This Fashion Decade in the Voice of Peter Graves

For those who weren’t subject to my parents’ cable television viewing choices during the 90s, my fellow Minnesotan Peter Graves (born 1926), was the host of the A&E documentary series “Biography.” His folksy charm and baritone voice lent extra polish to profiles of notable persons throughout history. This is not to mention his geek cred courtesy starring roles on 60s series “Whiplash” and “Mission Impossible” as well as most poignant for me, recurring guest appearances on yet another Minnesota export, sci-fi-tinged razzfest “Mystery Science Theater 3000,” on air through the 80s and 90s.

And now…here he is, presenting you, the reader of the fashion blog on Williamsburg-Greenpoint News + Arts with…(cue deep voice) “This Fashion Decade.”

Ok, I’ll admit he can’t make this gig. So in the meantime, you’ll just have to settle for this Minnesotan’s narration and critique of the Naught-y Decade. Now that December 2009 is upon us and publications—print, online and on the air—are releasing their editorial montages of the past 10 years, it’s time to do one with a WG News fashion twist.

And now…This. Fashion. Decade.

(Background music: Eiffel 65, “I’m Blue“)

Certainly this decade got off to a post-grunge start, as would be expected of any 10-year period to come in the wake of such cable programming as “MST3K” and “Biography.” What I wore the day I moved into my freshman year college dorm in September 1999 was certainly a product of its time: a floor-length khaki cargo skirt topped off with a vintage maroon (go Univ of Chicago!) t-shirt, dog tags and Carhartt boots. That look carried well into 2000, until the advent of snakeskin and handkerchief hemlines descended upon the masses.

Then all heels broke loose. Including my own that is. I remember a prized 4-inch pink pleather pair of mine, purchased on Chicago’s Belmont Ave that went bust on me circa 2002 whilst I was walking through Lincoln Park, a Windy City neighborhood, with a reputation of being say, less avant-garde in terms of fashion. Yet it was one to embrace many of the trends we’ll explore after this commercial break courtesy the 2008 World Series or 15 times during any Monday Night Football game the same year.

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TiVoed through that? Great, still with me, then.

(Cue background music: Daniel Powter, “Bad Day”)

Exploding at the same time at chain stores across America: the return of the statement label logo, Uggs (see my personal Twitter feed for my unfettered review thereof) and $300 gym wear meant for streets. New York magazine’s The Cut blog captures these mid-decade years of our fashion heritage with a flourish. Ashton Kutcher and Paris Hilton, the fashion aspirational turned their lonely eyes to you.

I’m going to give a backhanded mention of the whale tail during this fashion chronicle, as I don’t know where else to mention those trends without sullying more sanguine fashion memories. Ah, here’s a suitable segue.

As rubber boots-comme-elfin footwear Crocs and luggage-sized Louis Vuitton bags, both genuine and ersatz, began to march onto high streets the world over, elements of the Grunge Factor worked their way into Brooklyn’s northern reaches.

(Cue background music: LCD Soundsystem: Sound of Silver)

Certainly the look (avoiding a certain –ster word here) has had its links to a proclivity for fashion recycling. For a mainstream media take, see Time magazine’s article from this summer featuring an old-fashioned water balloon toss among McCarren Park newcomers.

But at the same time, recyclage has proven to be recession-friendly. Logo statement bags have near-devolved into a mark of scorn among those impacted by the recession. Stressing how little one spent on a given item is the accessory of the moment. Voila, Williamsburg’s Salvation Army is relevant for more than proximity to the Bedford L station. The end of the credit-fueled ga-ga that paved the way for “Sex and the City”-style budget excess has stopped our nouveau flapper dancing—by which, I mean $300 bottle service—and sent the non-vintage fans among us scurrying for preppy classics, preferably devoid of a label blaring across the chest.

Last December, W magazine profiled some in our fair ‘Burg who have taken Great Recession-themed style to the next level, incorporating classic elements of the decade when screen sirens dictated fashion and DIY was de rigueur.

As our decade comes to a close, ’60s nostalgia is also in the fashion stirring pot, largely courtesy of “Mad Men,” but also perhaps in due parts to the current Broadway revival of “Hair” and the 30th anniversary of Woodstock. Not to mention the parallels drawn without end between newly minted First Lady Michelle Obama and Mad Men-era lady of grace, Jackie O. Whatever your political views may be, Obama has done more than a fair bit of democratizing fashion to the masses, making independent designers household names—although the rise in popularity of cheap-chic international chain retailers such as Topshop and H&M have also played into the general fashion consciousness.

(Background music: Mannequin Men: “We Are Invisible,” taped live at Univ of Chicago radio station WHPK)

So, this decade in fashion has come full circle. Hyde Park, the home of the Univ of Chicago has gotten its style spotlight by way of the current White House. Economic conditions rivaling those of the ’30s, the decade of Peter Graves’ childhood, has set the undertone for looks and style trends of today. And with regard to the aforementioned whale tail, I’ll quote Mystery Science Theater 3000:

“That’s 40 pounds of butt in 30-pound butt capacity pants.”

This was Anne Szustek for “This Fashion Decade.”

Now on for our closing soundtrack, courtesy my fellow Minnesotans in Brooklyn: “Constructive Summer” by The Hold Steady, off of the album “Stay Positive.”