By Abby Waterman
This past Saturday, I went to a Sock Hop that was organized and put on by SRU’s Musical Theatre Society (MTS). At the sock hop, everyone came dressed in attire that was appropriate to the 1950s and 1960s. Girls were wearing poodle skirts, dresses, saddle shoes, etc. Guys were wearing cuffed jeans, converse, white shirts and leather jackets. After seeing all of the cute outfits people were wearing, it inspired me to write a blog post talking about the cool and fun fashion styles from back in the day!
The 1950s and 1960s were a time in fashion where patterns and colors were very bold. Maybe it was to offset the modest trends, and make the clothing more interesting. Fashion at this time was very modest. The women’s dresses and skirts were knee and below, so no upper leg was shown. Women's shorts were often long and reached below the fingertips, almost to the knee. Women at the time were allowed to show their arms and shoulders, but rarely had their chests showing.
Women’s dresses always looked very proper and sophisticated, like they were going to a wedding or tea party. Most dresses were cinched at the waist, giving women an hourglass figure. Many dresses flared out below the cinched waist, giving off a ballgown- or teacup-type of look. Poodle skirts, which were popular at the time, also flared out, making them easy to dance in, and flared out when someone spun around in it.
At the time women would also wear blouses and pants. The trend at the time was for women to wear capri pants instead of ankle length pants. For shoes, women usually wore saddle shoes, flats, or small heels.
As far as men’s fashion goes during this time, it was simpler than women's fashion. A popular mens fashion included wearing blue jeans and cuffing them at the ankles, and pairing them with a white t-shirt, jacket, and converse. If the greaser look wasn’t the desired outfit for the day, men would wear long nice pants, like dress pants, and a nice button up shirt tucked in with loafers or dress shoes and sometimes a suit coat.
I think 1950s and 1960s fashion is really cute and the trends definitely fit the vibe of the time frame. It’s almost like the fashions suited the music of the time and vise versa. Although i do like the modern fashion trends of today, I’ve always really liked vintage looks. If i could go back in time to see what it was like to live during these iconic years, I would love to live my life as a Pink Lady and have a girls night out or go to the drive-in with my T-Bird boyfriend!
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