Figure 1.--Here we see an unidentified group of American teenagers wearing popular summer fasions in June 1978. The 1970s was the last decade that we commonly see black and white photography. |
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The trend toward casual clothing since World War I more or less reached it's end point in the 1970s. The T-shirt became a real fashion item. You can get much more casual than a T-shirt. Striped T-shirts were standard, but we also see similar rifgby shorts. And we also began to see T-shirts with logos. The mini skirt, bell-bottoms, and the androgynous hippie look that appeared in the late-1960s were still all the rage in the early-70s.
We see boys wearing casual clothing for all but the most formal occassions, including many occassions that formerly involved dressing up. Some styles like platform shoes did not affect younger boys, but we do see teenagers wearing them. Other trends like flared pants did become popular with children and teengers of all ages. Except for flares, the Disco look largely missed most boys. Another major trend was designer jeans. Jeans became a major fashion statement and secondary schools stopped banning them. We see short pants becoming increasingly popular, especially atletic styles. And shorts become shorter during the decade wih very short styles popular by the end of the decade. The short-cut shorts for girls were called 'hot pants'. Shorts were often worn with tube ocks that had bright colored bands. Tube socks were most popula with boys, but girls might also wear them. Many young people adopted the grunge look. An interesting counter trend was some public schools began adopting uniforms, formerly more associated with private schgools. As unpopular as the Vietnam War was, we see a lot of hippies and youngb people began wearing uniform iyems, especial Army jackets. President Nixon set Détente in motion which finlly led to recognizing Mainland China (1979). Chinese influences appeared in a wide range of apparel and probably led to the fashionability of down or polyester fiber-filled jackets and coats. The energy crisis of 1979 brought long lines at gas pumps and lower temperatures in government offices. Jackets and sweaters helped affected workers to adapt. Consumer magazines contrasted the energy required to manufacture and care for 100 percent cotton shirts versus polyester and cotton blends. Even though these analyses showed that blends used less energy over their lifetimes, consumers tended to think of cotton as more environmentally friendly.
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