That 70's Trend

Do you guys remember those braided headbands of the past two summers? That tan suede and all of those fringes? Those gladiator sandals and the big round sunnies? It's almost as if we've just hidden them away for the winter months and back out they came to bask in the glow of summer 2011.Well not only are they back, but this summer they had friends. They've been joined by maxi dresses, big floppy sunhats, feathers feathers everywhere and a surge of billowy lightweight fabric in the form of culottes and rompers. Oh and patterns and colours galore-- aztec, tribal and block colours. Surely that's all, right? We can't really bring this trend with us into the cooler months anyways..can we? We can and we will, the trend seems to be here to stay. "Well then, what do we call this trend?", you ask? At least I'm assuming that's what you've asked, I can't quite be sure over the volume of 'Tiny Dancers' on my record player. Because you see, it's a song that Elton John put out in 1971. Oh I'm fun. Anyways, the 70's look doesn't quite seem to be the kind of trend keen on going that easily. If you've been to the mall lately, you may have noticed that stores seem to be stocking up on furs, leathers, knee length skirts, ponchos/large scarves/borderline blankets, and lightweight sheer (what I like to call) 'billowy' garments.

Billowy fabric

Adam & Eve

Anna Sui

H&M $39.95

As long as the fabric drapes well, you could get this effect by buying a few sizes up. This summer this trend was definitely in full force in the form of  comfortable light rompers and flirty sheer tops. To bring it into the colder seasons, try getting dresses/tops with either sheer panels instead of completely sheer or completely made of a single fabric. Also, look for dresses/tops with full length sleeves. Janis Joplin was the queen of layering billowing garments, here she is for her 1971 album Pearl photoshoot.

Ponchos and capes

Anna Sui

Adam & Eve

*via shefinds.com, $60 at Shopbop

The poncho has been around since the spring, I'll give it that. It's feeding into the "aztec print" and "native" trend thats been around lately. It's really the perfect thing to throw on with a casual/comfortable look to just cover your shoulders/arms. It's also the kind of thing that you can imagine would come in handy for outdoor festivals ala Woodstock, no? Throw it on to shield you from the elements, curl up on it on a nice patch of grass, it becomes an impromptu blanket.
How can we dress this up and maybe even make it a more durable form of outerwear? In comes the cape. Popular in the 1960's, this is where the silhouette of the casual trendy poncho can become sleek and classic.
I strongly believe that Andrew VanWyngarden of MGMT was made for the 1970's, though I'm glad we have him instead.

and I can't bring up poncho's without this coming to mind.

Skirts

Adam & Eve

H&M $39.95

Adam & Eve

H&M $39.95

Knee length A-line skirts are the mature autumn cousin of everyone's favourite summer mini. This season we seem to be keeping the lines clean while adding something unexpected like a bold pattern or making it entirely out of leather! On the leather note, it's a huge trend on its own this season (leather skirts, dresses, shorts), especially black leather, so I was admittedly surprised when I saw camel toned one in H&M. Just remember that when you have a lot going on with your bottom half (large blocks of texture/pattern), try and keep it simple with the tops.
So somewhere between the mini's of the 60's and the flowy care-free maxi skirts of the same era, we have the knee length A-line sophistication for the mature woman of the day.

Charlie's Angels!

Furs

Alice & Olivia

Anna Sui

H&M $34.95

Anna Sui

Dior

H&M $79.95

Furs are big this season, like huge big, and not only in coats. Gloves, shoes, hats, bags, snoods, headbands, seemingly anything that you can stick some fur trim on or completely cover in fur is sold somewhere. When you think of it, why not? It sure is warm, and even if its faux fur, there's no way that you don't feel a bit wealthy and posh in it. Come on, I know you daydream in front of the mirror when you try on a lush fur adorned item. It'll be our little secret ;) 
I find the oversized fur coats especially reminiscent of 70's boho rock star charm.

and of course, The Beatles even rocked it

Well I hope you guys enjoyed this as much as I did! And while we're still feelin' groovy, I want you all to find a copy of Almost Famous and watch the heck out of it.

Peace and love,

-Raghda

All pics from style.com, h&m.com, tumblr and google images except for the following
*http://www.shefinds.com/2011/gotta-love-this-two-in-one-poncho-that-also-turns-into-a-scarf/