In 1983, did everyone collectively come together & decide to stop wearing polyester clothing?

[Anonymous]

Washington DC's very own Peaches & Herb in 1981.

[Anonymous]

Catherine Bach, tight shiny jumpsuit, Cannonball II, 1984.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Catherine Bach, tight shiny jumpsuit, Cannonball II, 1984.

To be fair, the above was probably filmed in 1983.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Catherine Bach, tight shiny jumpsuit, Cannonball II, 1984.

To be fair, the above was probably filmed in 1983.

True. Same for Hasselhoff in a (matching?) light blue shiny pleather jumpsuit, Knight Rider, aired 1984.

[Anonymous]

But the love-triangle trivia isn't why you should watch. Obviously it's the Hoff's musical stylings. And his styling stylings: one montage involves a cadet-blue liquid-leather-ish jumpsuit that has lurked in the damp corners of my nightmares for decades now.

From http://previously.tv/knight-rider/bizarre-hoff-triangle/

But maybe it's a cotton romper, really.

[Anonymous]

1990.

[Anonymous]

By 1990, it was a consciously retro trend, though. So I don't think you can count Dee-Lite.

I had a fabulous jumpsuit in probably 1985 or 1986. I was ten or eleven. Flight suit inspired, light chambray, probably a poly cotton blend. With buckles on the upper arms to hold the sleeves up, and press-stud buttons.

My friend's dad wore on around the same time and my father mocked him MERCILESSLY (in private) for having "designer overalls".

[Anonymous]

1982

[Anonymous]

Europe. 1982.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

1982

That is not a jumpsuit...

[Anonymous]

When did this thread become strictly about jumpsuits?

[Anonymous]

Um, people, what performers wore in music videos was NOT what normal people wore everyday. Not in 1983 any more than in 2018.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here's a link to the Sears catalog of 1981 and the clothes represent pretty well. You can definitely see the Princess Diana influence. There are polyester pantsuits, but definitely no jumpsuits. I'm not digging those men's v-necks, though. I'm pretty sure I owned those embroidered pocket jeans. My mom bought all my clothes out of the Sears catalog and I was extremely unhappy about it.

http://www.retrospace.org/2011/08/catalogs-14-sears-fashion-1981.html

No, there are polyester jumpsuits in that catalogue. They even named them "Traditional Jumpsuits!"

There were definitely some people who looked like this in 1980, 1981 and 1982.

I remember my grandfather wearing a jumpsuit very similar to this in tan. He didn't do it as a fashion choice though. It was his yardwork outfit, picked for function. My other grandfather was a farmer and wore overalls. I think the jumpsuit was the city version of overalls.

For context, I turned 12 in 1983.

Mr. Roper!

[Anonymous]

Wait, what's the goal here? Poly doubleknit was definitely past it's sell by date in '82. My K teacher had an amazing double knit pant suit in sea mist green in 1977, and as much as I loved, loved, loved that get-up, even as a five-year-old, I knew poly doubleknit was gross. But popularity of synthetic fibers? It's probably more correlated with patents and the cost of raw materials. There were acetates in the 40s to replace silk in wartime. The jeggings trend was basically getting people to accept poly knit pants because cotton and denim prices spiked. The PP who mentioned wicking fabrics, same thing--they may be high tech but they're also cheap for the manufacturer and the new names get consumer to embracing synthetics again. You too will look back and see these fabrics as dated.

Are we just bashing jumpsuits again? They come come and go, pick your side, you'll get a chance to argue pro/con every ten years. Is it really surprising that a car chase movie had a woman in a supped up mechanic's uni? Agree, not real life.

But, hey, the prices in that Sears catalog, $70 for a blazer, you could find lower at Kohls today...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When did this thread become strictly about jumpsuits?

The second OP posted a picture from the early '70s and implied it was from the early '80s.

Polyester itself never went away but the thickness of the knit is much more refined. Gone is the thick, rough texture. Now it is a smooth, fine knit. Check your closet. Pretty much anything that isn't made of natural fiber is probably polyester or some similar plastic fiber. Also, those athletic clothes all the teenagers are wearing, including Under Armour, are all made of polyester.