I've known Courtney (who's posted on my blog a few times) since 6th grade (that would be 1983 for those of you who don't know how old The Material Girl is). So this is an ode to Middle School fashion (mine, that is).
Sixth grade was characterized by Lee Riders - you know, the pleated, tapered Lees. I had jeans and light gray cords. I also loved my gray and pink Nikes, polo shirts, sweaters and Ocean Pacific tops. My hair was feathered and my glasses were large.
Seventh grade saw me venturing more into dressy wear, with pleated, tapered dress pants, skirts (super-long or short, nothing in between) and loafers. I was still drawn to light gray, pinks, purples and the like. My hair was shorter, but still pretty feathered and my glasses were pure preppy. This was the year of Matthew Mallard and Boundary Waters (Dayton's specials).
Eighth grade had me branching out a little more. Colors became brighter, styles a little edgier (this was the Madonna era, you know), bracelets were chunky, earrings were large and necklaces were beaded. My hair was short with a capital S and I started experimenting with color and perms. Experimentation was the key to my style in eighth grade - footless tights, skimmer flats in every color, oversized shirts, shaker sweaters with button-down shirts and ties. My family didn't have the money for the trendy brands, so I put my stamp on the trends and avoided the trauma. But, this was the year I discovered The Gap, which was heaven for my preppy-self. This was the year I officially moved into juniors/misses and out of all girls' sizes. Courtney and I used to spend time at the Mall, searching for the next great thing at Foxmoor, Braun's, Dayton's and the like. She had more of the cool brands than I did, but we did have a lot of the same things.
Here's to the past staying in the past (and off of my ass)! I'll forever be thankful for straight leg or bootcut jeans with a little stretch. I'm also pleased that I have moved on from wearing only XL shirts and now embrace the fitted shirt (not tight, but fitted). Heels are a helluva lot higher and I no longer match my socks obsessively to my shirts.
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3 comments:
I think in your 8th grade yearbook photo you have a white shirt, pink shaker sweater, and a colorful tie. Does that sound right? :) Must dig out the yearbooks when I'm "home" for Thanksgiving and see if I'm close... Didn't we color your hair one time at Tracy P's house?
I forgot about Braun's - there was another sort of large store across from Foxmoor - was that Lerner? It was another store we used to go to a lot. And we can't forget Dale's, which was and still is(!) downtown.
I still have one of the front/back Boundary Waters duck sweatshirts in gray/pink, that's been hanging out in my closet since, well... 7th grade! I was so sure they'd make a comeback in 20 years! My mom laughed at me for hanging on to my old Dr Scholls, but sure enough, they rolled back around a few years ago. Of course they were updated and with more heel and color varieties, but still...
I vote for fitted Boundary Waters duck tees in lots of colors to come full circle!!!
That was my 8th grade picture outfit. Without glasses - as contacts were part of the picture in 8th grade. I never had any of the duck sweatshirts, but I coveted yours. Why, oh, why did leggings have to return? They are not coming back on my ass!
I really didn't think leggings would ever come back - I started to get scared when I saw photos of Sienna Miller wearing them(!). And now I see them all over campus (my workplace). I wonder if we'll see the stirrup pants variation any time soon... I remember our twin long black knit skirts, though, which were very cool. And you had these great white socks with a big blue flower on each side - I think you wore them with a royal blue cardigan!
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