact same hair length and their hair curled more or less in the same way. Sure, if you look at lots and lots of photos from a given period, you will see some people who are a little different in some aspect of their appearance, but no one seems to deviate beyond certain bounds. While it seems to have been easier to “have your own style” since, say the late 1960s, the decades right through the 70s and the 80s still had well-defined trends. The 90s and 00s are harder to define in terms of fashion, but still I would definitely say that the idea of fashions dominating the look of a season/decade lasted right through the “noughties”, which I would describe as a time where they took existing looks and gave everything a “rough edge” (examples: asymetrical skirts, sweatshirts with patches sewn on them, jeans faded in places so as to show a grid in the weave). I myself managed to avert most of the typical styles of the 00s as, being a guy, “the basics” (e.g. jeans in a basic Levis-type cut, plain t-/sweatshirts, plaid shirts) were always readily available, but I would not be so sure about some sensible women’s clothes. In particular, I would say the following two styles were prevalent to the point of ubiquitousness:
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Low-waisted pants: this one almost needs no introduction. At some point in the decade, they literally almost discontinued the production of ladies’ pants - certainly jeans - that covered the natural waist. Pants that barely touched the midriff and in some cases ended barely above the pubic region were everywhere. Shirts and sweaters were often made shorter as well, so that they and the pants waist just barely touched, flashing an inch or so of midriff here and there. Or she would cover up her midriffs with a long tube top and wear a visibly shorter cardigan or t-shirt over it. Leaning forward often meant a flash of panties/the butt crack. Whereas high-waisted jeans were perfectly normal in the early 90s, by the mid-noughties they began to be called “mom jeans” as if they were somehow frumpy. Low-waisted pants even made an inroad into men’s fashion.
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Layered hair. From a certain point, in the 00s, whatever length of hair you had, having it just one length was “out”. There could be a bit of confirmation bias going on here, but I recall that at one point, it seemed like almost everyone had some layers, thinning or feathering in their hair, as if having your hair trimmed to one length were somehow inferior. Ca. 2000, before this became so ubiquitious, a trend toward shags, or a haircut between a bob and a spiky shag had some popularity. Towards 2008, the bob came back in style, but it was invariably some variation on the “A-line” or angled bob with the front longer and the back shorter, at times even assymetric. Most women at one point seem to have had at least a nod to this fashion, such as layers around the face or the last few inches of their hair thinned. Again, there could be a confirmation bias here based on reading selective online material, but going back some years, there were numerous discussion threads, and some articles, where women complained that their hairdressers were pushing these styles on them, ranging from unsolicited offers to layer their hair to adding them of their initiative when the writer had only asked for a trim or even against her specific instructions not to.
So how does this compare to more recent times?
Over the last decade, the offer of clothing styles has become much more varied than in the past - go for example to somewhere where they sell jeans, for men or women, and you will find various cuts, colors and washes in one place. Women can get high-waisted jeans again, or those with a somewhat lower waist if they prefer. There are many stores which specialize in specific styles of clothing: for example, in Toronto I saw a shop called Haight-Ashbury, which specfically sells 1960s hippie-inspired clothing. Retro/vintage clothing is a thing; with a little effort, you can now make yourself look more or less exactly like someone from the 80s, 90s or 00s, with a little more effort you can emulate looks from earlier decades as well without having to sew your own clothes. I have seen one or two online shops that specifically advertise as giving the client the possibility to choose goods in line with his or her own style. This is not to say that there have been NO trends in the past 9 or 10 years. Circa 2012 I can recall trends such as checked dress shirts or hair worn in a tight, geometric bun/topknot; circa 2015, some hipster fashions made some inroads into the main stream; in the last year or two there have been 90s-inspired micro skirts with buttons and dresses with spaghetti straps, also jeans similar to 80s acid washed jeans, let’s see what else: old-fashioned pleated skirts, chrome yellow beanies, ladies’ winter hats with double pompons…but here’s the thing. As far as I can tell, none of these trends seem to dominate. They’re all part of a wide variety that you can mix and match.
So my question is: what is behind this change, which I would consider an improvement? Is the current variety in styles and offer the result (as I hope it is) of people wanting to have their own style, rejecting conformity and valuing individuality and good body image, with fashion designers, beauticians, etc. recognizing this, accepting it and accommodating it? What could have been the impetus that caused the apparent abrupt change from prevailing fashion trends to a “no fashion” fashion approach circa 2011? Could the internet have something to do with it (e.g. the industry becoming wary of people posting online complaints against trends they felt were being pushed on them, or online shops offering styles that brick-and-mortar shops didn’t, causing the latter to follow suit?) Or is it something else entirely, that I am missing?
everyone was sharing the same culture. We were much more homogenous. Everyone listened to the same limited sources of music and watched the same limited sources of TV or movies. Now that we can all go our own way, we do! And it carries over into fashion.