Fashion Synopsis

“Zip-a-dee-doo-dah,
Zip-a-dee-ay,
My oh my, what a wonderful day!”

If you liked zippers, well, look no further than the 80’s punk/rock/heavy metal/b-boy/new romantic scenes for the finest in metallic entertainment. Like some alternative underworld where everything seems just a little skewed from normalcy, the zipper craze distorted the traditional world with its excess.

Everywhere you looked, everything you saw had zippers on it. Function gave way to fashion as not only one, but dozens of zippers inhabited the same garment. Parachute pants sported zippers up and down the legs, zipper bedecked sleeves unzipped from zippered leather jackets, and t-shirts zigzagged with decorative zippers.

The zipper obsession started with the bondage and fetish fascination brought to the fashion forefront by the punk rock movement. Bondage pants were a favorite uniform: skinny-legged and in plaid print, the pants were studded with zippers and straps that interlaced in a series of leashes. Zippers worked the same magic as studs, spikes and safety pins: hard metal had an inherent strength in the manmade quality, and the fierceness multiplied in proportion to the quantity.

What once was a functional tool (like the safety pin) represented rebellion when overused, or used inappropriately. The promised constriction and in-your-face fierceness attracted the growing groups of restless teens. Before long, the punk movement was reinterpreted for the mainstream. Shirts, pants, Michael Jackson jackets, even shoes had mazes of zippers criss-crossing each other.

The best part about having a plethora of zippers was the ability to replicate Herbie Hancock’s 1983 electronic masterpiece “Rockit” by sliding the zipper up and down at a rapid pace to the beat. To the dismay of schoolteachers everywhere, the zipper offered an ultra-cool instrument that couldn't be confiscated, unless they wanted to take your clothes.

Fashion Sub Categories

girl's apparel
boy's apparel