Summertime Style in the 70s

Who remembers the great T-shirts of the 70s?  The rainbows, Keep on Truckin,(wanted this one really bad) Sit on it (pictured with Fonzie with two thumbs up) We walked through newly built suburban malls and each one had a T-shirt iron on applique place where you could choose your iron on applique or felt letters to create your unique designed T-shirt. Heaven help you if they placed the letters crooked, you were stuck with that shirt.  But nobody else had ti and you were "in style" and unique all at the same time.

 

 

 

We walked around with our self-designed T-shirts, straight out of the box, either plain or the heather  t-shirts with dark contrasting bands on the neck and short sleeves.  We also wore such shirts plain as they were great for an impromptu game of basketball, the cotton jersey not readily available on just any T-shirt.  Remember this is the 70s……polyester rules. I don’t remember wearing many sleeveless tops, the tight built in bra tops were not yet accepted as the summertime norm.  We were “tomboys” through and through, not interested in dressing up and having then to sit still. During this sporty phase, dresses were out unless it was absolutely necessary.

I loved wearing them getting out of my mother chosen completely polyester “geranimals” matching top and shorts….elastic polyester shorts…UGGHH!  For those of you who don’t remember “geranimals”  it was a clothing line for the mentally challenged when it came to matching what your wore.  If you matched the store labels then it was “OK” to wear them together…as if we needed their approval.  I had grown to hate prematched sets and instead went through a "tomboy" stage I think every young girl should have the joy of experiencing.

To bring these 70s T-shirts to a full outfit you wore short gym shorts with a contrasting stripe.  These were elasticized but totally acceptable because they were cotton.  I think the whole t-shirt, gym shorts thing all started with kids finally being able to choose their own outfits.  There were no special name brands then; you went to a small athletic store, no large Dick’s Sporting Goods, no Nike name brands.  Gap was still not ubiquitous in every mall. This was refreshing as you met up with your friends and didn’t have to be wearing expensive name brand shorts and T-shirt to be “in.”   Levis was just beginning to make its mark.  That’s another blog.  Adidas were the track shoe to wear right after converse high tops and Puma suede sneakers. IN our neighborhood you had to be the owner of Jack Purcell, Converse blue tipped sneakers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 In the 70s matching was to be desired. We finished off these athletic looks with thick striped knee high socks.  Three stripes were the norm. Cut off jean shorts, a sacrificial pair of jeans was carefully cut to allow for fringe right below the inside pocket which at the time was unacceptable to show.  We cut our own cut offs and “No” we didn’t have to name them “Jorts” because we were fit and everything looked as it should in our way of not having to complicate life and our spare wallets with name brands. Just remember we invented them, nowadays you have to rename and old idea.  They are called cut offs because that’s what they are.   Levis being the sole exception.   All dressed on our self-chosen Saturday outfits we would begin our day walking, yes walking by ourselves to the local Woolworth to go to the 45s record rack to see which 45 record was situated at the top…. #1 hit.  I remember in our Woolworths, it was neck and neck with Elton John and John Denver except for the summer when they constantly played “The Streak” on the radio. Olivia Newton John popped in there too with her “I Honestly Love You” and “Have You Ever Been Mellow “and “If you love me let me know”  those lyrics all about connecting.   Yes, John Denver crushed it before we allowed “Country Music” to enter into our radio world.  Kenny Rodgers also paved the way with his song “The Gambler” and then “Through the Years.”  My favorite summertime song since then and always was “Philadelphia Freedom” from Elton John.  It passed my previous favorite summertime, beach song “Uncle Albert” from Paul McCartney and Wings.

 

 

We would spend all day in our gym outfits.  When the weather really warmed up we would slip into our Dr. Scholl’s exercise sandals.  These were purchased in a drug store on a circular rotating display.  You had a choice of navy blue, cherry red, white, or tawny brown.  These wooden bottomed shoes would be my one and only sandals throughout the summer.  Remember Catholic puritan ethics.  If you messed up on your choice of sandal, you were stuck with them all summer.  So choose neutrals, I never picked the navy blue Dr. Scholls exercise sandals…heaven forbid I wasn’t wearing any navy blue in my gym outfit.

 

 

But those days were amazing, strengthening our decision making powers into choosing and trying our own style. The simple joy of looking at a 45 in the store and then, waiting to hear that song on the radio…for free. Later that night you could sleep over a friend’s house, playing truth or dare or bringing out the Ouija board to scare ourselves half to death before going to sleep.  It was simpler, we never spent sunny summer days walking through a mall.  How depressing to see all this stuff you could well not afford.  We didn’t crave to be closed in. 

In looking back we had each other, our dreams shared, our vision of who we could be, we didn’t have the constant distraction of a cell phone, yeah right like our parents would buy us one and then pay our cell phone bill.  Never in 100 years. We had the connection of each other and the freedom of a bike ride, the zzzzing sound of our 10 speed Schwinn bikes when our pedals were on idle.  Kids today have no desire to jet out of the house on a hot sunny summer day.  They are too busy on their phones and not gulping in the summer air.  It is a rare sight to see a group of pre-adolescents riding bikes together without adult supervision or walking together somewhere, anywhere just not too far doing not much of anything but beginning to make our mark. We were more confident with so much less, what we didn’t have, we made. The wind through our hair riding our bikes with no hands or better yet riding two to a bike with the passenger on the seat or the handle bars was our summer transportation. This freedom is now replaced by BMX helmets and hold your breath….bike paths.  I’m all for safety but when a toddler who can barely pedal and barely turning the wheel, has to be weighed down with an Adam Ant helmet, something is lost.  When kids have to always be with their parents, they lose their ability to render what is safe, what belongs to them in their world. We had that time, glorious before the volume turned up and we would have to really compete with looks and outfits to take the time to do exactly what we wanted to do.