Now
that 2007 has come and gone, it’s a thankful day that we have some new fashion
to look forward to in 2008. I’m not an official fashionista, but I’ve been known to rock a
hot outfit at the right moment, and I do have eyes. Granted, there were a few things from the year
that should stick around a while, but we all are very aware that some of this
mess has got to go!First off, our man Will.I.Am gets the default photo in this article because he is one of the most unique dressers I’ve ever met in my life. Funny thing is, he dressed like this before the millions – he really just has his own way with it. He turned weird and funky into a look all his own, and now people are trying to look like him. He gets my vote for most stylish artist of 2007.
Regardless of how unique we’d all like to think we are, trends do take hold. Last
year was the “comeback” of ‘80s style. The Retro Kids went to the extreme with
it in a fun way. They even strutted their stuff at the AllHipHop Week Fashion
Show! On cooler days, we could catch ladies rocking legwarmers, chucks
and even a little neon. Fro-hawks were all the rage (if only we could forget
about Sanjaya’s “ponyhawk” on American Idol now!) In the vein of the retro look, it
wasn’t surprising to see blue and green eye shadow. The addition of good
eyeliner techniques and well made fake eyelashes gave these bright colors a
nice new twist. Ladies
also came extra fly with the doorknocker bamboo earrings and other ‘80s fashion
jewelry.
Metallic
bags were the “it” thing to collect, and it looks like you’ll see even more in the
new year. Here are a couple of gems – a flashy silver bag by Marc Jacobs and a sassy bronze number by Gucci:
Micro mini dresses and mini dress tops, leggings
and sexy fishnets were definitly in. Now if only we
could have gotten Britney, Paris and the other flashers to rock some drawls. (I don’t know who edited this photo, but hats off to your photo shop skills!)
Back
on the ‘80s tip, we saw guys like Yung Joc sporting the high-top and bi-level
fades. Gold
dookie chains were all the rage, and who can be mad at that? Kangol made a big
comeback too. LL Cool J was the king of Kangol and fat chains in the ‘80s, and
you can look for him in 2008 doing big things with his new Todd Smith clothing
line.LL in 1989 (one of the greatest albums ever!): LL in 2007 at MAGIC (I actually snapped this pic myself): Classics
like Adidas never go out of style, but 2007 definitely did them justice. Even
Cazals got their shine again!While
men made some fashion faux-pas like the horrid skin-tight jeans (and we know a
lot of y’all shopped at the women’s section in the Gap to get those skinny
jeans! Shame on you!) it was more 2005+ for those of you who went with lines
like True Religion, Seven For All Mankind and other brands for that “rock star”
fit. There’s a big difference between tight jeans and jeans that fit. Please
find a happy place in ’08!Super Skinny (doesn’t this hurt your private parts??):Rock Star (nice fit, with that vintage wash look to boot):Some
‘80s things that we should be hella thankful didn’t make a true comeback at all: Big hair with bangs (I wonder if this kid was affected in his later years…)Members Only jackets (it doesn’t matter how you revamp them or try to make them cool – they are PLAYED!)Head bands and body suits (no one should be in public in aerobics gear!)And other things that we’re happy stayed in the ’80s like lace
gloves, shiny spandex, hair bows and anything else Madonna might have worn back then.If there is any consolation to letting your ‘80s fetish go, please know
that Jack Davey (of Warner Bros. funk/punk/pop band J*Davey) was doing it better than anyone in ’06, before it was
trendy again. If you peep her style now, she’s already eons ahead of us (again!). I’m posting up J*Davey’s 2006 video for “Mr. Mister” – just a little dose of “first to be fly with it.”The ’80s weren’t all that mattered last year, of course. Brands
that stood out in 2007 in “streetwear” didn’t necessarily start out in that
marketing category, but Hip Hop married rock and it was true love. (Wait, Run DMC did that in the ’80s too, but I digress…) Ed Hardy set the pace early on with the tastefully placed crystals
on tattoo-inspired designs, and is following strong with the more mature Christian
Audigier line.
Out
of all the brands that appealed to both rock and rap fans, Affliction was
highly popular with its skull and crossbones appeal.On the exclusive tip, Miskeen
Originals took custom painting to the next level with their one-of-a-kind
shirts and jeans. Champion Bernard Hopkins isn’t wearing a shirt in this photo, but he makes Miskeen look good anyway. Stall
and Dean added futuristic flair to classic sports looks with reversible satin jackets
and color coordinated fitteds. Hurricane Chris rocked the extra wavy red and black Hiroshima jacket at our AllHipHop Week BBQ.
The military look was big in ’07 (shouts to all the real soldiers reading this!) and Cavi Designs worked their magic with custom shirts for some major celebrities. On
the latter end of 2007, up and coming brands like Artful Dodger (recently acquired by Jay-Z), Parish Nation,
Garbege, Nostic and others were making big moves. It will be interesting to see where
they go this year.
While
we had our intimate time with low-rise jeans these past couple of years, 2007 took the
cake with the ultra super to-the-hairline looks. It’s time to stop now (unless you’re doing a video or something that calls for lots of situps and extreme waxing…)
Throughout the year, we did see some of the high-waisted looks coming back –
but if it goes back to soccer mom jeans in ’08 we could be in trouble. Again,
let’s find a happy place!
Stripes,
stripes and more stripes! While I personally love stripes of all kinds, it did
go a little overboard last year. It’s always been a well known fact that
horizontal stripes make you look bigger, so there isn’t really a way we need
to see a big guy rocking a 4X pastel horizontal-striped polo shirt on any given day. Maybe it’s just me,
but I’m hoping for some polka dots or checkers this year.
Some other things that started out hella cute but need to go away regardless: sparkly belts and even sparklier belt buckles, the skater “look” on people who are not skaters, velvet blazers, oversized sunglasses, biker-inspired wallet chains and anyone trying to come with another rock or religion inspired clothing line (if you’re not already doing it, please don’t start now… thank you). A note to anyone who may have gotten into the “croc” thing last year… you’re feet might have been comfortable, but they were butt ugly and they probably stunk pretty bad after you sweated in plastic all day. Nasty! Let them go!!
In
2008, AllHipHop.com will be bringing you some hot fashion tips and runway
reports. In the meantime, take a deep breath and fill up your Goodwill box for
donations of your “I only wore it once” 2007 gear. It won’t hurt much, we promise!
