In many classic 90s films and television series, characters express their style through unique patterns, textures, cuts and accessories. This appears conspicuously in the romantic comedy “10 Things I Hate About You” written by Karen McCullah and Kirsten Smith, with the highlights of chunky shoes, graphic tops, babydoll dresses, and fun hair clips. Individuals outside of television have proved that they can do the same, as well. In this piece, two members of Poly Prep’s class of 1995 will be featured on their personal takes on fashion during the 90s.
The 90s decade was a time for dark lipsticks, big hair, baggy clothes and mini cardigans. In fact, in the August 1994 issue of the magazine Seventeen, numerous outfits displaying “school girl”, “grunge”, and even a mix of the two are featured.
Fashion is about inspiration, isn’t it? Charles and Valerie Diker Chair of Visual Arts Laura Beiles Coppola ’95 expresses that she got a lot of her fashion inspiration from television series (that were from the 70s and 80s), during high school. One piece which Coppola loved (that in fact had actually made a resurgence in the 80s) was bubble skirts: skirts which cinched at the waist and rounded voluminously at the bottom. She states that they were shown in episodes of the series she enjoyed throughout high school. “‘Family Ties’ was one, and so was ‘One Day at a Time’, they both featured some cool stuff, definitely,” says Coppola. “Chokers were a big thing, scoop neck shirts, mesh long sleeves and Z Cavaricci pants,” were her favorite pieces to pull out.
Differently, Kate Bernstein ’95 says, “you could tell what kind of music people listened to from what they were wearing, and since I love music, that was a big deal for me.” Despite her love for her “grunge-side,” Poly’s then stricter dress code led her to dress differently on and off campus (though she describes that they did blend together). “A pleated skirt was something I absolutely loved and wore all the time, and I was also obsessed with John Fleuvog shoes which I wore with white knee high socks. For my top, I would wear a ribbed sweater.” Bernstein describes that John Fleuvogs were Canadian leather shoes, almost replicating a clog.
Despite their different sources for inspiration and their takes on style during this time, both Coppola and Bernstein describe that the 90s were a rather lively time to be a teenager. “Big and bold,” Coppola describes, “I feel like we even had fun getting ready for school because we were into the idea of getting dressed up and being creative.” Similarly, Bernstein states, “for teenagers, your fashion was part of the music you liked and the books and magazines you read. And there was no internet then so everyone kind of discovered what things from pop culture they liked on their own.”
