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MEMORIES:
PHOTOS:
There must have been a surplus of fabric in the 1970s because nothing else can explain the wide pant leg fashions of that decade. After the trend set by bellbottoms, flares then commanded center stage in every well-dressed person’s wardrobe.
The leg in a pair of flare pants sported a narrower circumference at the hem, not quite reaching the expansive widths of bellbottoms. The two styles were similar, and yet different (for comparison, dig out the old family album and look at pictures from the early 70s; your mom could hide a pirate’s booty in the bells of her bellbottoms). Flares were a little more restrained, if you can apply that word to something bright orange and made of polyester.
Yes, corduroy and polyester were much more popular than denim because, well, one makes a fun noise when you walk and the other comes in an infinite variety of prints and patterns.
No matter the material, flares hit a slump in the late 70s and early 80s, as disco-inspired slim pants and then narrow-leg jeans reigned on the scene. Things seemed dire for supporters of wide hems when flares made a tentative comeback by the end of the 80s. The comeback gathered momentum and attention in the 90s until flares dominated fashion once again.
