During a spate of nostalgia, a friend of mine posted a childhood photo on Facebook of him and his mum. It was the 80s, but the strangest thing about it was that it could easily have been mistaken for something far more recent, based on him mum's very on-trend clothes. This got me thinking about how fashion always comes round in circles - indeed, the popularity of leggings in recent years is entirely reflective of the early 90s trend (one which I vaguely remember first time round). My thoughts then turned to other clothes I wore as a child, which I sincerely hope could back soon. Five items stand out vividly in my memory...
Credit: Stephanie Sicore // young@art, Flickr
1. Roller boots
Ok, so this type of footwear is technically still around - I see kids gliding around the shops in them all the time. But I am old enough to remember when the first ones hit the shops. The soles were about three inches thick to hide the wheels in, and to actually skate you had to sit down, unfold the metal clasps on the bottom of your shoes which hid the wheel, clip them into place and off you went - seamless (almost). My boots were baby blue, presumably to match the combats. My best friend got a pair about 6 months after I did, having realised how amazing they were - only by then the technology had moved on, so simply required the push of a button and out popped the wheels. I was insanely jealous.
2. Combats
Trousers with twenty million pockets running up and down the legs were the coolest. Not only did they look super awesome, but they actually came in handy for storing all your rubbish. Of course, back in those days it was liquorice vines and Hubba Bubba - it kept me on a constant sugar high throughout the 90s. Personally, I had a pair of baby blue, three-quarters which I eventually wore several holes in. They were from Tammy. That's right. And the best thing about combats was they made you feel like a spy.
3. Skorts
Credit: Garhol, Flickr
In what I can only assume was an attempt by my mother to break the tomboy trend, she compromised by buying me several pairs of skorts. For those of you either too young, or simply not cool enough to remember, these a skirt-shorts. On the outside, my mum could pretend I was the pretty-in-pink daughter she wanted... whilst I could still clamber up trees without giving all and sundry a flash of my underwear. I even had matching tank tops to go with them.
4. Fancy dress
We all know that kid that got a fancy dress costume one year as a Christmas or birthday present and refused to go anywhere without it. I was that kid. Mine came in the form of a gold, glittery fairy dress. With ruffles. I actually enjoyed the outfit so much that I soon ditched the wings and just sauntered round in the dress for probably the best part of a year. I felt so elegant, a feat I haven't managed torecreate since. Perhaps I should have found a replica dress to wear to my graduation.
5. Umbro sports gear
Credit: Dwayne // Two Stout Monks, Flickr
Remember when Umbro was cool? Forget your Nike and your Adidas, this brand was far superior. As the youngest child with only two brothers to try to emulate (before I realised they weren't that cool), I was a bit of a tomboy. This include taking some of my big bros hand-me-downs - including a fluorescent orange t-shirt and shorts set, emblazoned with the Umbro diamond across its chest. I'm sure I looked rather fetching in the poke-your-eyes-out colour, matching as it did with my ginger hair. In fact, I loved it so much that I wore it for days on end. Until my mum decided enough was enough, and I never saw it again. I'm still heartbroken.