Last night I was down the shore with some friends. We drank, chatted and walked the boardwalk while our frighteningly beautiful teenaged daughters danced at an alcohol-free teen club. Had a lovely time but got home wayyyyyy past my bedtime! Ergo tonight’s post will be short.
Now for the teen fashion report: Down the Jersey Shore this summer, all the kids look as though they shop at Abercrombie & Fitch. Last night at the club, the girls all wore their hair long, streaked, and ironed straight. They also dressed exactly the same: Tank tops, wide belts (!!!!!!!!!), and raggedy faded jean skirts that were waaaaaaaayyyyyyyyy too short for a mother’s comfort. (Speaking of the abomination that is the wide belt, check out FacePalm, The Diet Coke of Evil, who hails out of Hong Kong. Hat tip to The Manolo! Ayyyyy!)
Of course, it all brought back so many memories of the way I used to change my clothes after passing my mother’s inspection and escaping from her sight. How many of you remember rolling your shorts up so high that your butt cheeks hung out? Remember The Dukes of Hazard and how we all tried to look just like Daisy Duke? Or did you miss that trend? How about the TUBE TOP, eh? Admit it: We think teens dress provocatively today, but were we any better when we were their age? Probably not . . . So, what are your teen fashion memories? Extra points for anyone who can present damning photographic evidence of The Way We Were.
6 responses so far ↓
Veronica // August 24, 2006 at 12:43 am
Weird. I posted a few of my senior pictures earlier. However, I was only in Kindergarten when they canned Daisy Duke, and I was in high school mostly during the ‘Popular Homage to Seattle’ Era of flannel and thermal shirts and ripped-up jeans. Less than sexy. I will say that I wore the “Clueless” style thigh highs in 11th grade, though. But, that was because Mom insisted. She was so excited for me to be wearing a skirt. I think I missed out on this sneaky dressing thing.
hedonisticpleasureseeker // August 24, 2006 at 12:49 am
I checked it out and Veronica gets EXTRA POINTS! She looks good though.
dagger aleph // August 24, 2006 at 1:06 am
I went to a Catholic school and our kilts were supposed to be just-below-knee length. But of course that’s super-ugly so most of us had our moms hem them up above the knee. Some girls’ moms weren’t so cool and wouldn’t allow hemming, so the solution was to roll the kilt at the waist. Which led to fabric bunching around the butt.
I was in my mid-twenties during the grunge era, and it was so great. I long for it to come back. Just the fashion. Not the music.
Most embarrassing fashion faux-pas for me was the asymmetrical hair cut. Super-short on the left, chin-length on the right.
Bill // August 24, 2006 at 1:42 am
I personally didn’t try to look like Daisy Duke, but I liked girls who did! Trust me, even if I had photographic evidence of my butt cheeks showing below short shorts, or wearing a tube top, you would not want to see them!
Yes, I think relative to the norms of the time girls were just as inclined to go to the edge or a bit beyond when I was a teen. But I am with you, HPS, in thinking that today’s “norm” is uncomfortable for a parent or really anyone who thinks teens need time to let their minds catch up with their bodies.
Glad to see that you had fun at the shore, though!
Dates Bubbas // August 24, 2006 at 5:29 am
Drat! I think I have only a handful of pictures of any of us from back then. Ooh… EXCEPT for the yearbooks bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha…
Cheryl // August 25, 2006 at 5:01 am
Halter tops and peasant blouses. Somewhere my mother has a dreadful shot of me on the beach in Wildwood at age 15 or so in a horrid halter bikini. (I wore a peasant blouse as a cover up…I was so cool!) I never tried wearing hip-huggers again after seeing that photo. I’d sooner deep throat a ‘funk-filled bratwurst’ than post that on the internet. ; )
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