Vintage Dresses

Our vintage dresses come from many eras! From the floral patterns of the ’70s to vintage ’90s corduroy, there’s a little something for everyone. With so many styles to choose from, we thought we would give a breakdown of the different vintage dress trends based on the decade:

1970s:

The mod style of the 60s carried into the early 70s. Short, structured dresses in solid colors with bold piping, color blocking or large, architectural patterns were oftentimes paired with heels or knee-high boots. As the decade progressed, the arguably most prominent look of the ‘70s emerged: disco! A rise in synthetic materials and popularization of disco music produced body-hugging latex, metallic foils, and large swaths of sequins. Halter necklines were all across the dance floor, complete with plummeting necklines. Evening wear saw a similar increase in shine and sequins. 

The mid-70s saw a resurgence of the hippie movement of the 1960s—boldly illustrated florals of the ‘60s can be found on many of our vintage dresses, along with the ruffles, earth tones, and lace trim. These characteristics helped define the prairie dress trend popular during this decade, which has reemerged as a popular trend over the last few years!

1980s:

Want to look straight out of the ‘80s? Pick up one of our vintage dresses! Popular dress styles of the 1980s mirrored the greater trend of the decade: the flashier, the better! Dresses of the 1980s showcase lots of big, ruffled sleeves, shoulder pads, pleats, and voluminous skirts. Synthetic fibers had a huge increase in popularity during the decade, and many dresses were made from polyester and other similar materials. Popular movies from the decade, including hits like John Hughes’ Pretty in Pink and Sixteen Candles, feature iconic prom dresses that only this decade produced. See: so much pastel pink on Molly Ringwald.

Prairie dresses also had a huge moment in the 1980s! While these dresses began to gain popularity in the decade prior, they continued to rise through the 80s because of their likable traits: they’re extremely feminine with soft, floral patterns, they often feature defined waists and voluminous sleeves, and call back to the pastoral look popularized in the 1960s.

1990s:

Raise your hand if you’re still in love with the ’90s! We thought so. Styles popularized in the 1990s remain as strong influences in current trends, and for good reason!

Color blocking was huge in the 90s—jewel tones and primary colors were both used in large sections across garments. While color blocking first became popular in the 1950s, the styles of the ’90s often pulled from the disco culture of the decade before as well as the exquisite fashion moments emerging from popular hip-hop artists of the era.

Another popular trend of the decade was corduroy! Corduroy dresses could be found everywhere, often paired with tights or leggings and sneakers. Many corduroy dresses were cut to be large and rather structural, often featuring overall bibs or henley-like buttoning on the front. If this sounds like your jam, we have lots of vintage corduroy dresses in stock!

Shoulder pads continued to be prevalent throughout the ’90s, finding homes in structured blazers and dresses. A ’90s trend we love is the pairing of shoulder pads and full monochromatic looks. See below!