2. 6 1970S Punk Fashion

Today everyone knows what punk fashion is, but in 1970 it didn't exist. Punk first emerged in the middle 1970s in London as an anarchic and aggressive movement. About 200 young people defined themselves as an anti-fashion urban youth street culture. Closely aligned was a music movement that took the name punk [5, p. 290].

The clothes suited the lifestyle of those with limited cash due to unemployment and the general low income school leavers or students often experience [14].

Punks cut up old clothes from charity and thrift shops, destroyed the fabric and refashioned outfits in a manner then thought a crude construction technique, making garments designed to attract attention. It deconstructed garments into new forms. Whilst torn fabrics, frayed edges and defaced prints are now considered normal in the 21st century, in the 1970s it shocked many people, because it had never been seen before. Until then fabric had been treated as a material to keep as pristine, new looking and beautiful as possible.

Trousers were deliberately torn to reveal laddered tights and dirty legs. They were worn with heavy Doc Martens footwear, a utilitarian, practical traffic meter maid type of footwear in that era, not seen on many young women until then. Safety pins and chains held bits of fabric together. Neck chains were made from padlocks and chain and even razor blades were used as pendants.

In 1970 it was true anti fashion and anti establishment, but now it is so everyday that not even great grandmothers titter. Thirty years after Punk emerged as a rebellious youth oriented fashion many grandmothers and great grandmothers sport a tattoo or piercing somewhere on their body.

2.7 1980 New Romanticism

New Romanticism was a manufactured scene within London nightclubs in the early 1980s. The posers within the group, often the more creative people who had always been more interested in the sartorial aspects of dressing up than the anarchic statement of punk anti fashion, looked for new ideas to draw attention to themselves [9].

London night clubs started to change their format from Friday and Saturday nights as being the only important music nights. The club 'Gossips' in Soho began to do Bowie nights on Tuesdays and then more one night specials for niche tastes. That set the scene for special one night club evenings throughout London. Narrow tastes could be catered for[6, p.30].

The former punk posers had taken to glamour and romance in clothing and the club venues offered them a chance to show off that glamour at dedicated evenings. Theatrical ensembles were worn to selected clubs in London such as Blitz and St. Moritz. These were the recognised venues where the romantic movement started.

The early designers of the romantic look were Vivienne Westwood, Colin Swift, Stevie Stewart and David Holah. Westwood began her romantic ideas with adaptations of dandified Regency designs which later she developed into a Pirate look.

Typical romantic glamour had the swashbuckling style of pirates and buccaneers. Full sleeved frilled pirate shirts were made from luxury fabrics. Theatrical brocade or hussar style jackets of velvet or silk complete with braiding were copied and appeared on many jackets.

The New Romantic look was intended to be individual, unlike punk which tended to have uniformity. New Romantics longed for the fantasy of the nineteen thirties and fifties glamour of Hollywood.

Occasion wear included a return of cocktail dresses and evening suits with flared basque jackets, or Chanel line brocade jackets and just above knee short straight skirts.

Dresses in slinky satins and foulard silks or polyesters were often batwing or with set in sleeves. Both styles had shoulder pads and frequently swathes of fabric were gathered and ruched onto hip bands, with falling silk, crepe de chine or chiffon asymmetric draped swirling skirts.

Lace was popular for evening, especially cream lace bound with cream satin collars. Lace collars made an appearance after being worn by the Princess of Wales. Mohair sweaters were oversized, but covered with lavish beading and satin appliqué they could be worn for evening too. Highly styled intarsia knit jumpers became fashionable. And so London became the fashion centre in Britain