by Deborah Ugoiwa
From slip dresses and leather jackets to high waisted jeans and leg warmers, everyone’s fashion sense is formed by everything and anyone. Nowadays we can see the revival of fashion trends from many eras but the most notable are the unmistakable fashion trends from the late 80s, 90s and early 2000s.
While it’s great to see that keeping my older sisters’ pairs of jeans from the 90s has come in clutch, it begs the question of whether there can ever be true authenticity in fashion? According to fashion experts, fashion trends often recycle themselves after about twenty years. This is known as the ’20-year rule’, but why does this happen? Researchers believe that trends make a reappearance due to generational changes. Often living by famous saying “what sells repeats,” designers like to draw inspiration from past successes during their creative processes. This same inspiration is drawn on within our choice of fashion today. A huge wave of 2000s nostalgia has hit, which can be seen in the rise of low-rise jeans/trousers, baguette bags, miniskirts, and faux fur jackets. Even seeping its way into media forms such as photography, wanting to achieve that grainy early 2000s style. Considering all of this, can there ever be room for true authenticity?
I personally think there can be. I believe as each generation comes and goes, there is this search for authenticity and originality in individuals. While I believe this is a valid consideration, I think our idea of authenticity is slightly flawed. Throughout the years fashion has evolved and taken on different forms and peaked different interests. However, these changes came from what was already there at the time! Trendy pieces, such as flared jeans, aren’t styled the way they would be in the 60s and 70s. Today, we have taken our own spin on trends from the past to inform our own personal styles and reinforce our various subcultures that we have now.
In conclusion, the revival of fashion trends is something that occurs with each generation that passes. We can sum this up to generational changes and previous market successes. This allows us to relive the beauties of the past while transforming them in the present. So next time you’re thinking of throwing away those old pair of jeans, don’t!
You never know what may come back into style.
