As the 2010’s draw to a close, students at Bedford High School can be seen wearing all different kinds of clothes according to their personal styles. But, looking back through the decade, what would these students have worn throughout the years?
After the first ten years of the 2000’s, a decade largely defined by big jeans and bigger jewelry, the beginning of the 2010’s saw some styles that were much more mellowed out in taste. Young adults and teenagers throughout the country followed multiple fashion trends; clothes from decades past were in- ‘vintage’ clothes from years throughout the past 50 years were a popular choice. Within this trend, different styles from the 1990’s made a return; preppy fashion such as crop tops or blazers, as well as clothes worn in the grunge subculture- flannel and band apparel.
The largest subculture throughout the beginning of the decade was skater culture. Both boys and girls spent their time in skate parks wearing denim and loose clothing. The skater style was included in many forms of media; characters in movies and TV shows were dressed like this as a way to show their personality. Those who didn’t want to wear vintage or skater clothing were saved by another trend; hipster and boho fashion. Hipsters combined vintage flannel and skinny jeans from skaters to build another subculture. This era of the hipster movement is where the stereotypical view of the hipster comes from the first few years of the 2010’s. When you think of hipsters, it’s likely that you will think of men wearing lumberjack flannel or women with wide brimmed hats.
While there have been drastic changes in popular fashion in the following years, there are still similarities between trends now and then. 90’s clothes have begun to change more towards looks from the 1970’s. Shopping at any department store or mall gives a view into just how popular this type of apparel is. Shirts with red, orange, and brown stripes, along with floral print and bell bottom jeans can be found windows from all types of stores.
Along with vintage clothing, hipsters have made a return through a new trend; the VSCO girl, named after the popular photo editing app. Almost any young person in 2019 can immediately connect the term to the oversized t-shirts, Birkenstock shoes, and metal water bottles (more specifically, Hydroflasks). This trend was especially popular during the summer of 2019, and has since slightly died down due to the problems of dressing for warm weather in the winter.
The trend that goes hand-in-hand with VSCO girls is the e-girl/e-boy craze, a fashion trend started by a social media based subculture. Coming to popularity in late 2018, the e-girl subculture was started as a term for girls, primarily gamers, who spent a lot of their time on the internet (hence the e(lectronic)). This quickly developed into a style of fashion, where girls put their hair in pigtails, draw on heavy eyeliner and hearts under their eyes, and dress in all black. Because of its popularity, the e-girl craze spawned a male counterpart, the e-boy; a boy who usually wears t-shirts over a striped long sleeve shirt and plenty of chain jewelry. These people seem to be the 2019 version of the skaters of 2010. They are part of a subculture, popular with young people, that is expressed through wearing loose clothing and dark colors.
Within the last 10 years, trends have finished and begun, with people giving life to new styles and ending others before they have time to catch on. The biggest styles have never truly disappeared, instead transforming into new ones. Even students at Bedford High School follow some of these trends; many own Hydroflasks, or do something different with their hair that makes them stand out from the crowd. As the next decade passes, trends will continue to change, and teenagers around the world will continue to express themselves through the way they dress.
