As we’ve all seen, the 2000s are back in a big way. From low-rise jeans having a chokehold on Gen Z to celebrities wearing Juicy Couture tracksuits and snapping Insta pics on digital cameras, the influence of the Y2K-era is strong.
But while we listen to old-school Britney Spears and apply our clear lip gloss, there’s one decade that just won’t quit. The 1980s.
The influence of the 1980s on fashion is unparalleled. Everything was big. Big hair, big jeans, big shoulder pads.
And while we might not be wearing geometrical-print dresses with bulky shoulders, this year’s oversized blazer-aesthetic can be traced back to the ’80s when more women were entering the workforce and Wall Street was booming. Meanwhile, movies such as Heathers cemented big blazer energy into pop culture history.
You know how everyone is obsessed with sneakers these days? Yeah, that actually began in the 1980s. How can you say that 2000s fashion is the GOAT when sneakerhead culture was literally born in the ’80s?
While styles have changed over the decades, streetwear brands like PUMA are making sure we respect where sneakers came from with its new Slipstream style. The origins actually date back to 1987 when it was launched as a “high-top basketball shoe”. 35 years later, the silhouette is back in multiple colour-ways, baby. Pair it with a white tee and some baggy denim jeans and you’re a bona fide ’80s style star. Rob Lowe, eat your heart out.
The 1980s was also the time when activewear began to be worn outside the gym thanks to Miss Jane Fonda’s aerobic style. Baggy pants reigned supreme (McHammer, anyone?) and leg warmers were moving out of the gym and into the streets. Influencer and Australian icon, Flex Mami was even spotted wearing ’80s-style leg warmers in a recent TikTok. Knowing her influence, catch me wearing leg warmers to the office next week.
Shows like Stranger Things means that even the kids are acting like it’s bloody 1985. From oversized acid-wash denim jackets to the neon colours seen at the skating rink, there’s no denying that the 1980s isn’t going out of style anytime soon. So, move over low-rise jeans and phone charms.
My next question is, who’s going to be brave enough to bring back the perm?
