Back, in the 80s, shoulder pads were as important as hip flexors or bicep muscles. The fashion then was to wear large, solid shoulder pads that covered the entire arm from the elbow to the fingertips, and sometimes even beyond the elbow joint, as well as wearing large, solid, dark colors. The color options were endless, too, including black, purple, neon green, yellow, and red. As with hip flexors today, if you wished to have a solid color on your arm, you had to either have it completely covered or carry it off with a splattered pad that matched your outfit. It’s interesting to reflect on how much that the fashion of the 80s changed, because today, shoulder pads are almost a universal part of a woman’s uniform!
However, back in those days, shoulder pads were not nearly as necessary as they are for women today. They are actually quite unnecessary, because most high school girls back then could wear solid tops with solid pants, or they could skip shoulder pads entirely. They did, however, wear their hair in pigtails, and experiment with very interesting hairstyles. In short, the overall style of the generation is considered by many to be among the edgiest and trendiest of all time! Of course, that doesn’t mean that the fashion of the era is truly outdated!
Today, shoulder pads still make a big splash in the fashion world. However, their main purpose has become more about covering up than it is about creating a “look”. It seems that fashion designers these days are more interested in creating costumes than they are in making everyday wardrobe choices that people can feel comfortable and confident in. When it comes to fashion, though, I think that if people would take it away from its simplistic roots and give it a bit of intelligently placed thought, it would be a big hit. Let’s hope that happens soon!