What better introduction could we have to vintage fashion than thrifting, urban outfitters, retro cameras, the rise of the subculture grunge, 90’s school girl vibes, shoulder bags, and vintage cameras? 

I’ve always been interested in the vintage aesthetic trends but recently I’ve wondered how 2020 fashion trends date back to the vintage eras and how have these old and new subcultures evolved into the world of aesthetics ( since we now have e girl, soft girl, vsco girls) 

VINTAGE AESTHETICS 

Vintage clothes are before the 1980’s – 1990’s. They can be found in vintage stores but in the world of aesthetics, it means someone who’s into old retro vibes and the era of  70’s 80’s and 90’s. 

So here are some of my personal insights I’ve noticed when it comes to vintage aesthetics and trends.

THE 90’S

It was a huge turning point as fashion globalized in this era. The subculture grunge was introduced while the preppy school girl styles were popularized. On top of that, teens continued to become fashion icons and the introduction of  supermodels ( ex.Versace girls ) boomed more.  

Rise of  grunge in the 90’s 

This subculture started as economics was an issue back then. Due to poverty, street gatherings and the rise of bands like Nirvana, people started to adopt this grunge look. On top of that top fashion brands, such as Marc Jacobs, popularized this style by adopting the grunge look and added it to their collection.

Current 2020 trend

Now a somewhat similar branch but more aesthetic style is the current e girl ( electronic girl ) Tik Tok helped this style rise in popularity and some of these includes chains necklaces, denim pants, the 90’s clips etc.

Rise of  90’s Preppy school girls 

Some may just call this trend a classic but in the world of aesthetics, they’ve brought back and evolved this type of style. Back then, the preppies were known as the upper class with a higher social status and were known to attend Ivy league schools. 

Some of these include cardigans, plaid skirts, tennis skirts, hair bands etc. 

Current 2020 trend

But this year’s fashion has brought the theme of the evolved preppies style into the world of aesthetics. However, with Quarantine, we can see more of this style trending on Instagram when it comes to the soft girl vibes/ trendsetting streetwear influencers. Whether it’s the plaid skirts, the cardigans, headbands or bucket hats (even making its way to the streets), it’s definitely a style with history.

The butterfly effect. 

You might’ve seen this over instagram bios or printings on crop tops, but the year of 2020 has also brought back the nostalgic 90’s butterfly effect. And that’s exactly the interesting concept when it comes to fashion, what goes around really does come around in the world of fashion.

THE 80’S

The 80’s was a decade of bold, style, and colour. Whether it was hair, makeup or clothing size,  everything was enlarged and brighter than ever. Also with the rise in cameras booming in this decade, it strongly affected how fashion was captured too. 

Fashion trend included: Denim/ designer jeans/ classic summer sundress/ jumpsuits/ overalls 

Current 2020 trend

As the 80’s was a decade of colour and boldness, we now see a replay in pastel colours brought into the world of aesthetics. Currently, pastel colours are especially popular among the world of social media and tie dye clothings are a quarantine edition. 

THE 70’S 

The 70’s cultivated some of the 60’s fashion (due to the fashion protest)  but in a much more exaggerated manner. Styling and Subcultures became more famous in this era and examples of this include: the fitness subculture, small ax hippies etc.

In fact, Vogue declared

Trends: women wore pants:  pantsuits / high rise /  jumper dresses over turtleneck shirts/ 70’s white belt and collars / long maxi dress/ high waist jeans / mod dress 

Accessories 

1970: vintage-style granny boots  ( laced up, stacked heels, embroidered fabrics)

1970 creating an earthy bohemian aesthetic 

Current 2020 trend

This year, we can see high rise pants also known as “ mom jeans” back in the stores and in the streetwear collections. On top of that add a crop top, a shoulder bag and the 90’s sandals would make the perfect aesthetic fit. 

After thought

Above are just the list of things I’ve learned and some insights when it comes to vintage in the world of aesthetics, but there could always be another list. Is anything you’re wearing today bouncing back to one of these decades?