A Short History of Youth Street Fashion

In the early 1960’s youth street fashion was born. Full employment made it both possible and fashionable for young people to look very smart. Many youngsters had short neat haircuts and bought expensive tailor-made suits. They were known as mods. However, fashion changed very quickly and by the late 1960’s the first hippies were appearing. They had long hair and wore loose, brightly-colored clothing. They believed in peace and love. Youth fashion changed again in the mid 1970’s. Many youngsters began listening to extremely loud, violent music. Punk had arrived. Spiky hairstyles in wild colours, scruffy T-shirts and leather trousers became trendy. Things changed once again in the early 1980’s. sporty designer labels and expensive trainers became popular. Hairstyles returned to being short and neat. The casual look was fashionable. By the early 1990’s fashion was again repeating itself. The grunge look was taking over. The followers of fashion were growing their hair, buying loose, untidy clothes and looking remarkably similar to the hippies.

eg In the early sixties, mods were characterized by short, neat haircuts and expensive tailor-made suits.