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Radical change was the motivating force for fashion in the 1960s. The inauguration of John Kennedy in 1960 energized the country. First Lady Jackie exuded style. She wore pill box hats and tailored clothing with a few simple accessories--suits with straight skirts and short jackets with big buttons. She delighted American women. Once, when she was charged with spending gross sums on clothing, she replied, "I couldn't spend that much if I wore mink underwear." Jackie challenged women to look in the mirror before going out and remove one accessory. Kennedyıs assassination in 1963 left disillusionment in the culture. The baby boom--the postwar surge of population and largest generation ever known to that date--came of age. Youth and pop music defined fashion. Motown introduced flamboyant matching outfits and synchronized choreography. From Britain came the Beatles, with their skinny ties and pointy boots; Twiggy, with her skinny legs and miniskirts; and Mary Quant with her A-lines and op-art. The sixties were swinging. Ethnic and space age motifs combined. Quant and Yves Saint Laurent opened boutiques, at the forefront of the movement that made shopping more fun. Clear vinyl dresses and culottes appeared. Fifties bouffants morphed into beehives. Corn rows came to campus. The Summer of Love evolved into war protests. When President Lyndon Johnson escalated the Vietnam War, youth protested on a scale not seen before. Hippies wore long rayon skirts, halters, bandanas, sandals, beads. Hair became a statement: long for both sexes, sometimes ironed straight. |
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