1960’s in fashion for women. Who did women really wear in the swinging 60’s ? Trends, dresses, miniskirts, mod hairstyles and makeup. Where to buy them.
The 1960’s saw Paris pushed out of supremacy by the rise of street fashion. Mary Quant’s miniskirt and Vidal Sassoon’s pixie haircut as worn by Twiggy, just two of the highlights of the London look. The decade saw a revolution in youth culture led by The Beatles, which culminated in the hippy fashion of the late 60’s and early 70’s. The 1960’s psychedelic movement reignited the Belle Epoch Art Nouveau era. The decade coined the term “retro” and the A-line shift dress echoed the simple flapper dresses of the 1920’s.
Leading this retro fashion movement was Biba, which brought fashionable but affordable clothing via a mail order catalogs. Makeup, concentrated more on the eyes than on the lips. Go Go boots and pilgrim shoes were a must have accessory to go with the shorter skirt lengths. Stockings were out, and tights were most definitely in.
Fashion accessories like sunglasses and hobo bags all helped cement the look of women on the march towards freedom of expression.
Though Paris Haute Couture was on a temporary slide, it’s Left Bank art film movement La Nouvelle Vague still showed that the French were cool. The classic Nouvelle Vague look, exemplified by Anna Karina were woolly jumpers and cardigans paired with pencil skirts.
These are only the highlights of the fashion trends in the 1960’s. Enjoy our archive of posts on 1960’s fashion history.
If you love the spirit of the 1960s beat generation, then you should read this book by the aptly named Veronika Carnaby! [ no relation to the famous London Carnaby Street apparently! ] American writer and poet Veronika Carnaby has a vintage charm about her that naturally slips into her written works. The story of …
Read moreVeronika Carnabys new novel “Bohemia” a 1960s lovers treat !
A Short History of 20th Century Women’s Fashion – 1900 to 1970. Glamourdaze have just published a concise history of women’s dress styles from the Edwardian era to the late 1960s. Read about the massive changes which came about in women’s fashion before, during and after the First World War. How women escaped from the …
That Iconic item in every woman’s wardrobe – A big fan of single neutral colors, Coco Chanel was really just pleasing herself with this number. In mourning mode after the death of her lover in 1915 ; Chanel’s tendency towards black naturally crept in to her designs. Paul Poiret famously asked Chanel once “For whom …
A charming 1960’s eye make-up commercial from Maybelline – the creator of mascara. The original formula was invented by New York chemist T.L. Williams in 1915. He gave it its name after his sister Maybel – who had shown him how she concocted her own basic lash make-up from mixing charcoal and Vaseline. When sold …
Vintage Swimwear Fashion (1961 Film) – Cloche Swim Caps from Playtex These days a girl has to keep her head to keep up with the changing seasons and styles. That goes for swim caps as well, with model Joan here seen above favoring the new crest shape motif against the new cloche shaped swim …
1960’s Swimwear by Oleg Cassini – 1960’s Swimwear by Oleg Cassini – creator of the Jackie Kennedy Look. This rare vintage fashion newsreel from 1961 features some beautiful swimsuit designs from amongst others – the famous French-born American fashion designer – Oleg Cassini. His designs for the First Lady Jackie Kennedy became known as The …
Thanks to Richard Jeffs of The Baim Collection for allowing us to publish this one minute excerpt from the feature Girls Girls Girls from the Harold Baim Collection. Directed by none other than Michael Winner of Death Wish fame. It features a bevy of women on a trip to the beauty parlour to achieve that …
Many thanks to Richard Jeffs of the Harold Baim Collection for giving us permission to feature a minute extract of the Michael Winner directed 1960’s fashion feature Girls Girls Girls. The Baim Film collection really is a lost archive of 1950’s and 1960’s Britain and you can view some wonderful clips on the archive and …
Get the Mad Men Look ! See also: 1950’s Fashion – The Real Mad Men 1960’s make-up Fashion – Rare film tutorial Rare Vintage 1960’s Hairstyles film Betty Draper, Joan Holloway and Peggy Olsen – courtesy AMC Achieve the genuine 1950’s and 1960’s Make-up Look as actually taught to women of this era ! Instant …