With sequin and paillette details carried over from eveningwear to street style, nineties fashion is making its way back into our wardrobes.
FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS: WE ARE ABOUT TO TAKE A SHORT TRIP THROUGH TIME AND BRING NINETIES FASHION INTO THE PRESENT!
NINETIES FASHION: You should never say never in this life; it has become one of those pieces I said I would never let into my wardrobe. Now I can happily style sequin and paillette details.
Image: An evening gown with gold sequins and black tulle ruffles (representative image) — Laura Blanchard, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
In fact, we women never want our outfits to go too over the top, nor to be so subdued that they fail to stand out, nor, in trying to avoid either, to end up with a tacky look. Especially when we think of sequin or paillette details, we hold back, thinking we will look rather tacky if we wear these pieces. Yet when you style this piece, which has become the hit of the season, the right way, you can even achieve a better look than with many of the pieces you wear all the time.
We are now seeing sequin and paillette details, which we used to prefer only for evening elegance, being used across every area of street style, even on socks. I have come across them a great deal lately on jackets, bags and skirts in particular. They have even started to feature on leggings, a piece we wear constantly in daily life.
So don’t be afraid to wear these leggings. If you like, let your casual style do the talking with your trainers for the street. Or, if you prefer, make them the most special piece of the outfit you wear when joining your friends in the evening.
At first, however, you may find it hard to adapt them to your everyday outfits. For example, as the weather cools, you can pair the jeans you wear with jackets and bustiers featuring lots of sequin and paillette detail. Or, when going to a smart dinner, you can achieve a chic look by combining your dresses with this detail with different trend pieces. On the other hand, if you can never resist wearing jewellery, you will need to rein that in when wearing sequins and paillettes.
The defining traces of nineties fashion
The 1990s are remembered in fashion history as a period when opposing movements existed side by side. At the start of the decade, the slouchy, dishevelled look that came with grunge music entered the mainstream. At the same time, minimalism rose as a reaction to the excess of the 80s. In the middle of the decade, slip dresses with spaghetti straps became the symbol of the trend that took underwear into outerwear. As a result, when we think of nineties fashion today, shiny and bold evening pieces also come to mind alongside these three lines.
You can also read about the trends that shifted throughout the nineties in detail in Wikipedia’s 1990s in fashion entry. And for more suggestions on sparkling pieces, take a look at our article on showy 2017 fashion.