70s and 80s Fashion Trends: From Bell-Bottoms to Shoulder Pads
Platform shoes, leisure suits, leg warmers and acid-wash jeans. A fun look back at the biggest 70s and 80s fashion trends, and which ones are back in style.
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Fashion in the 1970s and 1980s was bold, colorful and unforgettable, and many of those trends keep coming back around. Here's a look at what everyone was wearing.
70s fashion trends
- Bell-bottoms and flares: jeans and slacks that flared dramatically below the knee.
- Platform shoes: worn by men and women alike, especially on the disco floor.
- Leisure suits: polyester suits with wide lapels, often in pastel or earth tones.
- Wide collars and big prints: paisley, geometric patterns and florals.
- The wrap dress: Diane von Furstenberg introduced her famous wrap dress in 1974.
- Earth tones: harvest gold, rust, brown and avocado green, on clothes and on kitchen appliances.
- Tie-dye and peasant blouses: carried over from the late-'60s counterculture.
- Feathered hair: made famous by Farrah Fawcett.
- Disco glam: halter tops, sequins, jumpsuits and shimmering fabrics.
- Turtlenecks and suede fringe jackets.
80s fashion trends
- Shoulder pads and power suits: the look of the "power dressing" working woman.
- Neon everything: bright windbreakers, fluorescent accessories and color blocking.
- Leg warmers: popularized by dance and fitness crazes and movies like Flashdance (1983).
- Acid-wash and stonewashed jeans, often with pegged or rolled cuffs.
- Big hair: perms, teased bangs and plenty of hairspray.
- Members Only jackets: the must-have outerwear.
- Parachute pants and track suits, hugely popular with breakdancers.
- Scrunchies: the fabric-covered hair tie was patented in the late 1980s.
- Jelly shoes, Swatch watches and slap-on accessories.
- The preppy look: polo shirts with popped collars, sweaters tied over the shoulders and boat shoes.
- Sneaker culture: Nike's Air Jordan debuted in 1985.
What's back in style?
Fashion is cyclical. Flared jeans, platform shoes, wrap dresses, scrunchies, oversized blazers and chunky retro sneakers have all made comebacks. Shoulder pads and leisure suits? Those may stay in the photo albums.
Take a trip down memory lane with our things from the 70s and toys from the 70s and 80s.
