Men’s 80s Fashion (Style, Trends & Brands) | Heartafact (2023)

FAQs

What was popular in the 80s fashion men? ›

80s men's fashion was dominated by bold and bright styles. Denim, leather, and polo shirts turned out to be classics and have remained wardrobe staples for men to date. The 80s fashion scene saw the birth of athleisure and sportswear – which happens to be the hottest trend in 2023.

80s Casual Wear For Men

Casual wear for men in the 80s is pretty much everything you see in the hallways of Ferris Bueller's Day Off: cuffed jeans or khakis, cardigans, plain t-shirts, denim or bomber jackets and loafers. Sweaters and leather jackets were also popular for men's outerwear…

Style Notes: Jane Fonda started it in the 1970s, but by the time the 1980s arrived, spandex leggings, leotards and legwarmers were commonplace, and everyone was a fitness fanatic (for a time, at least). For a more 2022 feel, style with jeans. Wear with a shirt, oversized blazer and mules.

Just think about it: the '80s brought us fishnets and legwarmers, served up electric colorways and the naked dress, made a case for leggings-as-pants, and inserted shoulder pads into any blazer and blouse that designers would allow.

Things You Should Know

Thrift for 80s fashion staples like acid-washed jeans, jumpsuits, and denim jackets. Channel the spirit of the 80s with a teased hairstyle, sweatband, and heavy, bright makeup. Add some 80s-inspired accessories to your outfit such as fingerless gloves, big earrings, and layered necklaces.

Madonna. From wearing underwear as outerwear to her trademark lacy gloves, crucifix chains and love of Boy London jeans - Madonna was an undisputed fashion icon. Most 80s clothing worth wearing was worn by this absolute icon.

80s fashion was big on accessories. The trendiest items included scrunchies, leg warmers, fingerless gloves, plastic bangles, large funky earrings in neon shades, mesh accents, fanny packs and pearl necklaces.

There was an acid wash jeans movement, parachute pants, puffy windbreaker suits (that weren't just for skiing), giant scrunchies, fingerless lace gloves and neon headbands (OK, neon everything).

Today, only the most ardent sneakerheads or basketball fans will know what the Converse Weapon is and what it represented, while in the '80s it was one of the most popular basketball models.

Did men wear tight jeans in the 80s? ›

Tight jeans were also worn by members of the casual subculture from the late 80s until the mid 90s, including Ewan McGregor in Trainspotting.

Big, beefy boots, Doc Martens were the footwear du jour of angsty teenagers. Usually fans of the Cure, these boots became infamous in the proto-emo scene.

A number of bags were popular in the 1980s, including belt bags made of a variety of materials. Some designer handbags carried by celebrities of the era include the Hermès Birkin, Louis Vuitton Bucket Bag, the Chanel Gold Chain Classic Flap and various Prada nylon bags.

Tropical & 80s Deco

Often incorporating the same pastels and tropical motifs, 80s Deco was also a popular design trend, often consisting of bright neon colors, drop shadows, clean sans-serif fonts and pronounced angles and curves. And both of these trends are popping up left, right and centre in 2020.

The 1980s was possibly the boldest decade in modern fashion history, a magical era of over-the-top silhouettes, teased perms and saturated colors. They were the years of puffed shoulders and power suits, flashy skirts and spandex leggings, velour, leg warmers and voluminous parachute pants.

Applying an 80s Style

Pull your hair up onto the top or side of your head – the higher, the better! Brush the sides only, leaving as much volume and/or bangs on top as possible. You can add extra teasing and hair product to the front once you've secured your ponytail. Create a side-swept look.

Neon. The '80s were well known for colorful clothing, and nothing is more colorful than neon. Back in the day, the most popular hues were similar to highlighters—bright yellow, orange, green, and pink. Stylish people would wear matching track suits or tops and bottoms in coordinating neon colors.

The "eighties" are also well known for their extreme fashions, such as "big hair", New Wave, punk rock, funk, or preppies. Rap music first started to get big in the 80s, and often went with breakdancing in what is now called the "old school" days.

Renée Simonsen, the “Face of the '80s,” Talks about Fashion Then and Now, and Turning 50 | Vogue.

What kind of shirts were popular in the 80s? ›

During the '80s T-shirts were worn with everything from jeans to suits. The most popular styles were crew-neck T-shirts, many of which featured slogans, logos, or bold placement prints. Other popular designs included crop tops and baseball T-shirts.

80s jeans were high waisted, tapered, and pegged at the ankle. Overalls and acid-washed jeans came back full force, and new colored denim hit the stores en masse. More memorable still was the 80s leggings — leggings and tights in neon, animal prints or full-leather were a popular counterculture accessory.

Wide-leg jeans, colloquially called baggy pants, are a style of clothing that were popular from the early 1980s to the early 2010s.

Adidas Jumpsuits

Thanks to professional athletes, Run-D.M.C. and the Beastie Boys, the Adidas tracksuit came into style in the '80s.

Now the decade of the 1980s is rearing its head once more. Adidas is one of the stars of the comeback. Retro fashion is hip.

What shoes were popular in 1984? ›

It was a big time for sneakers, among them Nike Air Jordans, Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars and Reebok Freestyles. Women wore the Reebok Hightop Aerobic style with miniskirts, stirrup pants (an interesting trend at the time) and regular jeans.

80s Men's Pants and Jeans

Levi's, Lee, and Wrangler were popular brands with men while Jordache, Guess, and Calvin Klein were preferred by trendy younger guys. Jeans had a moderate waist (down from the higher waisted '70s pant) with either a classic straight leg or a tapered leg for the cooler set.

Eventually cropped jerseys became available which carried over to several 1980s broadcasts. Men also started to wear crop tops regardless of sport. Acceptance for men wearing no shirt could be seen to eliminate the need for a crop top. Various crop tops have been worn by rappers as well as American football athletes.

Answer: yes! While teenage trends may be in the rearview mirror, it's full throttle ahead for the slimmest silhouette of all: the skinny jean. As you age, the confidence you've gained in honing in on your favorite fits and styles is the perfect catalyst to try something new.

Men's suits in the '80s were cut full, with wide shoulders accentuated with shoulder pads. For older men or men who worked in the most conservative workplaces, 3-piece suits (jacket, pants, and vest) were still widely worn. A slightly more “relaxed” or younger look was the 2-piece suit, just a jacket and slacks.

While crop tops have grown to have a feminine connotation, historically, crop tops were born in the '80s in a place considered to be the very symbol of masculinity: the locker rooms of American football matches.

Beauty consisted around the fitness and nutrition craze in the 80s, encouraging athletically toned bodies, bodysuits, and tracksuit bottoms. Supermodel and bodybuilding became a sensation, along with leg warmers and big hair.

The 1980s were a wicked cool time for various pants styles. Parachute pants, harem pants, stirrup pants, metallic jogger pants, and tapestry pants are just a few of the distinct and iconic 80s pants styles. Dress slacks found a unique new place in casual fashion, and the new paper bag waist went on just about anything.

Jeans: Jordache made tight jeans with skinny legs popular, but women also wore 'mom jeans' with a high waist and loose fit around the legs. Whether your jeans were skinny fit or baggy, during the 80's stone-washed and edgy rock-style acid washed denim fabric was the norm.

What did guys wear in 1983? ›

1983 featured a flashback to the 1940s with menswear influences like strong shoulder pads and oversized coats. The overall look of the year is accentuated by the power belt that minimizes the waist and emphasizes the hips. In summary, volume fashion was a hit.

Popular clothing in the early 1980s worn by men included tracksuits, v-neck sweaters, polyester and velour polo-neck shirts, sports jerseys, straight-leg jeans, jeans rolled to show off their slouch socks, polyester button-ups, cowboy boots, beanies, and hoodies.

Fashion in 1986

The big coat covered long flaring skirts, skinny knee-bearing skirts, pants, bulky sweaters, shirts, blouses and even jackets. The search was on for fresh looks.

Eventually cropped jerseys became available which carried over to several 1980s broadcasts. Men also started to wear crop tops regardless of sport. Acceptance for men wearing no shirt could be seen to eliminate the need for a crop top. Various crop tops have been worn by rappers as well as American football athletes.

The 1980s saw the emergence of electronic dance music and new wave, also known as Modern Rock. As disco fell out of fashion in the decade's early years, genres such as post-disco, Italo disco, Euro disco, and dance-pop became more popular. Rock music continued to enjoy a wide audience.

The 1980s, often remembered for its materialism and consumerism, also saw the rise of the "yuppie," an explosion of blockbuster movies and the emergence of cable networks like MTV, which introduced the music video and launched the careers of many iconic artists, and the emergence of the AIDS crisis, which would go on ...

The 1980s was possibly the boldest decade in modern fashion history, a magical era of over-the-top silhouettes, teased perms and saturated colors. They were the years of puffed shoulders and power suits, flashy skirts and spandex leggings, velour, leg warmers and voluminous parachute pants.