The Future of Fashion Predicted by the Past 150 years of Retrofuturism

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hello everyone and welcome back as we turn over  into another New Year the predictions for what   will come start flying we're looking at politics  weather and of course fashion but what about   predictions of fashion for say the next 10 years  or 100 years what would that begin to look like   that's a pretty tall order to make predictions  that far out but in reality we can find plenty   of examples of really massive future predictions  for fashion dating back at least 150 years where   they're predicting what life will be like in  the 1950s or in the 21st century and the best   part about this is that their future is now our  present or even our past so I thought it might   be entertaining to go through some of the more  creative future fashion predictions they love   to do fashion shows and do interviews with experts  and fashion designers with everyday people to try   and put predict what life would be like and say  a hundred years and there are some interesting   Trends to see throughout that roughly 100 Year  span that we're going to be looking at where the   predictions made in say the 1890s are not going to  be the same as the predictions made in the 1930s   or the 1970s they not surprisingly foresaw very  different Futures depending on what their present   situation was but there are some pretty Universal  Concepts as well everything love to tie together   new and old they realized that fashion was almost  constantly cyclical looking to the past to predict   what the future will be that styles are going to  keep coming back over and over and over again this   is not a novel idea in fact we can find references  in the 19th century talking about the concerns   that they have that the rough padded shoulders  the Farthingale all of those different styles   are going to be back in again every time they're  just a little bit different and it's this constant   adapting of old styles with new technologies and  the everyday needs of people who are wearing these   garments that constantly Propel us forward so it's  a combination of the past and the present every   time we come up with a new fashion style and  this combination of elements is something that   does create the best and is one of the reasons why  I am so excited that the sponsor for today's video   is Brooklinen Brooklinen is my favorite source for  sheets and other Home Essentials they offer luxury   quality products without the luxury markup because  they manufacture the sheets themselves and offer   them directly to you and Brooklinen in right  now is offering my viewers 20 off of any order   over a hundred dollars if you just click the link  below and use my code Rudolph I have been using   Brooklinen in sheets and towels for years at this  point as I started rearranging and redecorating   my guest bedroom and Office Space I knew it had  to be Brooklinen and I ended up going with their   hardcore linen bundle which has all the sheets  do they cover the pillowcases that you need 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going to start by traveling all the way back  to 1883. this is an era where they're starting   to recognize what women do now is not what women  are going to do in the future and one of the best   examples of this is a French book titled the 20th  century it's predicting what life will be like in   1952 and it is extensive in fact it's over 400  pages long full of so many amazing illustrations   so even if you don't want to go through and  read the French I highly recommend taking a   look at all of the images in the book there's a  link down below for that and this book not only   predicts the fashion of 1952 in great detail but  also what the world will look like in terms of   government politics activities Sports so many  different things and women will be lawyers and   that's what this will look like so forth and so  on fashion wise I do have to say they aren't the   most creative they do recognize that women will  need to be more active and they adjust women's   wear accordingly they're still very much the  1883 style without so much under structure and   shorter in length so that way it's a little bit  easier for activity women are still wearing really   elaborate hats really elaborate hairstyles and  they have also added Bloomers underneath of these   shortened skirts men too also have these Bloomers  as you might notice so they're updating menswear   a little bit as well though they're still pretty  similar to men's suits of the 1880s they too have   some pretty elaborate hats and I've also noticed  a pretty extensive quantity of visible pockets   so clearly the functionality of this clothing  was a key factor potentially taking 1883 making   it functional even for evening wear the evening  wear that they show is definitely elaborate   Ruffles and interesting patterns and colors very  flashy in that regard but still shortened still   pretty functional granted I do have to say  whatever they're doing for the dance in this   image pretty much looks like the chicken dance  maybe they predicted that in the future they have   a pretty consistent style going throughout all  these images I do appreciate the fact that they   show what different outfits would be for people  participating in these activities such as women   fencing we also have women in the military  because they predicted that there would be   essentially a feminist Revolution though not in  those words which I found pretty ironic because   in a sense there is a feminist Revolution that  really picks up in the 1960s and 70s though I   don't think it looked like this especially not  in the militaristic sense they're picturing a   literal military Revolution but the book itself  definitely focuses very heavily on the fact   that clothing will need to do more than it is  being asked to now this is a trend that we will   continue to see throughout the late 19th and into  the early 20th century though not all predictions   are quite as practical this series of predictions  from 1893. well they definitely listened to the   part where we said we're constantly inspired by  the past and that's pretty much the entirety of   what they're showing just the extreme parts of  different Decades of fashion whether it's the   sleeves from the 1830s or the roughs of the 16th  century whatever it may be they essentially just   put everything into a grab bag and got to see  what came out they're not very realistic that   is until we reach the 1980s I'm not gonna say  that these outfits are entirely indicative of   the actual 1980s but that skirt is definitely  something that did exist my Barbie had that   skirt and you can't tell me that this 1993 option  isn't just basically New Wave someone definitely   wore this so I suppose at some point you end  up so wrong you come back around to being right   but thankfully not all of the predictions are  quite this uh out there this article from 1910   returns to that premise that clothing will need  to do more that people are going to be more   active and therefore need clothing that adapts  to that specifically women are going to be more   independent they're going to want more unique  Styles and things are going to be tailored to   what they specifically need Formal Wear will still  be a little on the frilly side in some format it   will be for beauty as they say rather than just  practicality but for every day where you need   functional clothing they reference bloomers and  pantaloons which they're still meaning pantaloons   in the older sense of the term which is a tightly  fitted trouser they also foresee a lot of pockets   and flat shoes in fact their outfit that they  put together is specific to Aviation so therefore   seeing what clothing will need to be like for  women who are flying through the sky something   that allows them to do all of those functions will  still being fairly fashionable and you can again   see the influence of 1910 in this they're not  going too far outside of their own era in terms of   inspiration but what is practical has now changed  after this is where we start to pick up a second   Trend that of futuristic Technologies the Fabrics  of the future all of the different technologies   that will come out of this rather utopic future  there is actually a fashion show in 1928 that   was meant to be an anniversary of a rather large  department store and they not only looked at the   very up and coming Trends but they looked at the  larger scale fashion Futures as well what would   happen in the coming decades overall they thought  for women at least things would continue to be   fairly feminine but in Good Taste and that things  would need to be practical for both Leisure and   activity they first show 1940s Sports costume that  is as they call it brief meaning that it doesn't   have a lot of extra stuff going on to weigh the  person down it's simply functional they also talk   about a 1950 Aviation suit because they figure  by then everyone will have taken to the skies and   this Aviation suit will be made out of chiffon and  sheer velvet have soft kid leggings and cap and a   leather windbreaker they do put this specifically  in quotes because it is not a really common term   in that era I don't know if it's necessarily  the first use of that term I doubt that it is   but it is something that is specifically used for  Aviation garments early on versus the say 1990s   windbreaker version that we all have in our minds  as we move forward into the 1970s they foresee the   beginning of Technology really coming into play  where textiles will have a lot of metal not just   woven into them but we'll also be wearing a lot  of metal pieces as well in 1985 the prediction was   back to that theme of flying where specifically  the costume would have feather-like editions   that allowed the person to have individual flight  and skipping for forward into 2028 which I guess   technically is still the future but it's not that  far off we're again back to the theme of flying   with an all metal based suit textiles and metal  pieces combined that is um inspired by the organ   not the organs of the body but the musical  organ where they specify that it will be the   popular instrument of the truly civilized man of  the future so guys we have apparently now only   five years to make pipe organs the coolest thing  ever as we move forward into the 1930s a lot of   the predictions start to include medical science  as well they think that we will have perfected   Humanity so far that really we're not going to  need clothing in the same way that we currently do   things like air conditioning and central heating  will mean that we no longer have to worry about   wearing clothing for temperature protection and  that we won't have to worry about wearing makeup   we'll have such perfect features that they won't  matter anymore we'll also wear wigs so that way   we always have the perfect hairstyles essentially  to them moving forward into the future it's going   to be more important that our clothing does  the futuristic functions that it needs to   and this is not a really small group that  believes this in 1939 Vogue did this amazing   spread in conjunction with the world's fair  that was occurring in the same year and instead   of going to fashion designers who were used to  only predicting out a few months or a few years   they instead went to the exhibit designers  people that were literally designing all of   these futuristic Concepts and Technologies for  the fair and they asked them what do you think   fashion will be in the distant future and they  ended up with nine different designs and they   are all pretty dramatically different there are  some themes that carry through but there is a   range of we'll say practicality to these some  such as this one which is just simply a heated   coat are incredibly practical this one is also  fairly sensible saying that we will have four   gone skirts and that will be able to regulate  our personal temperature via this belt this is   definitely something that I would actually wear  I honestly don't think it's that far-fetched in   terms of style then there is this Ensemble where  the designer thinks that science will have made us   perfect to the point where we actually go through  a phases Humanity of nudism but then we decide   it's kind of boring and we should continue using  draperies for fun therefore all clothing will   be incredibly adjustable and practical in that  sense we'll have permanent makeup and we'll also   not really need to carry objects around with us  anymore basically we're going to work on a system   of credit and we'll have some sort of technology  that allows us to say have doors that recognize us   when we walk up to them and will open for us which  honestly not that far off we do have all of that   technology in a cell phone nowadays but we still  have to carry that around with us so I'm not ready   to get rid of pockets just yet others focused on  the technology itself such as this aluminum coat   this person thought we would have essentially 3D  printing that clothing would be molded into the   Shea shapes that we need and put together that  way rather than flat woven and cut and seamed up   in complex shapes this designer thought that one  of the major problems would be that of travel we'd   be constantly traveling so we're going to need to  be able to do so with a very light luggage meaning   that the clothing that we're wearing will need  to adjust from one environment to the next one   situation to the next so they included sleeves  that zip off and change in that manner they also   thought that the clothing was going to regulate  the temperatures of the person that is a major   theme in this era then we move into some more  unusual Styles this designer thought that textiles   would essentially be Everlasting they would defy  corrosion wear and tear they would prevent dirt   and would be shiny like Silk essentially they  were looking towards things like lucite to be   part of the future so they included both lucite  and glass fabric these specific materials such   as lucite cellophane other things like that  also carry over into this designer's ideas   who thought that the transparency minimal fabric  idea was going to be pretty essential that again   our clothing would manage to maintain Heat  versus cool and that therefore we wouldn't   need heavy structural clothing in the same way  moving towards it being even less covered there   is this design that thought we would have elastic  net which we do and that the skirt would be made   out of a type of fabric that could be condensed  down for travel purposes and then expanded back   out again to which I have to say if you were  around in the 1990s you probably remember this   no other comments but additionally this Ensemble  has a what they call wrist Gadget that does all   the technological things that we would need  in one small package but if you perhaps think   that is not enough there's not enough technology  buried in all of these different garments I have   for you our final Ensemble from Vogue which is  the best and this shows that we certainly can't   leave out the men when it comes to forecasting  future Fashions either this Ensemble is meant to   be essentially a knitted jumpsuit it's practical  and quick fastening no longer do men have to do   all these buttons and hooks and snaps all of those  really really tedious things to get dressed in the   morning over the top of that we have the belt and  the vest which carry all of the different things   that you need rather than having to fill Pockets  every single day which is incredibly inconvenient   to pull all of your things out of one set of  pockets and put them into another instead the man   of the future will have these different pieces to  carry everything for him now you might also notice   that he has a very uh stylistic option for facial  hair this designer thought that beards would be   the way of the future men would no longer shave  their face in opposition to the way that nature   has made them and I don't know if it was the  designer's choice or the person who dressed the   model for the day but the curls in the beard are  a wonderful addition to this element and of course   we can't forget the crowning glory of the whole  thing which is the giant antenna hat and this   designer thought that the way of the future would  be what they call Omega waves that the entire   ensemble would be essentially hooked up to receive  Omega waves in the you would need the giant   antenna hat in order to do so appropriately what  these are isn't really overly specified they just   seem to be the wave of the future literally and  figuratively which I have to admit not terribly   off in many ways we do have Wi-Fi and satellite  and Bluetooth and all sorts of different waves   through the air that we are constantly accessing  through technology that we carry with us granted I   am glad we do not have to wear an antenna hat to  do so at this point in time and this is not the   only prediction for antenna hats and very we'll  put it space age futuristic attire obviously there   are tons and tons of examples within the Sci-Fi  range of media but I didn't want to get into   those because that seemed less a prediction of our  actual future and more a genre unto its own but uh   plenty of it does bleed over this 1952 prediction  includes not only the antenna hat but also jeweled   eyebrows which again I'm feeling so very 2005  for that they also think we will have gone to   tunic styles of drapery as well as uh Wings in  order to allow us to fly around for the purposes   of easier shopping and it's this tunic part that  I want to point out to you because this is sort   of the next phase that we're moving forward  into in the late 19th early 20th century they   talked a lot about individualism when it comes to  Fashion that everything would be tailored towards   what you need your clothing as an individual to  be able to do as we moved further into the 20th   century came more about the general concepts of  Technology biology and what technology could do   for you how as we move forward into the 1960s  and 70s it again changes to be more about the   fact that they believed the future would be full  of practicality through a really Universal style   that everyone would be wearing similar Fashions  and that we would no longer be concerned with   differentiating between one person to another with  these Styles so the tunic is really the beginning   portion of that they also have a slightly more  dystopian view of the future well before we were   talking about how clothing would keep us warm or  cool depending on the weather now we also have to   include body paint to protect us against pollution  and radioactivity so suddenly not so much the   perfect situation and I particularly want to point  out that they interviewed both the models and some   of the people who were viewing this fashion show  the models thought the clothing was not nice   um they they weren't so sure about all the parts  but one of the people that they interviewed in   the audience his opinion was that um it was  sexy maybe not for women but sexy for robots   I don't know what this means but it gives me  great concern and this is essentially how we see   the future moving forward from there the rest of  the 70s talks a lot about unisex Styles leggings   leotards tunics things that will no longer show  how wealthy or important a person is some think   that will have to differentiate in new ways such  as wearing mantles of old such as the Romans did   in order to show that they deserve respect and  Authority but we're going to rely on things like   jersey knit and stretchy Fabrics that things are  going to be created in their three-dimensional   Form without having to sew things together  anymore things will either be glued together   or be made as is without seams that essentially  we're no longer going to need the entire practice   of sewing instead clothing will be molded to  us and practically instant we might even have   one size fits all situations and I do think this  prediction of homogenization is really important   because though today's Style does not look like  the 1970s version with leotards and tunics you   do have a lot of leggings but it's not entirely  monotone in the same way we have existed honestly   for the last roughly 20 years with very generic  and homogeneous Styles menswear and women's wear   is not as far apart as it used to be and if I  told you that I saw a person wearing jeans and a   t-shirt that tells you nothing about the person's  situation in life their status their wealth gender   that they're presenting as any of that sort of  stuff it literally tells you nothing it could   be anybody all over the world so we have in some  ways trended towards a very homogenized style and   I think if anything the future of fashion might  actually be away from that again back to what   we're predicting at the end of the 19th century  where we're looking towards individualism and   clothing that will do what we need it to except  it won't necessarily be that the clothing will be   the most functional for our everyday jobs because  more and more our everyday jobs don't require us   to physically be doing all of that much instead  we're looking towards a future of fashion that   allows us to be expressive in our individualism  that the Aesthetics that we have really honed in   on over the last just couple of years are one  of the many ways that we could go forward with   fashion in the future that things like Cottage  core dark Academia or whiskey grandpa or whatever   it is that your particular style is is something  that you can actually find and acquire in a range   of different Goods and that you feel like you're  allowed to wear them and those are both things   that are currently changing with not only the  way that we make and sell fashion through the   internet but also with the way that Society is  going that individual options and expressiveness   through your clothing is gradually becoming  more and more encouraged that there will be   a level of creativity and individualism and  honestly even a little bit of Whimsy in our   clothing going forward that we've never really  been able to accomplish on that scale before

2023-01-08

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