The 60’s style of fashion

Background story to ‘The Twiggy Story’

 There were several youth cults in the sixties, each quickly succeeding the other. First the Rockers that had leather jackets and motorbikes, then the ultra stylish Mods, who clashed with the Rockers at seaside resorts. Then the Hippy look, based on a growing drug culture and finally the Skinheads.

In the first half of the 60s, for women’s fashion, the look of the late fifties remained. It was all about the glamour of American movies. By 1963,the wide skirts of the 50s had disappeared, but the look was still formal.

Slim fitting trousers were also popular casual wear for women in the early sixties. By the middle of the decade little had changed in women’s fashion. The Chanel suit, left, a hangover from the 50s was still very popular in the 60s. Hemlines might have been slightly higher.

The smart suit and fairly formal look remained popular, certainly for women over thirty.

Hair styles

 There were many differnt hairdo’s followed in the 60’s like the flip, the pixie style, the beehive.

The flip was a classic 60s look that remained ‘in’ for most of the decade. The beehive was popular in the early to mid 60s; a typical ‘Audrey Hepburn look’.

The pixie was a short hairstyle, which was popular in the mid 60s, before long hair came back in the hippy era. The bouffant hairdo dated from the middle years of the sixties. It needed a considerable amount of back combing and hair lacquer.

Skirts

The mini skirt was the fashion phenomenon of the sixties. Hemlines rose to 7 to 8 inches above the knee. There is some debate over who invented the mini.

 Mary Quant’s boutique, Bazaar, on the King’s Road, Chelsea was one of the first places that sold them in 1965. French fashion designer, André Courrèges, also added mini skirts to his fashion collection in 1965.

The mini skirt slowly caught on throughout the country in the years following 1965. Most women took a couple of years to accept the new look.

Fur: the brutal reality (Background to Worldwide participation in Fur-Free Friday 2008)

Is fur so irresistible, that innocent animals are not just killed, but have to endure terrible suffering? And for what – our satisfaction and pleasure?

Animals, indispensable for the survival of the fur trade are not just captured, but hunted to death for their ‘biggest asset’.

Those captured in sharp steel traps, suffer the most excrutiating pain. The sharp steel digs into their bodies, legs or paws.

On the other hand, hunted animals are shot and killed instantly or bleed to death.

At other times however, the animal suffers in a trap for hours or even days, before the hunters snap their necks in half or even tear up their chests. 
 

In both the above cases, these same traps may cripple and kill thousands of dogs, cats or any other unsuspecting animal that happens to cross its path.

In an effort to free themselves, they often bite off their own paw to escape.

 
Fur farms

According to Peta, animals that have been bred on fur farms spend their entire lives in small, dirty cages.

They suffer physical and psychological before they are killed.

To avoid the fur being damaged, some farmers kill bigger animals (like foxes) with an electric shock. 

This means they electrocute them through their mouth, anus or vagina, burning their inner organs.

 Animals killed by electricity feel the intensive pain of a heart attack while they are fully conscience.

Another method of killing includes poisoning with gas which leads to  suffocation.

In some cases, nearly 20 little animals have been pressed into a box through which poisonous gasses are released.

Other methods include killing animals in a decompression chamber, where compressed air bursts their inner organs.

Fur facts

Did you know that to make just one fur coat, you need to kill:

·         12 – 15 Lynx

·         10 – 15 Wolves or Coyotes

·         10 – 24 Foxes

·         16 -20 Beavers

·         27 -30 Racoons

·         60 – 80 Minks

·         60 – 100 Squirrels

·         130 – 200 Chinchilla

Making a difference….

In the past decade or so, the fashion industry has seen several leading names, turn to fur alternatives in their designs.

Such progressive designers include, Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, Stella McCartney, Calvin Klein and Vivienne Westwood are several amongst many.

Hollywood starlets like Alicia Silverstone, Kim Bassinger, Charlize Theron and Pamela Anderson are involved in a number of animal rights campaigns, protesting against the cruelty, fur-bearing animals must endure.

Tyra Banks and other internationally renowned super-models have also turned their backs on fur, raising awareness on the fur industry.  

In the UK itself, various High Street stores have adopted a fur free policy. Boots, H&M, Marks and Spencer’s, Dorothy Perkins, Selfridges, John Lewis and House of Fraser are all on the list.

Saying ‘no’ to fur has even reached as high up as the Monarchy.

The Royal Guardsmen’s iconic hats (made from the fur of Canadian black bears) came under scrutiny, and are to be replaced with more eco-friendly alternatives.

What alternative?

Furriers claim that the manufacture of polyester and nylon copies of the “real thing” involves chemicals that pollute the environment.

Also, there is a great deal of risk to the health of the factory workers who have to handle the fake fur.

The American Fur Commission has claimed that it takes one gallon of oil to make three just fake fur jackets.

Real fur, on the other hand, is natural and biodegradable, and therefore more ethical than artificial fibres, goes the argument.

 

Click here for Worldwide participation in Fur-Free Friday 2008 (main article).

To view date when this article was first posted, click here.