How jeans have evolved over the past century
There is no doubt that jeans are universal clothing that unites people of different nations and continents, religions and beliefs, age and social status. They can be found in the wardrobe of an American millionaire, a Japanese schoolboy and a Norwegian pensioner, but this was not always the case. For a hundred years, jeans have changed, as has the fashion for them. Let's remember how it happened.
After its appearance, jeans were exclusively men's clothing for many years. At the same time, it was impossible to see them on fashionistas — jeans were exclusively working clothes and in this capacity they entered popular culture. Workers and farmers immediately appreciated the advantages of jeans, which were durable, comfortable, and at the same time did not get dirty for a long time and were easily washed.
Later, the denim work uniform was also tried on by representatives of the fair sex. However, the ladies liked the voluminous overalls with many pockets more. Many factories and factories in the USA in the 30s of the last century made jeans their standard workwear.
The terrible forties of the XX century were marked in the history of jeans that had just begun to gain popularity by a period of decline. The production of these clothes has been reduced to a minimum. The main buyers of such clothes are men, were at the front or just drafted into the army, but the situation was saved by women.
Among the ladies, the popularity of these clothes continued to grow and the difference in the styles of men's and women's denim items was confidently erased. It was a period when women's fashion borrowed a lot from the men's wardrobe and it was at this time that jeans began to be considered full-fledged unisex clothing.
After the end of the Second World War, jeans became relevant again. But for the first time there were people who began to wear trousers and overalls made of dense fabric not at work, but in everyday life. Denim was chosen by rebels, not only from working-class neighborhoods, but also from Hollywood.
In this decade, straight, tight jeans of medium length and with turns at the bottom were on trend. As for the doorways, they were not the same as today. Some especially stylish fashionistas managed to turn them up almost to the knee.
By the beginning of the 60s, children born immediately after the war had grown up. And they started a lot of interesting things, starting with the sexual revolution and ending with passive and active anti-war protests. All socio-cultural phenomena, of course, were reflected in fashion.
Women began to feel freer and more confident, so they tried to emphasize their sexuality in all possible ways. Jeans came in very handy here — there were a huge number of colors, models with prints and applications, as well as the famous "bell-bottoms", which became a real symbol of the era.
In the 1970s, numerous denim fans were divided into two large camps. Some connoisseurs of style remain faithful to the "bell-bottoms" and colors, and some sew jeans, paint them black, cut them on their knees and hang them with pins and chains.
The style of "punk" is emerging, which has a great future ahead of it. Jeans are rapidly narrowing, and fashion is becoming aggressive.
The most controversial decade is coming, and not only in the fashion world. All the acquisitions of recent years have mixed up and we can observe gender equality, rebellion and emancipation. The most stylish models at this time are becoming almost asexual.
The main trends of the decade in the denim world were an overstated waist and a tightly covered ass. The punk style is still more alive than all the living, only the famous "varenki"were added to the cut jeans. They came to us several years late, immediately after the fall of the notorious "iron Curtain".
In the 90s, jeans became the main clothing and there is not the slightest exaggeration in this statement. What has not seen the fashion of this decade: baggy grunge models with holes in the knees, models with a high landing from Western TV series, like "Beverly Hills", homemade" dumplings", wide hip-hop trousers.
The post-Soviet space has finally almost aligned itself with other countries and is already going toe-to-toe with the world fashion. The decade, from the point of view of denim fashion, can be described in one phrase: "the wider — the better."
At the end of the 90s, it seemed to everyone that jeans could not be more ridiculous, but this was a delusion. No decade has given jeans fashion as many stupid and strange models as the "zero"ones. An abundance of rhinestones, the most understated models and, of course, denim capris, which were worn wherever possible, from youth parties to solid offices
Looking back, just for a decade, we understand that all this was extremely tasteless and even ridiculous. But we will not laugh, because we do not know what the near future holds for us.
For 7-8 years, skinny models with an inflated waist have been reigning in the world of denim fashion. Starting with the women's wardrobe, the most narrow jeans have captured the world of men's fashion. Among the female models of the decade, it is necessary to note the free and democratic "boyfriend jeans" and "mom's jeans", which come straight from the 90s.
Torn jeans in the grunge style, which change every decade, but retain their common features, have not gone anywhere. In the last couple of years, the "flares" are gaining momentum again, which have not been seen for a good 30 years. By the way, there are absolutely ridiculous models, in the very existence of which no one would have believed 10 years ago.
Do you have any approximate forecasts about what we will see in the 2020s, which are rapidly approaching?
Keywords: Grunge | Jeans | Manufacturer | Workers | Trends | Hip-hop