So recently I had a lovely little trip to the V&A Museum to nosey around the Club To Catwalk 80s fashion exhibition with uni and I think my love for the 80s has never been stronger. One look that really grabbed my attention was the Buffalo/Hard Times look, I swear down I could not stop saying “OMG I LOVE IT!” Think studs and leather and distressed material – thanks to the recession in the 80s we still have that look in some of today’s clothes. Madonna was a lover of the look and although i’m not a fan of hers, she certainly knew how to rock it. So, as a result of my new found love for the hard times look, here’s a little how-to on how to make it look good!
Clothes:
Netting, studs, ripped fabrics (being careful not too rip too much) and my personal guilty pleasure: BUM BAGS!
You’ll find so much hard times inspired stuff in high street shops it’s unreal! Notice how Madonna wore those cross earrings? The cross print is everywhere nowadays, not only for accessories but on clothes too. Oh, and chunky metal bangles are easily accessible pretty much anywhere as well as leather jackets. You can easily customise old clothes with split pins to look like studs, try doing it with an old belt. The hard times look has it’s name for s reason, when the recession hit hard, people couldn’t spend much on clothes so getting the look yourself needn’t be expensive.
Make-up:
Smokey eyes and red lips are probably the two main looks of the hard times. Get out the dark shadows and team with a more rosy tinted gloss or draw a thick black line around your eyes with either a liquid or felt-tip eyeliner and use the red lipstick generously! If you’re looking for a bold look, get a little bit of inspiration (and I mean VERY little) from TOWIE. The shape of their eyeshadow is quite like the hard times look where it stretches out to the end of their brows. If that isn’t bold enough, wear with the red lipstick.
Hair:
Backcombing. Need I say more? Backcomb your hair to the max everywhere and lightly run your fingers through it with some mousse. Dig out your primary school scrunchie and wear a side ponytail on the top of your head. It might sound crazy, but hey, the 80s were all about being crazy!
Anyway, i’m gonna carry on looking for the bum bag I wore in Florida when I was 8, wish me luck!
Ellie.. xx
A make-up obsessed child in a teen's body. 