Hell used to break loose when someone mentioned the 80s. I couldn’t help thinking about bad haircuts and scary Michael Jackson music videos (yes, I’m talking about Thriller). Recently, I’ve realised that we should give the 80s a lot more credit, especially now that it’s such a prominent part of the fashion world and also after experiencing a real life Roller Disco. Who knew that a leisure centre sports hall could act as such a temple of fashion inspiration? After getting past the initial shock and rubbing out my eyes several times, I could finally appreciate how much this era has impacted not only the fashion industry, but also society, art and music. The breakthrough moment of 80s fashion has to be the establishment of denim as a “you have to be crazy if you don’t own this!” kind of thing. Let’s try and forget the unfortunate Justin Timberlake-Britney Spears 2001 AMA’s denim incident though, where it looks like they could’ve used some help getting dressed that day (and not each others). Their misfortunes certainly do not reflect on the true potential of mixing up denim.

Fashion blogger Bebe Zeva (Fated to Be Hated) definitely knows her stuff; she chose different colours and textures for her denim, so that it didn’t look too “matchy-matchy” and broke it up with some hardcore metal accessories. Even though she’s not doing any bright colours in her clothes, there’s that pop of vivid pink on her lips, which is a subtle play on the neon revolution of the 80s. It was a lot more straightforward back then and it could be like that now, but you can’t really expect straightforward in today’s day and age. Designers come up with the most innovative ideas to make something fresh and new every season and neon is no exception. A personal favourite is British designer, Christopher Kane’s Spring/Summer 2010 collection, where he had a complete genius moment and created neon lace. Feminine and completely in your face at the same time.

Trends do come back again and again, but they’re constantly being modified and updated to suit our society, meaning you don’t have to dress up like a member of Wham! to give your style some 80s spirit. If you do insist on going all out though, I would recommend a trial run at a Roller Disco…just as a safety precaution.

Photo credits:

Blogger Bebe Zeva – ftbh.blogspot.com
Backstage Christopher Kane – weblog.brownsfashion.com