The ‘80s Are Back in NYC Fashion

Despite the ever-changing notion of street fashion, a nostalgic style taken from the late 20th century has become a strong trend among young people who are image-conscious yet looking to make a statement.

The increasingly popular, vintage-inspired look is often associated with bold, fearless trends like fishnet tights under ripped "mom" jeans or retro color-block jackets over bandanas worn as shirts. Some call these trends ‘80s-‘90s; others call them stoner grunge, and the best place to find them is at thrift shops, stoop sales, or sometimes just on the street.

Stuyvesant freshman Hiro Kimura explained, “People our age are trying to find a unique style so they take old styles and make it their own...it's a sort of homage to the past.”

If you have managed to avoid seeing these trends, the style, as Kimura says, “[It] is about giving the appearance of indifference,” and is big on everything—clunky shoes, oversized jackets, and loose pants pulled up to the bellybutton. In contrast with the large, heavy parts of every outfit, form fitting crop tops often balance out the weight of more oversized pieces.

As pervasive as this look is among students in every corner of the city, it is loudest at high schools known for more alternative or “artsy” students. Without a doubt, the premier public arts high school, Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School, is unmatched when it comes to students embracing fashion and self-image as a form of personal expression.

Violet Silberman, a freshman at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School, noted "Over the summer...people who were more popular started wearing [these styles], and then everyone started wearing them." She defined popular as students more well-known on Instagram, where a well-curated image is everything.

While fashion is certainly a medium of self-expression, it also lends to status and image, especially in the era of social media. It is easy to present every perfectly coordinated color combination and unique set of statement accessories on platforms such as Instagram, feeding the trend even more.

Silberman also pointed out that the style is individual. "Everyone seems to express themselves the same way, and people aren't really afraid of what other people think of their outfits." At first, this seemed like a contradiction. How can people express themselves the same way but still be dressed differently enough to worry about judgment?

This contradiction is one of the interesting aspects of the ‘80s style. Though many people wear the same mom jeans, funky patterns, and vintage jackets, everyone wears these articles of clothing in different ways.

Whether people add engraved hoop earrings or a scarf from a stoop sale, wearers of the ‘80s style add something different to each look. The element of chance associated with vintage and thrifted looks allows for this style to be replicated without growing stale. As Silberman says, "Everyone's really outgoing with their fashion." If anything, it's quite a turn from the "basic" styles of the past year from large fashion lines like Brandy Melville. The ‘80s style is a rejection of the black and gray palettes of fast fashion, instead choosing to embrace color and individuality.

However, as fresh as one may look sporting an oversized windbreaker and button down romper, these styles are coming from somewhere and are directly inspired from the looks of the past. The whole premise of the look is its thrifted origin, giving dimension to the wearer who had to search through racks and piles of old clothing to uncover a gem.

While thrift stores have been around forever, with rows of musty sweaters and questionable feather dresses from the ‘70s, it's only now that New York’s teens have decided to take up thrift fashion. Stores such as Buffalo Exchange and L Train Vintage take advantage of this, with stores from Williamsburg to East Village as well as other various locations.

These neighborhoods attract young people in droves and maintain a character of youthfulness. Williamsburg and East Village have been transformed in the last few decades and are understood to be the centers of vintage shopping in New York; it is not surprising that L Train Vintage had its start along the same train line that connects these neighborhoods.

Although both Silberman and Kimura say they aren’t experienced thrift shoppers, Kimura states, “If you can find something [while thrift shopping] that someone else didn't want, but you want: perfect. It becomes a full circle.”

Secondhand fashion is not homogenous in price, quality, and purpose, and thus, there are a variety of ways to achieve the on-trend and eye-catching looks that have become essential to teen street fashion. Furthermore, major retailers like Urban Outfitters replicate the pieces associated with this style at full price, exuding the essence of vintage-inspired style without the grunt work of searching for pieces at lower prices.

At the very foundation of thrifting are charity-organization style secondhand stores like Goodwill and the Salvation Army. Clothing is typically at the lowest prices and can be considerably trendy, though seeking out the gems in a sea of unflattering and out-of-style pieces is more challenging than at affordable vintage shops like L Train and well-stocked consignment stores like Buffalo Exchange. The top tier of secondhand fashion are locations specializing in designer wear and meticulously curated vintage stores specializing in particular eras of fashion.

The loose guidelines for looking simultaneously laidback and image-conscious is characteristic of the current vintage-inspired trend, giving it a range of flexibility. Ultimately, it is a trend of some uniformity, but the one-of-a-kind nature of vintage shopping offers more variation and flavor to the look, arriving at a good balance of personal style and on-trend taste.