Peace and love – these are the forefront of the campaign of the eccentric group called hippie. This group emerged in the mid 1960’s as a counter action in defiance for the standard norms in politics and in society. These people in today’s world continue with their ideals and they still wear the apparel they used before – modern hippie clothes. Hippie people of the yesteryears have long hair and they wore sandals, tie dye shirts and bell bottom pants. The present day hippies and their modern hippie clothes had not deviated from the standard clothes of hippies of the 1960’s, although a little subdued today.

In the “now” society, many adopt the principle for which the hippie group stood before. But these present-day non-conformists are no longer called hippies. They are given different names such as leftist, rallyist and others but never hippies. There are still those who spread the principle of love and peace – these modern day hippies are no longer called as such. Many of us now are hippies in our own way, maybe not in lifestyle but in fighting for our rights and for what we believe in.

Modern hippie clothes are just like the old hippie apparel. When pants are worn, these are flared or bell bottoms and for the tops, it is usually a tie die shirt. The tie dye shirts are already a mainstay in fashion. But the bell bottom pants, though many would go for it, has been replaced with the flare pants. Bell bottoms and flare pants – they are just the same, the difference being in the tapering to the hem line of the pants.

The peasant long skirt, as well as the peasant top is still used today. The person wearing it though does not call her attire hippie anymore. Modern hippie clothes come in different colors, designs and clothing materials. Any print or color can be a hippie get-up so long as the attire does not lose the peasant look. There are those that still dress in odd ways – similar to the way the 1960 hippie does but their semblance stops there. They are not the people who fight for a cause – very unlikely for a hippie.

The world of fashion accepts any design, no matter how eccentric it may be. And more than that, the clothes are not absurd to be discarded. In fact, there are times when the eccentric clothes are trend setters. The modern hippie get up becomes a fashion statement.

Hippie values remain in the modern world. It does not matter if the modern hippie clothes are adopted or not. What should be inherited from these people is the principle of freedom from restrictions and freedom to express one self.

Pants and trousers had undergone different styles. Bell bottoms which had started during the 60’s had transformed – had undergone its own metamorphosis. To whom shall we credit the original design of bell bottom pants? Would they be the hippies?

The origin of bell bottom pants is still unknown. Some historical data reveal its origin to be the U.S. Navy and this was in the 19^th century. They describe aptly the uniforms of these naval people to be very wide pants ending in a bell. Although this data has been known, it did not receive much credibility due to absence of documentations.

It was in the middle of the 60’s that the bell bottoms became a hit fashion in Europe and America. In 1967, it received accolades in high fashion and became a part of the hippie counter culture movement. The costume was made complete with the presence of various accessories – the love beads and granny glasses. Tie-dye shirts went well with the bell bottom pants. From that period in the 60’s bell bottoms had undergone different variations and cuts.

Different variations of the bell bottoms style include the flare pants, loon pants, boot-cut/leg pants. Bell bottoms are pants or trousers that start to be wider from the knees downward. This cut of pants was identified with the hippies and their culture.

Bell bottoms are pants or trousers that start to be wider from the knees downward. This cut of pants was identified with the hippie culture. The bell bottoms are said to be fitted tightly around the hips and thighs.

Flare pants came as a resurfacing bell bottoms in the 1970’s. Then came other styles of bell bottoms. The boot leg or boot cut pants also came from the originally called bell bottom pants. This is tapering to the knee and it becomes wider at the hem to accommodate a boot. Hence, this was termed boot-cut. As the fashion comes and goes, the hem of the boot leg pants began to be cut wider just like the bell bottoms but this was never again called bell bottoms. The term flared pants was more used because this has more appeal for marketing purposes.

Another style of pants derived from the bell bottoms was the loon pants. This is just a shortened term for balloon pants. These pants are more flared from the knee than the bell bottoms and the entire leg was too flared. The elephant bell pants resemble the loon pants but these are designed more for denim cloths. The elephant bells had a distinguished flare below the knee and more often, they cover the shoes of the wearer. They are not only wide but the cut extends almost to the ground in order to cover the shoes.

In the 1980’s the parachute pants was the fashion and in the 1990’s the Grunge look was the style of flared pants. Though there are many pants that originated from the bell bottom, the term bell bottom per se never again was used as style

The boot cut pants, since introduced, never left the fashion world. Today these flared and boot cut pants are cuts of denims and other pants materials. The boot leg pants replaced the bell bottom pants which in the present fashion, there are no traces of bell bottoms – only boot cut and flared.

What do you know about a hippie? Maybe the idea that comes to you mind is – hippies are people wearing out-of-fashion flower power outfits, untidy with long hairs and bums around the corner. You are in the greatest mistake! Hippies are noble people and you only see them with unconventional appearances because they want to show how they oppose the current societal environment and set-up. Actually, they were admired so much so that the culture survived from the 1960’s to the present. The greatest expression of their character is through their flower power outfits.

Hippies aimed to bring new ideas to the world. They are extreme advocates of peace and love. We are not privy on the lives of hippies but it is a fact that they wore different costumes as a sign of their opposition. Examining closely, you will find their brainchild truly beneficial to the people and society.

The garments worn by the hippies are the greatest expression of their culture. Because of what they wear, they are easily identifiable in a crowd. That time, men wear clean-cut hair. To contra this, the hippie men began to grow their hair and wear them long – sometimes they tie them into ponytails. More are more easily spotted because of this hair-do.

Hippies are very much noted for their eccentric clothes. Well, they just seem to be such because they are not conventional. This was done intentionally to project the different the hippies want to impart on the public. They go for the floral designs – as flowers were their sign of spreading peace and love.

Men and women are alike in the choice of pants. They wore them with bell bottoms – again a deviation from the standard, again a sign of contradiction to the existing norms. The materials for the flared pants can be in solid colors or in floral designs. Whatever it is, they see to it that their outfit is loose and comfy. For the tops, they also went for the floral designs. The polo shirts of men are floral with wide and big collars. Although the dress shirts are already comfortable to wear, added to the selection of toppers are tie dyed t-shirts, which they usually do themselves. The women had more options. They can wear dresses or blouses and skirts and the length is not standard, where they can go short or long.

Footwear is again non-traditional. They wear boots or moccasins or sandals. Many did go around bare-footed.

Accessories are requisites to complete the hippie attire. Wide belts are worn around the waist. The peace sign pendant hanged in every hippie neck – as if telling the world – “Hey! Let us spread peace and love”. Other accessories are loop earrings, bangles and bracelets. The ladies’ hair had clips with flowers, headbands with flowers and ribbons in colorful colors.

Hippie clothesline had been adopted consistently by many designers so much so that even at this modern period, there are still many hippie designs applicable – particularly the flower power outfits. Hippies will continue to live in this world, We can depend on these people to fight for changes in the community, particularly in economics and politics. 

Can you recall that period when people sport that patented peace sign and wear their controversial flower power hippie costume? Who would not remember the years of the 60’s?  This is a revolutionary period both in culture and fashion.  This is the period when non-conformist, idealistic people came out in the open and fought for what they believe in. And they started with their attire and appearance. This is the beginning of the flower power hippie costume.

The hippies dressed with eccentricity. This is perhaps to make them easily distinguishable. The hippie attire consists of bell bottom pants, boho attire, psychedelic outfits and flower power garment. They are accessorized with the peace pendant. Ladies and women of all ages show their hippie character through flowers, thus they were then known as the flower power hippies.

Flowers are peace offering, flowers are symbol of serenity. It is on this belief that flowers became integral in the culture of feminine hippies.

To start with, the dresses, skirts, blouses and pants of women of all ages adopted the floral designs in textiles. Their clothes were remarkably lively because of the choice for loud and vibrant colors. The dresses are peasant style, loose although they can be in different length of hemline. Whatever the cut or design of the clothes, the hippie clothesline is loose and comfortable to wear,

As for the men, they too are sporting the new hippie style for pants or trousers. The pants, like those of the women were hip huggers. Then the cut of the pants is bell bottoms starting from below the knee to the hemline. There were arguments then that the more it is bigger at the hem line, the better if becomes. Hippies began to customize their shirts – just to demonstrate their non-conformity to the style of the day. It was from these 60’s hippies that the tie dye shirts are attributed. But, it should be properly remembered that men wore special shirts which have floral prints and the neckline has a noticeably big collar. 

What footwear can match the hippie attire? Here is a vast selection of footwear. Fancy laced-up boots go with dresses of shorter length. Moccasins, sandals and Birkinstocks are acceptable hippie footwear. Or going barefooted is even acceptable. The final get-up is accessorized with the peace pendant and wide belts. To match the hippie theme, the handbag can be made of patchwork of floral cloths. Some other accessories are hair clips and head bands with flowers attached to the hair accessory. Add bangles or bracelets and necklaces made of shinny beads of different colors.

Flowers were adopted by the hippies as their sign of peace offering. The underlying credo of hippies is to foster peace among people, and they expressed this in wearing their flower power hippie costumes.

Looking back to the 70’s can bring back melancholy memories but it is also fun to look at the charming legacy of this decade. This was the time for great dancing, music and ladies disco costume. It was great to remember John Travolta, the Beetles and especially ABBA whose lady members, Agnetha and Frida wore fabulous ladies disco costume.

Today, parties are themed to once again relive the happy days of diva icons and dancing queens. Thus dressing in 70’s decade costumes becomes easier that dressing like super heroes. Perhaps, just going over our closets, we will find retro outfits that could be a fashion statement of the 70’s and the disco era. And have you known that these disco outfits are fun to look at and yet easy to replicate?

The seventies is characterized by bell bottoms and the disco music. This was also an era when extended hippie culture can still be felt around. The ladies were partying with their bell bottom pants (from hippie era) with tops that are shimmering and sparkling. Yes – this was a time when ladies’ disco clothes were adorned with glitters and sequence.

Ladies of the 70’s were totally funky and as dancing queens can liven up the affair. Many of the styles of the period can still be found in some styles and designs of the modern fashion. Couturiers have incorporated some ideas of the 70’s in today’s vogue – maybe in a more subtle way. Bell bottoms better known today as the flared pants or its bootleg derivative found way back to the current fashion.

What to wear today to replicate the disco costume?

The fancy outfits of the 1970 disco divas as seen in the dance floors of this decade of discos are mostly catsuits and hot pants. Then the sexy tops are glittery, haltered and colorful. Footwear can be the Go-go boots and ladies should not be wary of wearing lots of accessories. Colored sunglasses are fashionable so with the long hair wigs or afro look.

Women of the 70’s were costumes that are mostly tubular. If you will go to a retro costume party, choose a colorful and bold mod dress. Or another option is the one piece jumpsuit with wide bell bottoms. It should be noted that the wider the bells at the bottoms, the better and more appealing the costume is. They can be really flirtatious and sexy and you will surely be an eye-catching sight. Make the materials of your outfit have wild retro prints and surely – all attention will be drawn to you.

Disco is fun and music is a release of tension. Go and dance the night out with your ladies disco costume. The 70’s is back and wistfulness engulfs you!

The years of the 70’s gave birth to dicotheques and disco music. It was during this time that a famous quartet gained popularity with their singing voices and their out-of-this world ABBA costumes. Even today, in disco parties, the songs of the famous singing group are among the favorite music, set in the air amidst dancing aficionados. And if you want to really be the dancing queen of the party, attend and don ABBA costumes.

ABBA could be everyone’s favorite singing group. Their story is remarkable – an inspiration to would-be band members or singing groups. The history of these famous singers started when Bjorn Ulvaeus met Benny Andersson in 1966. They are both lovers of music, singers for that matter but they adopt differing genres. Despite their difference, they formed a partnership in composing songs. In 1969, Bjorn and Benny met the other two members of the group -  Agnetha Faltskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad who are also enjoying solo singing careers. The foursome became known as ABBA and their song ranked high in different surveys and billboards. Agnetha and Bjorn married in 1971 and the other two members likewise tied the knot in 1978, but unfortunately are already divorced. With the unprecedented popularity of the quartet’s songs emerged a new trend in fashion – the ABBA costumes and accessories.

Today, parties having disco theme are characterized by attendees’ ABBA apparel. Every lady wants to get a hold of the perennial title “dancing queen” – which originated from one of the most popular songs of the group. ABBA costumes are elaborate. And if you are going to buy them, you would spend a great deal on them. They really come expensive. But, you can also be a do-it-yourselfer in ABBA creations. You just have to be resourceful and search the internet on how to make great ABBA costumes?

 Agnetha’s style is white dress with frills and Frida, in their concert tours used to wear spangled min-skirt. The cat suits that the members of this group wore during their tours were all fabulous. They accentuated them with funky belts. They wore wigs – long blond wig with fringes or a roxy red wig Frida-style. For the male ABBA outfit, you can wear the ABBA male silver and blue patterned shirt. A matching belt should go with the trousers and of course – wear the signature ABBA wig! And to complete the ABBA scenario – start singing the “dancing queen song”. If you want to go further, carry another accessory – an inflated guitar!

Typical ABBA costumes are long sleeved shirts for men. The women wore long-sleeved dresses with giant bells attached to the outfit. The dresses and shirts have high collars which are folded over. Laces are usually the trimmings in the front bodice and completing the attire is a wide belt. The pants comprise of three layers of ruffles which run below the knees. If you have budget for a more expensive ABBA costume, go for the satin outfit. But if you want an expense-free ABBA costume, have a flowy top or shirts worn over a mini-skirt or bell bottoms pants. But remember that ABBA costumes are color coordinated. And don’t forget the wig!

If you are going to the disco, the best attire is ABBA costumes. Either you buy one or improvise one from your existing wardrobe, remember that they should be color coordinated and with wide belts for accent. Wig is a must to complete the ABBA look.

Different seasons of the year mark different festivals, not only in the United States but all over the world. Going to festivals are often look forward to and as such, the main concern is centered on the festival clothes to bring and wear. Of course when you go to the festival, you are contemplating on the style and comfortability of your apparel. Wearing the right festival clothes can give you all the pleasure of the occasion. Would you want to be out-of-place because you wore the wrong outfit?

First guideline in going to a festival – know the theme of the affair. Your outfit will be matched with the theme of the festival. Your apparel has to conform to the venue of the festival. If you are going to a celebration to be held outdoors, you should wear clothes fitted for this.

Here are 3 sample festivals with recommended attire for each.

Safari Festival

Your clothes should not be bold and colorful. Bright colors attract jungle animals so these loud colors should not be worn in a safari festival. And, you do not wear maxi skirts when going to a safari. It should usually be shorts or sturdy pants. The earthy colors are given preference so with the camouflage material. For accessories, you can wear big sunglasses, a hat or cap, belts with hooks where you can hang some camping paraphernalia. Recommended shoes are boots – jungle boots and not the heeled stylish boots. You can also have bags for your accessories. Most appropriate bags are belt bags, body bags or small sized-backpack.

Music or Film Festival

This festival is a formal affair and the venue maybe in a concert hall, air-conditioned and lavishly set-up. You also have to dress formally – as much as possible in gowns. Jewelries go well with formal dresses. You can wear any color of apparel. However, for formal affairs, black is the best preferred hue. Black gives more formal sense especially when the material used for the gown is also of the formal side. Suggested materials are lace, satin or velvet. The gown can have some sparkling effects so you can have designs that make use of beads, sequence or stones. You can have a formal jacket or shawl to go with the gown. Your hair should be coiffured or styled and done in a formal fashion. Your footwear is also formal – heeled shoes or sandals are the best.   And as a final ensemble, the bag or clutch bag should also be formal – not the big ones, just small handy purse will be nice.

Halloween Festival

This is usually a costume party. So, you should really know the theme of the feast. However, most Halloween parties take the retro outfit as motif. So with this, you can go Bohemian or hippie. This festival will not require you for much fuss in preparing the get-up. You can first search in your closet some old-styled outfits that you can modify to suit the theme of the festival. You can have your loose denims and make it into a patchwork pants and have a tie dye shirt for the tops. Ladies can wear loose peasant dress with floral designs. Even the footwear will not require much preparation. You can just put on your sandals or boots. What is important here is to make your attire entirely colorful to reflect the hippie culture of loose, comfortable and colorful dressing.

Dressing for a feast will never be a problem. Your only guide is the theme or motif of the affair. As such, remember to wear your appropriate festival clothes.

The season is changing. It is getting cold and you have to adjust to the weather condition. But you have also to maintain your hippie outfit. You are a hippie and whatever is the season, you have to go in style as a hippie. You feel the cool surroundings; it marks the time to bring out your favorite hippie sweater kept in the drawer of your wardrobe cabinet. You know that hippie outfits come and go, so a hippie sweater follows the trend of coming and going. But if you want a new one, you have several things to consider. The best way to know the latest on sweater fashion is to refer to your big library – the internet.

What have you found? There are different styles of hippie sweaters.

Sweater Vest – This is a sleeveless sweater, placed over a topper. You can wear this if the weather is not too cold. Or you can use it under a cardigan sweater, or even under a jacket.

Pull-over Sweater - This is a sweater without any front or back opening. You put it on by pulling it over your head through the neckline cut. The neckline is usually a V-cut and when you put it on, you can give a nice peek on the shirt underneath. This allows you more style especially in harmonizing your hippie sweater with a plain colored shirt underneath. But round necks are also nice to look though the peek with the V-neck is more prominent.

Cashmere Sweater – This sweater is the perfect choice when the season is not very cold; when you need just a little warmth without the hassle of bulk. The cashmere style can be worn alone, without any shirt underneath. They are very light for comfort.

Turtle Neck Sweater – This sweater is just like the pull-over except for the neck part. The turtle neck makes the sweater warmer as it covers the whole neck. The neck takes the place of the scarf in providing the warmth for the hippie’s neck. This is more appropriate to use during the colder winter months.

Cardigan Sweater - This type of sweater is open in front. Buttons run from the neckline to the waist. The cardigan sweater can be waist length or hip length. You can wear it with the front buttoned or opened.

Hooded sweater – A hood is attached to this sweater. The hood can be fixed or detachable. The front can be open as in the cardigan or not as in the pull-over.

Most sweaters use yarns or knit for the material. Why? They provide the needed warmth and they can fit snugly to your body. But the main point in picking your hippie sweater is the color and the design when knitted. The hippie sweaters usually are knitted with different brilliant colors of yarn. The hippie sweaters can further be accentuated with different clothing decors. Sweaters with front openings like the cardigan can have decorative buttons. You can even attach an embroidery patch of the hippie peace and love sign.

With the sweater, you can still be glamorous despite the cold weather engulfing you. There are no strict set of rules for your hippie sweater. This is the good thing why many people turn to hippie fashion. You go with whatever style you deem appropriate.

Hippie chic – what could this mean to you? To anyone ordinary, this refers to a hippie person who is very fashion conscious (chic so they say). But if you search in the internet, you get somewhat confused. There are on-line boutiques with the business name – Hippie Chic! However you construe it, you will find out that they are the same in content. You are presented with the styles and fashion of a hippie.

This time around – the hippies are again hot – making a come-back in the world of the run-ways and haute couture. You will find a clothes line with features of a hippie designed by world famous fashion designers. You will find them the center of fashion shows attended by the rich and the famous. So – would you say hippie chic is ordinary? It is vogue! Hippie fad comes and goes – but for many parties, hippie attire or costume is always a favorite dress code.

As they come, little changes are introduced to make the present fashion a little different from the precedent mode. One example is the female bottoms. A few years back, the bottoms were flared, years earlier, they were bell-bottoms but now, they are skinny. But whatever  the cut, you will find the underlying principle for which the term hippie evolved.

Conspicuous with hippie attire are the colors. They go for psychedelic, bold colors – not the solid colors. With the vibrant hues, they express their unconformist personalities. Some of the attires of the hippie chic have intricate designs. From beads and embroideries in the preceding year, now they have gems (Swarovski?) and pearls (South Sea pearls?). Hey – ordinary person that you are, do not be dissuaded with these outfit accents. You can make your own hippie attire without those expensive gems and stones. Why do you pay for the clothes created by designers? Is it the brand or the eccentricity of the design? If you go for the design – then dig the creativity in you and design your own hippie attire. After all, designers create beautiful clothes line with just their single weapon – creativity.

The key to hippie fashion innovation is details. As the current trend is skinny jeans, match them with a paisley flowing tunic. Pile on your arms an assortment of bangles. For your ear accessories, hang chandelier type of earrings. Hang on your neck custom necklaces in alternating lengths and colors. Wrap your ankle with anklets that match your necklace. Add a little glamour by wearing a jeweled head band. As a last touch, you can put on that leather high heeled boots.

Some other suggested hippie chic outfits are wig-leg pants (contrasting the skinny bottoms), flowing maxi skirts, flower and psychedelic prints for your tops. You can choose the material from different fabrics: lace, chiffon, silk, knit, suede and even the ordinary cotton.

Accessories of a hippie chic: head gear with flowers, a hippie purse with the “hippie peace logo”, necklaces, bangles, anklets. You can always wear anything you like. This is the beauty of a hippie outfit – your attire never gets over-decorated – the opposite of the traditional dress code.

Want to be a hippie chic? Wear as bold colors as you want and any kind of non-traditional clothes. 

 Do you want the eyes of everyone in the subway turn to you?  Yes, it is cold weather but you can have the eye-catching look by wearing fashionable hippie jackets. You do feel a different feeling when you see people admiring your attire. You do not need expensive or exclusive designer’s clothes to look trendy. The designs and styles of hippie jackets are sure to magnetize even the most fastidious people. Well, if your objective is to be in fashion, let these kinds of jackets bring you to the arena of marvel.

Although jackets are primarily to provide extra warmth to the body (just like sweaters), you unconsciously open the trend of fashion with your hippie jacket. Without intentionally doing it, hippie jackets draw people to have a glance at your attire. Why? They are very different from the jackets of traditional persons. Hippie jackets are adorned and they come in different styles. The materials may not be the conventional textile used in the ordinary jackets you see – in the racks and in catalogues. But – there are also designers who create these kinds of jackets. Why not? There are many moneyed hippies who will be willing to spend on a beautiful and extraordinary hippie jacket.

The basic characteristic of hippie jackets, just like any hippie apparel, is the choice of colors. Vibrant and dazzling colors characterize the hippie jacket. This gives an animated and energetic feeling which is the inherent personality of every hippie. The materials also are varied – cloth, leather or leatherette, corduroy and many more. There are many styles and cuts to suit the persona of the wearer.

Hippie jackets can be of different length. The choice could be waist length or hip length. And jackets can be sported with short sleeves or long sleeves.

One major style of hippie jackets is the front closure. They can have buttons, zipper or snaps. The buttons can be as decorative as possible, in different shapes, sizes and colors. Zippers can also be an accent to the jacket. In today’s modern fashion, you will be amazed to find out that zippers come in variation of colors – whether with plastic or steel teeth. Although the snaps provide ease in closing the jacket’s front, they are less decorative compared to the buttons and zippers.

Pockets are again a major revolution in the hippie jackets. This is one part of the hippie jacket that is emphasized. One notable type of pocket is the “kangaroo” pocket. It was given that name because it is placed in front of the jacket. The jacket is closed to the mid length and the pocket is placed in this mid-section. There are pockets with flaps and there are those without. The pockets can be placed up (breast site), down or side. The pocket can have different shapes – rectangle or square are usually used. It is very common that decorative patches and embroideries are sewn on the pockets. Other decors can also be placed on the pockets. Most hippies would want a patch of their “peace and love” signature logo. Some jackets are also imprinted with hippie statements thus making the apparel a statement jacket.

There really is no limit to the style of hippie jackets. You can buy a designer’s hippie jacket on-line. But if you want to spend less, you can buy any ordinary jacket and put an array of multi-colored patches. Once you wear them, be ready for accolades. 

What kind of bottoms do you want to pair with your new hippie top? For your bottoms, you can have a hippie skirt or a hippie pants (for the ladies). The men really have to wear their hippie pants to match their hippie shirts. How would you choose the bottoms?

Are styles exclusive to men only? No, is the answer; they are for both sexes and for all ages as the bottoms are unisex in design. What style is worn by men are also the styles sported by women and children.

As you are going to sport a hippie outfit, you can go all the way to whatever you want – no restrictions. For your hippie pants you can choose faded denim, ridged corduroy or you can opt for the soft khaki cotton and rayon. You can even use a printed textile – flowery, psychedelic, checks or polka dots. It is really your choice – hippie.  For solid-colored pants, you can put appliqués, embroidery or patchwork. To make it different from the traditional pants – more hippie look. This is the beauty of hippie fashion – you can go all the way, any way to your delight!

The most common style of pants associated with the hippies is the bell-bottoms. And from this bell bottoms came other similar styles, but the basic is still pants with wide bottom. What are bell bottoms? These are trousers – both for men and women. It is tapering to become wider.  The tapering starts from the knees downward to the foot.

The loon pants are one kind of the bell bottom hippie pants. The name of the style was shortened from “balloon”. As from the style, these trousers are wider than the bell bottom and the flare is more on the entire leg.

Elephant bells are trousers that are similar to loon pants – meaning very wide. But, the difference lies in the material used for the pants. Elephant bells are usually made from denim. The denim textile must be soft to create a flowing flare. They have a distinctive widening below the knee reaching even wider at the ground level. They are worn covering the wearer’s shoes. So the hem is to as far as the ground.

The boot-cut hippie pants are modifications of the bell-bottom pants. They taper to the knee and become loose around the wearer’s ankle. The flare is less wide than the bell bottom. As the term boot-cut, the cuffs or edge of this type is measured to accommodate the boots of the hippie.

Flare-leg hippie pants are better favored than the bell bottom from which it originated. These are like the boot-leg pants, only they are wider at the hem than the boot-cut.

The exact opposite of the bell bottom family of pants is the new trend of the skinny jeans. If the bell bottoms taper loosely around your legs, the skinny pants are the exact opposite. This kind of pants clings to the legs of the wearer, from the thighs down to the hem. The body shape and legs of the wearer is accentuated.

Remember pants are worn by all sexes and all ages. For one, they are more comfortable bottoms. Wearing hippie pants is a trademark of a hippie person. Regardless of your tops, you are distinguished as a hippie because of the style of your pants.

The final touches to hippie outfits are the accessories. You can have a hippie head gear made of ribbons or bands with decorations. You can wear wide belts with chains while toting hippie purses. You can go around with all the hippie jewelry – necklaces, earrings, rings, bracelets and anklets. And as you finish dressing up and ready to go – you get hold of your hippie purses.

Bags or purses, these are very important to the hippie lady. When you leave the house or your office, you always have to carry with you several things – money, lipstick, keys and the like. So – you have to put them in a purse. Since you are sporting a hippie outfit, the purse should be a hippie purse or hippie bag.

Materials

Hippie purses can come in various materials. They can be made with genuine leather or leatherette (cheaper as this is synthetic leather).  There are purses made of fabrics – silk, cotton, denim, corduroy. Some other materials used are canvas, rattan and plastic. They can be made in solid colors or printed fabrics. Prints can be floral, checks or abstract – again depending on the option of the lady.

Sizes and color

Hippie purses can be of any size – depending on the preference of the hippie chick. The size usually is dependent on the things to be contained inside the purse. If the purse is only for money, then it can be a small one. Hippie purses can come in different colors – the more vivid the more hippie-like.

Style

The purse can be a coin purse, a clutch purse or a zippered one. It may or may not have a strap. Then, if it must have a strap, the length also varies. The interior of the purse can be padded or not. The closure also is of differing style, where it can have a snap, zipper, buttons or just tied around. As this is a hippie purse, it can have other trimmings. It can be attached with bows, ribbons. It can be ruffled or pleated. It can be beaded, embroidered or appliquéd.

Prices

The prices of hippie purses can be cheap or expensive, depending on the materials used, the craftsmanship and the brands. Hand-made hippie purses, customized hippie purses and vintage hippie purses usually are the highly priced.  Why is hand-made purse expensive? The making of the purse takes a longer period of time and the labor cost of hand-made is more. The customized hippie purse will need other designs and decorations (special) and since this is one of a kind, it will also command a higher price tag. Hippie purses made by famous designers also have higher prices than the generic ones. And for the vintage – this type is usually the most expensive. They are already antiques and as vintage, may carry with it some sentimental or historic value.  

You cannot go out without accessories and you cannot move confidently in hippie style without hippie purses. You need to have more than one purse because each of them is used differently – different purpose or different occasion. You cannot carry a small coin purse to a party. Neither can you bring along a beaded purse to the park. So this is one aspect of hippie life where you do become selective. 

Let us assess your looks and appearance – are you a new generation hippie? Examine your clothes, are these reflective of hippie dresses?

What do hippie clothes look like?

Tops and Bottoms

One of the most common attire of a hippie is the tie-dyed tops or shirts. You will seldom buy the tie dyed shirts; you can make them out of ordinary plain shirts (usually white). This is how you can do it – fold the material, tie a part with string or rubber band, deep that portion in bright colored dyes. Let it dry and there – you have the hippie dress. Or when summer comes, be a hippie wearing an alter tops.(for ladies) and boxer shirts (for men).

 To match the tie-dyed tops are jeans (today’s fad) which usually are fringed – the more fringed, the better and more hippie-like. The jeans are hip-hugger and are bell-bottom. Or – girls can use a mini or micro skirt.

Accessories

Hippie dresses are accented by equally dynamic accessories. You can use wide leather belts, vests or jackets. Your peers may use combat and fatigue jackets and vests. The accessories usually carry the flower symbol – in the belt’s buckle, as a pin or even as a pendant for necklace. The symbol is an indispensable part of your outfit. Anklets are also part of the accessories. This highlights your shared ideology of peace.

Footwear

You can go barefoot – but this makes your feet dirty. You better wear boots – go go costume boots are the “in shoes”. However, for casual wear, opt for leather sandal, which by any standard is more comfortable.

Hair style

Girls are bound to wear flowers on their hair or wear a hear gear accessorized by flowers. If you have some kind of “Pocahontas” headband, then this can be the substitute for the flower symbol.

Facial hair is also integral. Men wear beards or moustaches. But if you belong to this human species, have this facial hair trimmed regularly. You are not the untidy kind many thought hippies to be!

All these hippie dresses and accessories are still available. Many shops have them. So if you are in search for a hippie dress for your costume party, have no worry. You can make your purchase almost in every mall; or if you are money conscious make your own dye-tied shirt. Make fringes on your jeans! It is really no sweat! Now – join me in my hippie world.