sustainable style – EcoSalon

4 Fall Looks Inspired by 4 Fashion Icons

Rowena Ritchie — Mon, 04 Nov 2013 08:19:01 +0000

If the key to personal style is knowing yourself, identifying with someone whose style you admire is a great way to figure out whether something is “you.” Even Princess Grace’s off-duty dog-walking style (above) captured in 1969 shows why she’ll always be one of the world’s fashion icons worth emulating.

Of course, style inspiration can – and should be – found anywhere and everywhere. Art, books, the colors of a sunset, even the innocence of a little girl’s hand-assembled school outfit that caught my eye recently is fodder for sartorial creativity. Her back-to school denim blue dress paired with red-wo0llen tights sparked an idea to revisit the fresh combination of color and textures as soon as the weather gets cooler.

In light of the news that the industry’s most forward-thinking designers are deciding to opt out off the traditional fashion calendar this season, and that the best of the rest sent models down the catwalk in thousand-dollar crop tops, finding inspiration outside of traditional fashion media seems well, sane.

Choosing looks from icons from the hallowed halls of style history provides a solid reference for putting together outfits with balanced proportions or recreating an inspired use of a belt or scarf. Taking inspiration from the style greats is more than opting for vintage glamour, it’s identifying with an attitude that icon had towards getting dressed. Whether its classic, eclectic, bohemian or a minimalistic approach, choosing your style inspiration is all about making it your own.

Classic Style: Grace Kelly

Image: Wikipedia

Was anyone more appropriately named than Grace Kelly? Her perfectly cut clothing in demure pastel shades set the standard for graceful, ladylike style that remains an inspiration more than 50 years after she first burst on to the Hollywood scene in High Noon.

Image: Beklina

If you want to emulate Kelly’s always-calm-and-collected demeanor, take a look at Rachel Comey’s nude Olto dress (above) available at Beklina. A classic staple, modeled after a timeless trench-coat silhouette, it’s sleeveless and fully lined and features a double button wrap front with panel flap detail, a collarless boat neckline and delicate pintucks at the waist. Worn with a long-sleeved turtleneck for season-proof style, it’s a solid investment in an enduring classic style.

Eclectic Style: Kate Moss

Image: Ecosalon

Mixing references is the genius of Kate Moss’ much-coveted cool-girl style. While a leopard print may intimidate most of us, Moss knows that introducing a slightly offbeat element punches up neutrals and turns basic skinny jeans and boots into a glamorous, but laid-back look.

Image: Amour Vert

Amour Vert’s Grace Peasant Top in leopard printed silk (above) is made in California and instantly creates an eclectic sense of style with simple separates—and if you fancy taking a walk on the wide side, it also pairs brilliantly with red and green.

Bohemian Style: Stevie Nicks

Image: Wikipedia

Along with her raspy voice, Stevie Nicks’ iconic bohemian style is part of her sultry allure. A free-spirited outsider, her signature hippie beads, fringe and billowing sleeves revealed an individualistic and romantic take on fashion.

Image: Beklina

For the dreamers among us, Ryan Roche’s stunning 100% cashmere cardigan sweater (above) injects some bohemian luxury into an everyday look. Warm and cozy, the cardigan doubles up as the perfect early fall coat. A detachable braided belt and hidden buttons secure the front.

Minimalist Style: Carolyn Bessette Kennedy

The 90s are fashion’s latest craving, and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy was the decade’s ultimate minimalist muse. A gift for taking avant-garde design and wearing in an effortless way endeared her to the era’s designers and style commentators. Her taste for wearing all-black outfits with clean lines and sleek styling means that photographs of her look as relevant now as they did then.

Maiyet’s Full Sleeve Short Jacket with hand hooked ari embroidered detail on the cuffs of the sleeves (above) is striking for its high concept and sophisticated cut. Made in New York, it’s a surprisingly versatile piece. Teamed with jeans or a pencil skirt, its understated simplicity doesn’t scream for attention, but rest assured, everyone will notice how you are inspired by fashion icons like these.

Related on Ecosalon:

The Eye Has to Travel: Sustainable Style Lessons from Diana Vreeland

20 Best Quotes on Style

Top Image: Wikipedia

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CreativeBug Workshop: Make a Macrame Plant Holder with Cathy Callahan

Rowena Ritchie — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 18:00:39 +0000

Take a new look at macramé with Cathy Callahan’s easy-to-follow tutorial.

I know, when you think of macramé you think of cheesy 70s dens, but the knotted handicraft has come a long way since then.

Learn the simple satisfaction of creating knotted designs and take a new look at vintage-style crafts from the blogger behind Cathy of California. Cathy will teach you how to use simple knots to create twists and movement in a macramé plant hanger made modern with vivid colors. You’ll learn the fundamentals of macramé, which can be applied and adapted to all kinds of projects, from jewelry to home décor.

Cathy was raised by a super crafty mom in suburban Southern California. As a result the crafts and design of the 60s and 70s serve as a never ending source of inspiration for her work.

Cathy has appeared on the Martha Stewart show and her work has been featured in The New York Times, Sunset, Anthology, Mollie Makes and Frankie magazines. Her first book Vintage Craft Workshop was released by Chronicle Books in 2011. In July 2012 she launched a jewelry and accessories collection that is currently available at Yolk, Poketo and Reform School in the Los Angeles area.

Cathy lives in Los Angeles with her husband and cat.

CreativeBug, a new series of how-to videos for DIY’ers, recently launched to inspire you. For $25 a month, subscribers have unlimited access to a continuously updated library of creative workshops in knitting, crochet, sewing, jewelry, entertaining, home decorating and kids crafts. Featuring some of the country’s biggest talents, instructors include Debbie Stoller, Stitch ‘n Bitch, Heather Ross, Weekend Sewing, Christine Schmidt, Print Workshop and Natalie Chanin of Alabama Chanin. Creativebug’s state of the art audio and video production quality, short video segments and entertaining presentation make the videos accessible to artists of all skill levels.

If you’ve got the handmade fever, share some of your very own handmade projects with CreativeBug during their very first CreativeBug + Pinterest: I Made This’ Pin-It-To-Win-It Contest. It launches today.

So, what are you waiting for? Make a pattern. Make a print. Make a difference.

The post CreativeBug Workshop: Make a Macrame Plant Holder with Cathy Callahan appeared first on EcoSalon.

CreativeBug Workshop: DIY Some Craft Veneer Globes For Your Next Garden Party

Rowena Ritchie — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 11:16:29 +0000

Before they’re gone, celebrate warm summer evenings with friends. Decorate your garden with these easy-to-make veneer globes and throw a party.

Looking for an unique yet simple party decoration for your next garden party? These veneer globes will do the trick. Decorate them in different ways to match any occasion, whether it’s a kid’s birthday party or an elegant outdoor dinner gathering. They have a whimsical feel that will brighten up any setting.

Wood Veneer Globes with Kelly Wilkinson on Creativebug from Creativebug on Vimeo.

Kelly Wilkinson is the Editorial Director of Creativebug. Prior to joining Creativebug, Kelly worked as a reporter and anchor for the NPR station in San Francisco. She wrote a regular craft column for the Washington Post and her craft book Weekend Handmade was released in 2012 by STC Craft. Her projects have appeared online on Design*Sponge and Apartment Therapy, as well as in print publications including Sunset, Country Living and the Los Angeles Times.

CreativeBug recently launched multi-month packages. Subscribers can now get a discount for signing up for multiple months in advance!

$24.99 monthly
$19.99 per month, billed every 3 months
$16.99 per month, billed every 6 months

So, what are you waiting for? Make a pattern. Make a print. Make a difference.

The post CreativeBug Workshop: DIY Some Craft Veneer Globes For Your Next Garden Party appeared first on EcoSalon.

Tee For Two: Julia Vasic Recycled Jewelry

Rowena Ritchie — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 22:30:46 +0000

Julia Vasic’s new line of upcycled accessories takes all the virtues of the beloved basic tee turning it into the perfect summer accessory.

How do you top a tee when it comes to easy, breezy summer style? When San Francisco-based designer Julia Vasic, was presented with dozens of t-shirts leftover from the 2008 Obama campaign, she knew she could put them to good use.

The resulting fourteen-piece line of necklaces and bracelets Vasic recently launched, show off all the virtues of the beloved basic tee turned into the perfect summer accessory. “I love the soft feel of jersey, most of my favorite pieces in my wardrobe are soft fluid jersey pieces,” said Vasic. “Draped over a plain white t-shirt or tank top, the pieces add a great element of texture.”

“Melissa” in pink knotted with recycled gold plated tubes.

Vasic’s twisted and knotted strands are crafted in various lengths and combinations of black, white and pastel upcycled shirts to suit breezy layered styles. Their delicate modern style is punctuated with sleek gold plates and chains.

“Melissa” necklace in black, “Sunny” necklace in white with an organic hemp binding and “Joanna,” a single-knotted strand in peach with recycled double gold chain.

If you want something more customized, Vasic can take your favorite tee and turn it into a statement piece. Available at juliavasic.com, $40-$80. 10% of proceeds will be donated to Endangered Species Coalition.

The post Tee For Two: Julia Vasic Recycled Jewelry appeared first on EcoSalon.

Now & Then: The History of the Bikini

Rowena Ritchie — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 19:58:14 +0000

“It was an itsy bitsy, teenie weenie, yellow polka dot bikini”: Once so shocking, the song’s 1960s protagonist was “afraid to come out of the water.”

In 1946 in Paris, a fashion designer named Louis Reald unveiled his two-piece bathing suit to the public. He named it the “bikini” because he believed the sight of women wearing such skimpy attire would cause men the same sort of devastation that the Bikini Atoll had suffered four days earlier when an atomic bomb was detonated on it. These days it’s women who wake up with a bang each summer at the sound of the word, “Bikini.” Modern day hyphenates like bikini-body, bikini-bootcamp and most definitely, bikini-wax certainly add to the impact.

Micheline Bernardini photographed wearing the first bikini. Designed by Louis Reald to be “smaller than the world’s smallest bathing suit,” it was designed to fit in the matchbox Bernardini is holding.

Conceived to be small enough to fit into a matchbox, the new navel revealing design was considered so scandalous that none of the Parisian models would dare to wear his design. Reard could only find nude dancer Micheline Bernardini to model his design for the press.

In the early 1940s pin-ups like Rita Hayworth wore two-pieces but covered their navels.

Midriff baring swimsuits had preceded the bikini with far less sensation. By the early 1940s film stars like Rita Hayworth, Lana Turner and Ava Gardner were all photographed wearing two-piece swimsuits consisting of a structured halter-top and bottom, but it was the revelation of the female bellybutton that was truly controversial.

Favored by Queen Victoria, bathing huts in 1900 protected female bathers’ modesty.

When you consider that only 50 years earlier, women wanting to take a dip at the beach were reliant on a contraption called a bathing machine, it may put the hoopla of 1946 in some perspective. In existence as early as 1750, bathing huts – small wooden huts on wheels inside which women changed inside and were then wheeled into the water to descend a small ladder in the back – prevented women from the immodesty of running across the open sand in her bathing suit.

Brigitte Bardot photographed on the French Riviera helped to encourage the trend for bikinis in the 1950s.

The bikini grew in popularity in France throughout the 1950s, helped along by Brigitte Bardot’s steamy roles in 1952 with The Girl in the Bikini and in 1956 with And God Created Woman. The rest of the world remained immune to its charms, bikinis were banned in Belgium, Italy, Spain and Australia and from worldwide beauty pageants after the first Miss World Contest in London in 1951, and it was even declared sinful by the Vatican.

It remained off limits in the States until wholesome girl-next-door Annette Funicello in 1960s beach party movies like Bikini Beach and How to Stuff a Wild Bikini helped make the bikini more popular to the masses. The first Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition in 1964 sealed the deal with Babette March in a white bikini.

Actress Ursula Andress, playing Honey Rider in the James Bond film Dr. No, memorably strode out of tropical Caribbean waters wearing a homemade bikini shocking American theater goers in 1962.

As the female body ideal become more athletic in the 1970s and 80s, women were photographed proudly displaying taut midriffs, rather than sucking them in as they did in the 1950s. Accounting for more than 20 percent of swimsuit sales in the United States, the bikini grew smaller than ever, as G-strings made their way from Brazil and suits were cut at the thigh. While 2012 swimsuit trends marked the return of the vintage-style one-piece, the bikini once thought shocking, is now the grandmother of all fashion swimwear.

The 1980s saw the introduction of the string bikini as seen on Phoebe Cates in Fast Times at Ridgemont High

Want to catch up on some more fashion history?

Now & Then: The History of the White Wedding Dress

Now & Then: The History of Shapewear

Now & Then: The History of the Ballet Flat

Now & Then: The History of the Breton Shirt

Now & Then: The History of the Pencil Skirt

Now & Then: The History of Skinny Jeans

Read more Now & Then articles here.

The post Now & Then: The History of the Bikini appeared first on EcoSalon.

CreativeBug Workshop: DIY a Popover Sundress for a Child in Need

Rowena Ritchie — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 12:00:05 +0000

Spend an afternoon with Liesl Gibson learning new sewing skills while helping a child in need.

The popover sun dress is a great project for the beginning sewer. Build on your basic skills by learning with Liesl how to sew french seams, bias binding and a narrow hem. The dress works up quickly and is offered in a wide range of sizes, including a version small enough for a matching doll version.

If you want to amp up the feel-good factor, why not donate the dress to Project HOPE Art, an organization that takes these dresses to orphanages in Haiti. Helping others feels good, and we help ourselves too.

Popover Sundress with Liesl Gibson from Creativebug on Vimeo.

After starting a career in publishing and finance, Liesl Gibson returned to school and earned a degree in fashion design from New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology. Before having a child in 2005, she worked as a designer for Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren.

While staying home with the baby, Liesl began designing her daughter’s clothing. “People were asking if they could buy the patterns for the dresses I was making,” Liesl says. “One thing led to another, and I had a new career.” In 2008 Liesl launched Oliver + S, a new brand of sewing patterns for children’s clothing. Today Liesl also designs a line of Oliver + S fabric. She published her first book, Oliver + S Little Things to Sew in 2011.

In 2011 Liesl also created Lisette, a line of sewing patterns and fabric for women’s apparel that is now available at Jo-Ann stores in the USA and Spotlight stores in Australia. In 2012 Liesl debuted Straight Stitch Society, a collection of patterns for gifts and accessories. The brand’s tagline, “Life is hard. Sewing is easy.” expresses its quirky and sometimes irreverent personality.

Liesl Gibson Creativebug Trailer from Creativebug on Vimeo.

CreativeBug recently launched multi-month packages. Subscribers can now get a discount for signing up for multiple months in advance!

$24.99 monthly
$19.99 per month, billed every 3 months
$16.99 per month, billed every 6 months

So, what are you waiting for? Make a pattern. Make a print. Make a difference.

The post CreativeBug Workshop: DIY a Popover Sundress for a Child in Need appeared first on EcoSalon.

Now & Then: The History of the White Wedding Dress

Rowena Ritchie — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 21:43:47 +0000

The white wedding dress is still the most popular choice of even the most modern of brides.

The focal point of every wedding – even the most casual – is the dress.

Most feminists manage to turn a blind eye to the entrenched patriarchy behind most wedding rites. Even after decades of changing attitudes, the traditional long white gown symbolizing virginity is still the most popular choice of modern brides, by far. While early Roman brides wore white robes as a tribute to Hymen, the god of marriage and fertility, the white wedding dress is in fact a relatively recent phenomenon.

For medieval brides blue was the color of purity, not white. The wedded couple would wear blue ribbons, which evolved into our “something blue” tradition today. For centuries afterwards, brides wore bright colored wedding dresses to symbolize their happiness. Depending on their status and position, they’d incorporate expensive fabrics like fur, velvet or silk. White was considered the traditional color of mourning and therefore the last choice for a wedding dress.

The wedding dress responsible for the prevailing Western trend for long, white wedding dresses.

All that changed in 1840 when Queen Victoria wore a white satin and lace gown at her wedding to Prince Albert. The official wedding portrait was published around the world and her elaborate full-skirted fairytale white wedding gown became the first choice of Western brides, then and now, looking to be “princess for a day.”

Yoko Ono wore a white mini dress with a sun hat, over-sized sunglasses and white knee-highs for her 1969 wedding to John Lennon.

Traditional white dress fever dipped during the depression in the 1930s, when women settled for their “best dress” to get married. Wartime brides in 1the 1940s got married in their uniforms or scraped enough fabric rations together to sew a simple dress. The impact of Grace Kelly’s “Wedding of the Century” to Prince Rainier of Monaco in 1956, and her highly influential MGM designed gown made of ivory peau de soie, some with a fitted bodice and Brussels lace embroidered sleeves, inspired a return to the full-skirted romantic looks of the Victorian age by women in the prosperous post-war era.

Bianca Jagger’s gender bending wedding pantsuit was both chic and shocking in 1971.

The counter culture 1960s and 1970s ushered in an age of unorthodox wedding dresses, notably minidresses worn by such celebs as Mia Farrow at her 1966 wedding to Frank Sinatra and Yoko Ono at her 1969 wedding to John Lennon. When Priscilla Bealieu wed Elvis at the Aladdin Hotel in Las Vegas, the commercial wedding industry – and its tendency towards cheese – was born. Her big bouffant veil and babydoll-style dress perfectly matched the glitz of the wedding setting. When Bianca Jagger wed Mick in St. Tropez in 1971 wearing a large floppy hat and a white pant suit with – outrageously – nothing underneath, it seemed as if wedding attire would never be the same again.

Princess Diana’s fairytale dress reignited a trend for big wedding dresses that lasted throughout the 1980s.

And yet, in 1982, Lady Diana Spencer’s wedding to Prince Charles showcased another fairy-tale bride complete with a grand white Victorian-styled dress. Puff-sleeved with a fitted bodice and full-skirted of ivory taffeta, it inspired a generation of meringue-like frocks and royal wedding recreations across the U.S.

Carolyn Bessette’s sleek and sexy Narciso Rodriguez wedding gown.

The nineties saw a return to sleeker, less complicated styles. Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, the “it” girl of the 1990s embodied the simple yet classy look in the Narciso Rodriguez bias-cut silk sheath she wore in 1996 for her wedding to John F. Kennedy Jr..

Rocker Gwen Stefani’s unique pink and white dress showed classic with-a-twist wedding style.

In 2002, No Doubt singer Gwen Stefani embraced a classic style with a unique twist in her custom-made silk faille wedding dress Galliano for Dior gown with a fuchsia dip-dyed skirt. The dress garnered accolades among critics and brides-to-be alike, making various best celebrity wedding dresses of all time lists. Stefani donated the wedding gown to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London in 2011, cementing its place in wedding dress history.

Want to catch up on some more fashion history?

Now & Then: The History of Shapewear.

Now & Then: The History of the Sneaker.

Now & Then: The History of the Statement Outfit.

Now & Then: The History of Flared Pants

Now & Then: The History of the Ballet Flat

Now & Then: The History of the Breton Shirt

Now & Then: The History of the Platform Shoe

Now & Then: The History of the Pencil Skirt

Now & Then: The History of Skinny Jeans

Read more Now & Then articles here.

The post Now & Then: The History of the White Wedding Dress appeared first on EcoSalon.

Now & Then: The History of Shapewear

Rowena Ritchie — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 22:37:12 +0000

While some suggest they’re a symbol of female oppression, our current fondness for Spanx illustrates women continue to seek to contour and enhance their figures with shapewear.

Until the discovery last week of a 600-year-old bra unearthed in an Austrian castle, costume historians had thought the modern day bra had evolved from centuries of restrictive corsets. The four linen bras found were decorated with lace suggesting that like now, women in the middle ages appreciated bras, both for support and their ability to attract attention by enhancing the shape of their breasts. Women’s undergarments have long been underneath the ever-changing fashion silhouette. In this week’s Now & Then, we look at the evolving contours of the female body and the shapewear responsible for creating it.

A 600-year-old bra unearthed in an Austrian castle last week.

Bras as we know them today begin in the 1920’s. The “boyish” silhouette of the flapper era were achieved by stiff bandeaus that held the bust in and down by means of a clip attached to a light corset. Larger breasted women tried products like the popular Symington Side Lacer, which when laced at both sides pulled and helped to flatten women’s chests.

Actress Gloria Grahame in a typical sweater girl pose of the 1950’s.

By the 1950’s, women looking to emulate the uplifted look of film stars like Lana Turner and Jane Russell bought longline stitched cone bras that gave the pointed, conical shape favored by the sweater girls of the 50s. The introduction of nylon around this time revolutionized the bra by making them lighter, prettier and easier to wash.

Manufacturers in the 70s starting offering underwear in a range of colors and prints.

As clothing styles loosened up in the casual ages of 60s and 70s fashion, seamless underwear was essential to wear under knits for the popular no-bra natural look. Manufacturers began introducing prints and patterns to underwear fabric and bras could also be purchased in flesh tones. By the end of the decade, sequins and Day-Glo colors could be found, and simple stretchy “Boob Tubes” that supported disco era fashions became popular.

Underwear in the 80s embraced the erotic in lacy teddies and satin french knickers.

Breast support took a back seat in the 80’s, with underwear enjoying one of it’s most sexually-charged periods. The influence of high glamour soaps like Dallas and Dynasty, combined with a new body consciousness as a result of the keep-fit craze and the increasing popularity of separates ushered in a decade of erotic and highly feminine silk, satin and lace trimmed lingerie styles. All-in-one bodysuits and teddies were worn with matching high cut French knickers. When women began revealing the edge of a lace trimmed camisole beneath the popular power suits, the underwear as outerwear trend was born.

The wonder bra and its notorious advertising campaign in the 1990’s.

The 90s was the decade of the wonder bra. Technological advances in lingerie construction, and the influence of amazonian supermodels created a trend for cleavage enhanced fashions. Women lined up for the bestselling wonder bra, a plunge bra with detachable inserts that truly delivered on its name.

In 2000, Spanx was officially launched by Sara Blakely, an entrepreneur in search of a smaller butt, flatter abs and shapelier thighs. Tapping into a huge market of women looking for the same thing – $250 million a year is spent on Spanx products alone – and everyone from Gwyneth Paltrow, Tina Fey and Oprah embrace Blakely’s 21st century girdle alternative. Modern women clearly have no intention of abandoning their shapewear.

Beyonce showing off one of her Spanx seamless bodysuits.

Want to catch up on some more fashion history?

Now & Then: the History of the Sneaker.

Now & Then: The History of the Statement Outfit.

Now & Then: The History of Flared Pants

Now & Then: The History of the Ballet Flat

Now & Then: The History of the Breton Shirt

Now & Then: The History of the Platform Shoe

Now & Then: The History of the Pencil Skirt

Now & Then: The History of Skinny Jeans

Read more Now & Then articles here.

The post Now & Then: The History of Shapewear appeared first on EcoSalon.

Now & Then: The History of Flared Pants

Rowena Ritchie — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 21:07:25 +0000

All aboard for flares, it’s time to abandon the skinny trouser.

When Kate Moss starts wearing wide legged flares instead of the skinny jeans she singlehandedly made famous, you can bet the jig is up. Whether you know them as bell bottoms, flares, wide-legged pants or the first point of order after a seventies fancy dress invite, the fact remains – they’re back in a big way this season.

And yet, if ever there was a time where there are no rules when it comes to the right hemline, silhouette or color this is it. So what goes? It might well be a sense of social saturation that paired with a fitted jacket, extra long scarf and ballet flats, the skinny jean – once the proviso of punk musicians – has become the ubiquitous uniform of every mom on the school run. Despite the vintage flower-child connotations, flared pants feel remarkably fresh right now.

A bold yet minimalist look from Céline’s recent resort 2013 collection.

There is also the influence of Phoebe Philo’s standout Céline Resort 2013 collection (although it may well be redundant to single out any one of Ms. Philo’s collections – all have been entirely remarkable since her appointment in 2008 as the label’s creative director). Her full-legged flared trousers with contrasting colorblocked hems will undoubtedly see immediate success and prove as highly coveted and widely carried as Celine’s luggage tote.

A continual source of style inspiration, Stevie Nicks proves bell bottoms are feminine and wearable.

When the pants we now know and love (or hate) originated is hard to tell. They almost certainly are derived from Navy uniforms. Their flared or bell bottom was a functional choice for traditional sailors as they were easy to remove over boots, a breeze to roll up when swabbing the ship deck, quickly removable when wet – and should you fall into the water – it was even suggested that sailors could use the pants as a life preserver, tying the wide legs in knots and filling them with air.

Like the Charlie’s Angels, flared pants are a total 70s throwback.

By the late 1960’s the counter culture movement adopted the looser more comfortable flared pant rejecting the straight-legged styles of the establishment. As well as buying naval uniforms from surplus stores to embellish with stitching and patches, many hippies and peace protestors began modifying regular jeans by sewing in colorful triangles of fabric. Sewn into the outside leg seam below the knee to the cuff creating a flare below the knee, this flattering and easy-to-copy technique is a great idea for those of you now looking to abandon your skinnies for the wilder winds of fashion change.

Thanks to a wider hem that helps balance proportions, flared styles are more flattering than you might imagine.

Want to catch up on some more fashion history?

Now & Then: the History of the Ballet Flat

Now & Then: The History of Shorts

Now & Then: Met Ball’s Most Memorable Dresses

Now & Then: The History of the Breton Shirt

Now & Then: The History of the Platform Shoe

Now & Then: The History of Fitness Wear

Now & Then: The History of the Pencil Skirt

Now & Then: The History of the Cocktail Dress

Now & Then: The History of Skinny Jeans

Read more Now & Then articles here.