MEMORIES:
And your drip dry glove…” – The Cars, “My Best Friend’s Girl”
Fashion was at its gaudy 80s best once Madonna hit the scene with her lacy, fingerless gloves. Boys didn’t have to worry since they weren’t left out in the cold over this trend. They could pull off the look with a little thing called leather.
The fingerless glove was once the domain of the beggar and the bum, but no longer. This street-sexy style was sassier than the fully-fingered lace gloves of burlesque stars, and it came in a multitude of colors. Who wanted boring black and white when there were colors like hot pink, chartreuse, and fluorescent yellow? And why stop there? Layer your colors for a trippy effect that had 80s pop written all over it.
The studs and leather look for men also came with a little street cred. Popular with the b-boys and b-girls of breakdancing, fingerless gloves have helped them keep a grip while protecting their palms from the rough pavement below, and was practically a requirement for handstands, freezes and power moves such as the Flare. Even if hip-hop wasn’t your thing, there was always metal for those wishing to don their gloves while jamming on some lightning-fast riffs.
The fingerless glove was an easy and stylish way for just about anyone to get a grip on fashion, or at least a grip. Just don’t go lighting any barrels in the alley.
