80's Fads & Fashion
Surfer Pants - Usually light in color and fabric with a little string in the front to tie.
Madonna Gloves - From the Like a Virgin era. Also Crosses were big and whatever Madonna wore, the chicks wore too.
Cut Socks as Gloves - Cutting off the ends of sweat socks (usually the kind with the different color rings at the top of the sock) and wearing them as wristbands. A lot of the punks did this. It's funny-you see the guy in the movie Salt Lake City Punks wearing these.
Polka Dots - Shirts, suspenders, socks, etc. Different colors.
Jelly /Gummy Bracelets - Those were the thin plastic bracelets that girls would wear tons of at a time - and rings.
The Preppy Look - Short hair (for the guys), penny loafers, argyle socks, Polo shirts with the collar sticking up. This description could go on and on! You get the idea.
Big Obnoxious plastic comb - With solid or swirling colors, usually kept it in your back pocket.
Pet Rock - An ordinary rock with plastic eyes on it. This goofy fad made someone millions of dollars and a place in history!
Mexican dresses - Maybe this was subject to geography - Texas.
Jimmy-z and Z-Cavaricci clothing - They were extremely multi-colored "knitted" sweaters that looked more like a tangled knot that just happened to be in the shape of a sweater. No rhyme or reason, and they were often lumpy looking. Similar to the sweaters Bill Cosby wore on his show.
Slap Bracelets - They were about an inch wide with metal on the inside and colored cloth on the outside. They were in bright colors and were straight and when you hit them on your wrist they bent around your wrist like a bracelet.
Jams - Jams were multi colored shorts -- guys mostly wore them. They were like the Hawaiian shirts only for the bottom. Most guys wore them without socks, and sandals of some kind. The preppy look for those hot summer days!
Multiple Outfits - These were interchangeable multi-colored cotton clothes that were often cinched with a a sash. Also - anything really busy, clashing and eye popping!
Skateboarding - Very popular even today!
Snowboarding - Another very popular sport (we guess you can call it a fad). One of our visitors wrote in saying, "HOT guys and girls do snowboarding, Weird guys and girls do skateboarding. ;)
Friendship Pins/Bracelets Pins - were often worn on sneaker laces and denim jackets.
Coke clothes, jeans, accessories - Have a Coke and a smile! Or was it, Coke is it? In any case, these clothes were in!
Twisty Bead necklaces - Thin beaded necklaces, lots of different colors, you would twist them together and clasp them in the back with a clip. You could also make them long by doubling one in the back and connecting it on the side with a clip. Any self respecting 80's chic had twisty beads in EVERY color. They were great to wear with your izod shirt and polo shirts. Collars up, of course!
Bennetton - First hit around 1988 - a new clothing line, all about colors, animal prints, and jeans. Alot of denim matching ensembles. It was a had to have line, like Guess, Esprit and L.A. Gear.
Camp Beverly Hills - It was cheap women's perfume. Loves Baby Soft was also popular.
Banana Republic - before they became the upscale Gap they are today, launched in 1987 or so with a safari theme. It was all khaki's and t-shirts with jungle animals on them, and, of course, bananas. Most of the stores were decorated in rattan wood, with fake trees and a jeep in the middle of the store.
Jordache Purses - Those little $3 crescent-shaped Jordache purses with the skinny string shoulder strap. They were made out of a really lightweight vinyl/tyvek kind of material -- it had the Jordache horse-head logo stamped on it. They came in lots of colors (metallic too).
Plastic Spring Bracelets - Those neon colored plastic spring bracelets (I believe there were necklaces & earrings, too).
Shopping - at The Limited Anything Forenza or Outback Red!
Roach Clips w/ feathers dangling - they were attached to your belt loop. Never know when you might need something like this!
Pop Balls - This is not what you are thinking (get your mind out of the gutter). These were rubber balls that you turned inside out, laid them on the floor and watched them pop up.
Creepy Crawlers - Throw them on the wall and watch them slowly crawl back down. Ewww, Creepy! :)
Code Bleu clothes
Dexters - A deck (boat type) shoe.
Jeri Curls - Popular for the African Americans (mostly men). Looked like a shiny, wet perm. See: Michael Jackson, circa "Beat It" video; also see: Eddie Murphy's "Coming to America" movie with it's Jeri curl parody (featuring today's ER's Eriq LaSalle), "Soul Glow". The term Jeri Curl was named for the solution you sprayed in your hair to get the desired effect.
Punk Look - Made popular from bands like the Clash - Mohawks, chains, make up, etc.
Flashdance Look - Ripped pants, shirts, strapped shirt under a sweatshirt. Ohhh sexy!
Valley Girl Look - Hair that was shorter (spiked or curly) on top and a little longer in the back, head bands (usually stripped) that matched our fitted stripped tops, mini skirts of mini skirt-dresses, big earrings, bright colors, belts (around our hips - first made big by Mike Hutchence in the "One Thing" video, usually doubled). And let us not forget leg-warmers!
New Wave Stuff - New Wave was in reference to music culture (i.e., Pet Shop Boys, Dead or Alive, Erasure, Duran Duran, Echo and the Bunnymen, etc) - fashion-wise, look at any of the previously mentioned bands and they're videos, and think: feminine guys with make-up and teased hair (before Poison-like glam rock), Creepers shoes, Long duster coats (i.e.., Boy George), little bowler-like black hats and eye-liner, a lot of black-and-white accessorizing. See: "Ducky" in "Pretty in Pink";, a reference made in "SLC Punk" (during the slide show about who beats up who - the New Waver's don't beat up anyone).
Swatch Watches - Went well with the plastic bracelets. Was accompanied by other Swatch watches. Sometimes worn with more than one watch.
Spoon Rings - usually sterling siver with the design of a spoon handle, or fork. We called them spoon rings. (Added compliments of Trish)
Michael Jackson Glove - Couldn't even believe I actually saw people with this on.
Miami Vice Look - Well padded blazer with a pastel T-shirt under, etc. Shoes with no socks.
"Puffy" silver hearts Jewelry - "puffy" heart pendants for necklaces.
Generra Generra - is a brand name, they made men's' clothes and those "hyper color" t-shirts.
Vision Street Wear - Skateboarding gear such as T-shirts, caps, beanies, shoes, skateboards and more!
Huge clocks Wore around the neck - Usually worn by rap members and made famous by Flava Flave.
Anything Neon - Pretty self explanatory. Socks, Shirts, Hair accessories, bracelets, earrings, shoe laces, etc.
Featured 80's Product
Pure 80's