1990s

The pace of life accelerated sharply. Technology was developing at whirlwind speed, and we depended on it more and more for communication, business, and entertainment. The Internet, mobile phones, personal organizers, other gadgets—still something of a novelty in the eighties—became essential parts of everyday life.

The 1990s have been called the decade of anti-fashion, the decade when street fashion finally won out over haute couture, and the decade that saw the death of the designer in a way. Nostalgia and retro were high on the agenda: often, it seemed that a trend had hardly passed before it was being revived, given an ironic makeover, and put back on the runway. 

The nineties opened with economic recession and high unemployment figures. For many, the previous decade’s freewheeling spending came to a halt.  Working from home became common. Ordinary retail clothing sales, textile manufacturing industries and stores all declined from a less active more casual marketplace.

Remnants of the eighties were still around for the first years of the 90s and particularly in provincial areas. Short above knee straight skirts and stirrup ski pants masquerading as a refined version of leggings were worn with long chenille yarn sweater tunics, oversized shoulder padded shirts or big embellished T-shirts. The latter gradually reduced in size to become slimmer fitted and semi fitted garter stitch knits with fake fur collars, darted three-quarter shirts and screen printed T-tops minus the pads often worn with tie waist, easy loose trousers, jeans or boot leg trousers. The Filofax died as many people now had Laptops or electronic organisers to keep records.