Everything Old is New Again

A Voice from the Market

It’s the year 2010 and fashion finds itself skipping back a few decades. Pant suits are out of style and pencil skirts are in. The side-parted pixie cut is out the door, replaced by a bold flipped bob. Yes, women all over the United States have discovered the styles prevalent in the late 50′s and early 60′s. The chic style of Jackie Kennedy, the youthful beauty of Mary Tyler Moore, and the cute sophistication of Natalie Wood are all now the fashions young women want.

You may not see many beehives or horn rimmed glasses but you’ll see the return of the classic pencil skirt wearing secretary as well as more flat shoes than you can shake a heel at. It’s a fashion global flashback
with hairstyles, casual clothing, professional clothing, shoes, purses, make up, and accessories all taking on the sophistication of a decade long past. Soon enough designer boutiques and big box stores alike will be inundated with different variations of the collared button down dress-suit or form hiding loose dresses.

In this time when miniskirts and tiny shorts are common place you’d think that the most scandalous of swim wear would be the big trend. Not so! The modest one-piece is making a come back in a big way this summer, with the retro style of the 1950′s being the front runner. The strapless sweet heart necklines along with the modest and classic square bottom have made fashionable young women long for the days of her grandmother’s youth. The modesty and full figured beauty of the American woman has returned and the biggest designers have fully embraced her. The latest line by designer
Jen Kao featured several fashion forward one-pieces, some inspired by the new “steam punk” and others by the classic film “The Matrix”. This style of swimsuit made a big splash when it was featured on an episode of the popular talk show The Tyra Show. The men in the audience were thoroughly enthusiastic about the models sashaying across the stage in the latest 50′s style swim wear. Then again, perhaps it wasn’t the swim suits they were looking at. But it proves a point: out with the teeny weeny poke a dot bikini and in with the beach boogie style of pucker stitched strapless one-pieces.

The early 1960′s trend of the last year was definitely spurred on by the popular AMC television show Mad Men, a dramatic series about Manhattan ad executives in 1960. With the show now entering its fourth season and available on DVD and Blu-Ray, its cool retro style is in easy access for
people all over. What woman didn’t fantasize about being the desperate beauty Betty Draper or identified with the innocent secretary Peggy Olson who was a doe-eyed small town girl changed by the big city? And this isn’t something that’s exclusively female either. Men have begun to imitate
the chic suits and thin ties worn by Don Draper and his coworkers at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce Advertising Agency. They’re embracing the idea of using their imaginations rather than having every bit of the female form shown off in full view.

While America has never fully abandoned the style of decades past, 2010 is proving a huge resurgence of the classic style of that great transitional period. With the help of television and the support of fashionistas, this one style that isn’t going away for at least another fifty years. With Mad Men box sets flying off the shelves it may be a while before this trend moves into the
background.