What was I thinkng?

[Karen Ski]

Just got back from visiting an old girlfriend. She used to live here in the LA area and was one of the first girls I met when I started going out. Jean was there to help me come out of my shell and the closet and I can ever thank her enough for that. She moved to Portland several years ago but we stay in touch and she invited me for the weekend so I went and had a blast.

Well Sunday afternoon we were just sitting around her place and she got out her old photo albums of us from way back when. Does anyone remember the late 80's when the rage in exercise was aerobics and all the women wore colorful leotards? Well I do know again! She has a picture of me and another girl we knew back then at Jean's place. I had bought a copy of Jane Fonda's workout tape and we were getting ready to exercise. There I stood , and proudly I have to admit, in a black, yellow, and white print tank style leotard. I was wearing bright yellow (think Tonka truck) tights with black legwarmers and white aerobic athletic shoes. On my head I had a black headband and matching black wrist bands. As it was the 80's I had on a big hair blonde wig with its streaks. The other girl in the photo was wearing something similar to me but her colors were hot pink and electric blue!

Thinking back to the era I thought I looked pretty hot, but in today's society I would look like a clown!

Anyone else have any of those memories of how hot we looked back then but in retrospect "What was I thinking?"

[Heather W]

What were you thinking Karen? Probably how hot I look! I'm not making fun of you but rather I think you probably did look hot! I was born in 1982 and as a young child I remember my mother used to go to aerobics once a week, I think it was her girls night out! I was only 5 or 6 but I can remember how she would dress for the class and I always loved the look. I think it was some of my first feelings of what would it be like to wear that, meaning female clothes. My mother was a sharp dresser back then and always kept herself in shape. Thanks for bringing back some good memories.

[DonnaT]

When styles change, yes, many will look back and wonder why they wore what they did.

For Example: Men's shorts. Many guys who use to wear the short legged shorts wouldn't be caught dead wearing them now, all because of the current shorts-to-the-knees, or longer, styles. Me, I still prefer the short legged shorts, it's just too hard to find any.

[SilverLady(SO)]

We don't like the long-legged shorts, either . . . on men or women.

Start shopping at the GW Boutique aka Goodwill . . . Virginia has been able to find several pairs of shorter guy shorts, and she's also been known to buy women's short shorts. Pair them with a t-shirt or polo shirt and most people can't tell the difference.


- SL

[Deidre Taylor]

There I stood , and proudly I have to admit, in a black, yellow, and white print tank style leotard. I was wearing bright yellow (think Tonka truck) tights with black legwarmers and white aerobic athletic shoes. On my head I had a black headband and matching black wrist bands. As it was the 80's I had on a big hair blonde wig with its streaks.

I think we all have thoughts like when we think back to some of the outfits we wore back then. I know the 80's has been panned for its fashions but I loved them! I was just really coming out and had a lot of fun in them!

I remember one of the first outfits I wore out of the house on a midnight drive back in the later 70's, I think it was maybe 77 or 78, very fondly. I had on my Farrah Fawcett wig, very fashionable at the time, green corduroy gauchos with a matching vest. With that I wore a green print blouse and my brown knee high leather boots with a platform sole and stacked heel! Granted the boots might meet muster today, but gauchos?

Go easy on yourself, we all suffer today for the fashions f yesterday!

[Trudy]

Does that ever bring back memories Karen! I not only remember that look but loved it! I was so into that look back then I had a couple of outfits similar to what you describe. I can remember I even had a gym bag and would put on one of the leotard outfits and some Nikes, slip into my denim mini and head out like I was really going to an aerobic class. Sometimes I would even stop at a local gas station sometimes and fill my car up just so I could show off!

I have to say perhaps my biggest fashion disaster was I had a black polyester halter style disco dress with silver trim. I would wear it with strappy silver sandals and would twirl around just to show my legs in the mirror. Thankfully this was before I started going out and my fashion sense improved!

[Diana Michelle]

Oh my God! Does this thread ever bring back memories of days of yesteryear! I have to admit I wore most of the fashion horrors many of you describe or something similar to them as well as others. Some of the were not as bad as you girls describe them though. It was just the style of the era! At the rate women are going nowadays in 20 years they will be describing pantyhose the same way. Go easy on yourselves as you were just trying to be "in style." I look back on some of the old pictures of me with the 80's big hair and shoulder pads and initially think my God what a freak! Then I remember I was right in style at the time.