Shoulder Pads
By Lori Ferraro Fashion confession: I loved my shoulder pads back in the 80s, and I have my fingers crossed that they’re next in line for a huge comeback. There…I said it. At the big game on Friday night it was kind of hard to tell the difference between the players on the field and the girls in the stands. We both had our uniforms on — giant, helmet hair and giant, linebacker shoulder pads. Am I crazy? I loved the look!...
You’re the Bomb – Bomber Jackets
At some point in the late 80s, teenage girls (and boys) were walking around like they were straight out of the Air Force Academy. The bomber jacket was all the rage my senior year of high school – it came in many different styles, leather or vinyl, usually in some shade of brown. Some had big ‘ole collars and buckles and some had white, nubby lamb’s wool on the inside. Some were that army green color with the bright orange lining....
Fashionable and Folded – Fold Over Jeans
By Lori Ferraro Who else wore these high-waisted beauties? My girlfriends and I were all at the height of eighties fashion in our fold over jeans. I saw a picture of a pair of these the other day and it tooootally took me back: Not the most flattering look for us short girls, fold over jeans had pleats, several extra decorative brass buttons and button holes, and from what I remember they were almost always done in acid wash. I had...
What a Splash! Jean Nate’
By Lori Ferraro What’s black and yellow, huge and plastic, with a cap the size of a doorknob? Jean Nate’ after bath splash, of course! I would make excuses to take a shower in my parent’s bathroom, because my mom had a big bottle of the yellow stuff in there. I admired the beautiful women in the commercials who would splash handfuls of that yellow liquid on themselves. They looked so energized and enthused! And they did things like...
Besties and Boyfriends – Gold Charm Fever
By Lori Ferraro In the mid 80s everybody was dripping in gold, the girls and the guys. From name plates to chains to initial rings to charm necklaces to ID bracelets with your name on it, the gold rush was on during those high school years. Having a B/F/F was like, the best thing ever. My best friend in 8th grade was Tracey, and everybody knew that. But in case you didn’t know that, we had this to tell you: Tracey wore half and I wore...
The Cosby Sweater Returns
By Caroline Gidiere Brace yourselves: The Cosby Sweater is on its way back in!!! Rag & Bone, popular for their jeans and the ubiquitous “Classic Newbury” ankle boot, sent three looks down their runway at the Fall 2014 show that bear a striking resemblance to “Cosby Sweaters,” those worn by Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable (Bill Cosby) on the long-running 80s television hit, The Cosby Show. Marcus Wainwright, who along with David Neville...
The Rainbow Connection: Rainbow Shirts
By Lori Ferraro In the early-to-mid 80s my pre-teen bedroom was overflowing with the following decor: Hearts Unicorn Pegasus Kittens and… RAINBOWS. From rainbow shoelaces, stickers, barrettes, corkscrew earrings to a felt puffy rainbow wall-hanging above my bed I, along with every other girl in the sixth grade, had rainbow fever. My love of rainbows could also be seen on my favorite sweater and sweatshirt – did you have one too?...
And All That Jazz: Capezio Jazz Shoes
Junior year I tried out for Starettes, the school dance team which made absolutely zero sense…seeing as I was a pretty terrible dancer. I went out and bought some spandex “pants” (shudder) and wore a tank top with the obligatory off the shoulder sweatshirt over it. There was no need for me to run out and buy a pair of shoes because I already owned two pairs of these: Capezio “JAZZ SHOES.” Lots of girls in high school wore these,...
Just Dippity Do It!
By Lori Ferraro Back in the day our hair gel options were endless…tubes of Dep, L’oreal Studio Fix and LA Looks covered drug store shelves. I was a certified gel junkie, and only one reigned supreme due to its glue-like texture. Two words: DIPPITY-DO. My ‘do needed some Do…that’s fer sure. “For all the crazy looks inside of you, Dippity-Do it!” That commercial brings back huge memories of huge hair — the jingle will...
80s Comb with Hair Spray Pump
If there was one thing about 80s hair, it required copious amounts of hair spray. The needed volume could not be achieved any other way. I was partial to L’Oreal’s Studio Line, mostly because the smell appealed to me. But, my best friend was an Aqua Net girl, all the way. I’ve had the same, one sad thing of hair spray now for several years. I just don’t use it enough to ever finish the bottle. Not so in the 80s. It was the sheer...
Scent of the 80s
By Lori Ferraro Like everything else in the 80s, perfume was also little overboard – at least on this teenage girl it was. Subtlety was not my middle name and a little of anything never seemed to be enough…my signature scent was no exception. Walk down the halls of any high school around 1987 and along with the overpowering manly stink of Polo and Drakkar on the guys you would find a sweet, musky mixture of these legendary...
Christmas, 1987
By Lori Ferraro Below is a page from my diary, dated December 25, the year was 1987. Ladies – how many of you woke up to find one of these blasts from the past under your tree? 1. A few Forenza sweaters. Yes, those hot, chunky cable knit roll neck sweaters from The Limited. I even had my senior picture taken in my favorite, a Peptol Bismol pink number. 2. An Outback Red turtleneck. Again, from The Limited. Outback Red was a hot brand...
A Love Letter to a Big Stinker: Polo Cologne
The other day while on my lunch break downtown, I got caught behind a man wearing a cloud of fragrance that sent me screaming back to the eighth grade. This man had apparently just bathed in a bathtub of Polo cologne, and I was hopelessly left in his wake. At first I coughed – and then I smiled, altering my route to follow him an extra block – no joke. There are few things in life as powerful as a sense memory, and smells rank...
Essential Eighties – Esprit
I had to smile last week when I reached into my drawer to grab a pair of socks and put these on: Giant sweaters, blindingly bright colors, stripes and polka dots all come to mind when I think of the essentially 80s clothing brand Esprit. Oh, and everyone was walking around with these thin canvas bags getting lost in their oversize sweaters: I vividly remember a sleeveless, crisp white and navy Esprit sailor dress that I was in love...
80s Earrings: Lacquer Lightning
By Lori Ferraro So, I have a confession to make. I have always been, and forever will be . . . an earring junkie. Look at my current collection, which has recently been pared down: My collection has always required a “rack” “holder” or an “over-the-back-of-the-closet-door-vinyl-thingy” that I had back in the 80s. In the little pockets of the over-the-door-vinyl-thingy (I think that was the technical name for it) you could find a...
