Fashion Gets Real~ January 1989

 

I was once Seventeen...

I make no bones about the fact that I am a fashion magazine junkie. I could spend entire paychecks on style rags. I have several subscriptions but that doesn't even count all the international ones that pop up on the shelves of the nearby Barnes & Nobles. Every time I go in there, the new titles seem to multiply like wet Gremlins. It's so hard to keep up, but I manage my best (needless to say, working so closely to B&N has been somewhat of an occupational hazzard for my bank account) .

Besides all of the new issues that arrive on the stands (and in my mailbox) every month, I have an especially huge soft spot for vintage fashion magazines, in particular Seventeen. Seventeen was my bff all throughout middle & high school. When the daunting days of my teen years were in full swing, I'd retire to the couch after class, sit in front of "General Hospital", and absolutely devour every issue in a very timely manner: first, I'd flip through to see what was on the pages. Then, I'd go back to the beginning and read the articles that interested me most. Eventually, I'd read every bit of text between to covers.

These days, I often spend hours hunting down old copies via eBay (where a single issue from the 60's or 70's can often fetch $30+). Or if I am lucky, every so often one will appear on Etsy. I have been known to even stumble upon a small treasure trove at a flea market for only a couple bucks an issue (I love those days...le sigh). Needless to say, when I remembered that I had lovingly kept my own original, well-read issues in under-the-bed boxes in my old bedroom, I had to pull them out and mess with nostalgia.

And what do you know... they didn't even look terribly dated.

Albeit the crimped, over-sprayed teased out perms are not something to be repeated. But in terms of fashion, much of what is presented is in fact, dare I say, covetable? Cut-out body-con dresses in June '91. Jamaican-influences in June '88 "pack a tropical punch". And you can do nothing but envy a 15-year old Katherine Heigl's biker jacket/ mini kilt combo in '94. There are so many great images in here that the stylist in me feels really compelled to share them. And since I am also a vintage clothing enthusiast (who, not so surprisingly, sells online), whenever a piece arrives that looks like it was taken from one the pages, I will definitely be sharing it as well.