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Friday, February 15, 2002 Syracuse, New York
CNY Life and Leisure News
They're baaaack
By Laura T. Ryan

The signs have been gathering for some time now.

First, music channel VH-1 started to stack its schedule with Behind the Music documentaries on musty groups such as the Go-Gos, the Bangles and Hall & Oates. PlayStation and Nintendo released versions of classic video games such as Asteroids, Space Invaders and Missile Command. And then Mr. T - yes, he of the mohawked dome and gold-spangled chest - resurfaced on TV. This time, he pitied the fool who didn't "dial 1-800-COLLECT."

Madonna was back on tour last summer in fine, rock-'n'-roll punk style: black bondage-style pants, kilt and fishnet shirt. Then, of course, Fox followed up the success of "That '70s Show" by introducing "That '80s Show" last month.

So it was only a matter of time before shoulder pads, designer jeans, leg warmers, wide belts, layered peasant skirts and big, broad, blowout hair started to look good to us again. And acid-washed jeans. Teased bangs. Ponytails tied off to the side of the head with a scarf. Clattering collections of costume jewelry. Scrunchy boots. Jackets with copious zippers. Suit jackets over T-shirts. Ultra-thin neckties.

Yep. Eighties fashions. They're baaack.

"Fashion is cyclical, and everything after 15 or 20 years comes back, like it or not," says Sharon Haver, founder of online fashion magazine www.focusonstyle.com. "If you really like something, hang onto it for 15 years.
Haver, who worked as a fashion photography stylist in New York City in the 1980s, was there the first time around, when the club scene in Lower Manhattan spawned that "funky vintage mix" of styles in the late '70s and early '80s.
"There were two sides to the '80s," Haver says. "The downtown mix of black and vintage and lots of layers and thrift-shop jewelry and bleached-out hair and flat shoes and things that were fun to dance in."
And Madonna brought downtown NYC to the masses in the early '80s.
"The Madonna look started from the street, it started from kids," Haver says. "It was thrift-shop and funky because that's what they could afford. They had to use some imagination, and that's what makes fashion more interesting."
The latter end of the decade featured the Ivana Trump/"Dynasty" trend of glam fabulousness. Think sequins and stilettos for starters.
Those who didn't fall in for Madonna's crinoline-bustier combos nor Joan Collins' polyester glitz gowns probably considered Jennifer Beals' off-the-shoulder "Flashdance" style.
"Little bits of the '80s are coming around now," Haver says.
Haver spots the '80s fashion influence today in shoulder ornamentation and an overall draped, blousy look. She also sees some big hair on the runways, but (count your blessings) no blue eyeshadow.

Lorraine Koury, owner of Boom Babies Vintage Clothing on Westcott Street in Syracuse, says interest in the '80s will start on the campy, tongue-in-cheek costume level, then slowly evolve into actual daily wear.

"It bleeds in over a season or two," says Koury, whose store carries '80s originals, as well as modern reproductions.

Some '80s mainstays that have bounced back into circulation:

" What Koury lovingly calls "big stupid belts." You know the ones: Wide as a saddle strap, and all the better to drape big blousy tops over.

" Draped, pleated styles.

" Black, heavy-metal T-shirts.

" "Tube tops of every permutation," Koury says.

" Dolman sleeves. Also known as bat-wing sleeves, they're big and loose on top, then skin-tight from the elbow to the wrist.

" Plunging cowl necks.

" Punk-rock influence: fabrics slashed and safety-pinned. Hair spiked and dyed neon.

Rather than follow the example set by "That '80s Show," Haver suggests people "mix the past and the present and make a style that's more unique and interesting than a cookie-cutter, I-saw-it-on-the-runway (look)."

© 2002 The Post-Standard. Used with permission.