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Fashions when you were at school

(163 Posts)
nanna8 Wed 21-Apr-21 02:29:33

We used to roll our skirts over and over at the waist to make them shorter, shape our velour school hats so they looked a bit like what the Anzacs wore and wear wedge points in our school shoes. Era of miniskirts of course. I used to wear crop tops showing my stomach - gawd, wouldn’t do that these days unless you want to see a flabby roll!

Craftycat Fri 23-Apr-21 17:32:20

Skirts were turned over & over at the waist to make them shorter. We had to wear horrible brogue type shoes so we had a spare pair of heeled shoes in our bags for travelling to & from school. Ties came off at the school gate & buttons to our shirts were undone. We had awful velour hats so we scrunched them up & pinned them to the back of our heads. The summer hats were straw boaters which we wore right over our eyes.
I cannot begin to remember how many detentions I got for these rebellious acts but they were worth it. As we had to learn lines from Shakespeare at detention I have an amazing number of quotes I can still remember!

Grandma600 Fri 23-Apr-21 18:56:06

Primary school uniform (60s) was bottle green gymslip (I seem to remember it being called a "drillslip" by my grandma) that buttoned up across each shoulder and fell into box pleats from the bust. It was heavy and very, very itchy, even through my white shirt and liberty bodice with the unwieldy buttons hmm

Sar53 Fri 23-Apr-21 19:37:54

Katynana I believe we may have gone to the same school. An all girls grammar in London, affiliated to a very famous church. Correct me if I'm wrong but the brown and red uniform is the same as we wore and all had to be bought from the same shop.

MissAdventure Fri 23-Apr-21 19:43:48

All sorts of fads came and went.
Jelly shoes.
Wicker baskets.
Black lipstick.
Fishnet tights.
Lots of badges.
Donkey jackets.
Parka coats with the big fluffy hoods.
Military clothing.
String vests.
Monkey boots. smile
Happy days.

Mistyfluff8 Sun 25-Apr-21 01:04:35

For PE navy slightly fluff knickers in summer and winter .Legs would turn blue no tracksuits then no wonder I hated PE in the cold and would get out of it if I could bTeacher had her favourites .

narrowboatnan Sun 25-Apr-21 16:15:44

Navy pleated skirt, rolled over at the waist, of course! White shirt, navy and white striped tie (why on Earth did girls have to wear shirts and ties?? ?‍♀️), black or brown ‘plain’ shoes (mine were clumpy lace ups and I hated them!), navy knickers made of some sort of stout material. Navy and white gingham dresses for the summer, and navy cardigans for both summer and winter. White socks or tights - but not both. Wearing both tights and socks was, apparently, a most heinous crime that led to a visit to the headmistress for a good telling off.

eazybee Sun 25-Apr-21 16:56:53

I quite liked my uniform when I started at secondary school: shirts made of finely striped blue cotton, a tie that was knotted then the back was cut and re-attached with a hook and eye, a V neck jumper that was not handknitted and a blazer with multiple pockets.
The navy blue knickers were dreadful, supposed to be worn with knicker linings, thankfully never checked, and the velour panama was not attractive, but the red beret with a stiffened band allowed only to the sixth form was much admired; gripped to the back of the head we fondly imagined we looked like Jackie Kennedy in her pillbox.
School uniform was worn until the day we left the sixth form.
The joy of having a part time job and being allowed to wear what we wanted.
Then I went to an all-girls' Training College and we were not allowed to wear trousers, at all, even in leisure time. (1964)

Chestnut Sun 25-Apr-21 17:48:35

LtEve

We didn’t have a uniform when I was at school and I hated it. We weren’t well off so couldn’t afford the latest fashions and I stood out. I wouldn’t have been allowed a lot of the fashions of the 70s anyway so a strict uniform would have suited me fine.

You are a living example of why we need school uniforms! There are always attempts to get rid of them but I think they are important to unify and level everyone.

Maywalk Mon 26-Apr-21 15:47:38

Depends on how old you are regarding fashions because it was all make do and mend in my day and clothes were on coupons.

I was 14 when I finished school and started work way back during the war in 1944.

lovebeigecardigans1955 Mon 26-Apr-21 16:41:44

Mini skirts were still fairly fashionable when I was at secondary school from the mid-late 60s. We often rolled up our awful bottle green pleated skirts - a colour I've never worn since. We also had to wear white blouses with a bottle green/silver/yellow striped tie and green cardigan. We loosened the tie and left it hanging on the wardrobe door overnight so we didn't have to re-tie it every morning. Green gaberdine mac or blazer.
In summer we wore green and white candy striped dresses in all styles. Socks had to be white, green or grey. Shoes had to black and sensible - Scholl sandals were banned.
There was a striped green/grey scarf for winter but some of us wore Nottm Forest scarves tucked discreetly beneath our macs and got away with it. Looking back I can see good reasons why we needed a uniform but at the time I loathed it.

Alexa Mon 26-Apr-21 18:27:22

Maywalk wrote:
"Depends on how old you are regarding fashions because it was all make do and mend in my day and clothes were on coupons."

Absolutely, Maywalk! I left school in 1947 .The New Look had just come in. Two younger teachers were overheard ; the teacher who intended buying a new 'costume' was asked "Do you want New Look or old look?"

Gwenisgreat1 Mon 26-Apr-21 19:45:32

I remember spending my pocket money on knee length red socks which did not go with my green blazer and home made (by me) donegal tweed skirt. My school shoes then were tan - Yikes!! I'm surprised I was allowed in.