Photos Show Fashion Styles of Young Women in the 1980s

When thinking of ’80s fashion, the words ‘big and bright’ surely sums it up. It was a decade of big hair, shoulder pads, large and dramatic earring types, acid wash jeans and eye-straining fabric colors and patterns. Fashion trends in the 1980s were about materialistic values and flaunting wealth. Having the right clothes meant spending extra money to buy designer labels and sports goods with a brand logo.

’80s fashion gave rise to more style idols than any previous decade. It’s hard to imagine now, but in the 1980s, there were no cell phones or internet. TV offered only a few channels, and watching a movie was a luxury. After television, magazines, and advertising were the average person’s main source of fashion information. Limited exposure gave a select group of celebrities, music bands, and eighties clothing brands the opening to exert a significant influence on ’80s fashion trends.

Take a look at these photos to see what fashion styles of young women looked like in the 1980s.