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The History Of Leggings In Fashion

Leggings are a popular type of leg wear that are today worn by women for casual every day outfits as well as on many other occasions, this was not always the case ,they have been worn for centuries and this style was firstly only for men. The popularity and styling of them has changed massively over time and despite coming in and out of fashion several times, they still remain a popular piece of leg wear and are considered a fashionable item for many.

Leggings were first introduced in Scotland in the 14th Century and at this point came in two pieces with each leg put on separately. During this time they were even worn as armour made from chain mail by knights and others wore them made of leather. They were then worn by men in Europe during the 15th and 16th Century during the Renaissance period and their popularity continued into the 17th Century during Shakespeare's time. However it was still only men who wore the leg wear. In the 19th Century, leggings became more widespread globally and also started being worn by women and girls, however they were still leg wear that came in two separate pieces.

In 1960's

Chemist Joseph Shivers created Lycra in a science lab which is used that time to make leggings.In the 1960's leggings first hit retail stores and became a part of fashion. They were manufactured as one piece and were made to be tighter than before, more like the ones we know today. This development made them more of a feminine garment and became less unisex, eventually being worn just by women. They were worn like Capri trousers and mainly just for fitness purposes.

Leggings in the form of skin-tight trousers, a tighter version of the Capri ending at mid-calf or near ankle length, made its way into fashion in the 1960's and were worn with a large belt and slip-on high heels or ballet flat-styled shoes.

In 1970's

Leggings became a full-blown trend in the 1970's. Thanks to some of the decade's biggest celebrities like Debbie Harry, Olivia Newton-John (and her iconic final costume in Grease), and the stars of the popular Charlie's Angels TV series, leggings took on a very Studio 54 vibe, which was quite different from the styles of the previous two decades. This iteration resembled shiny, high-waist (often colourful) disco pants.

If people dabbled with leggings in the '60's, then they became full-blown obsessed with them in the '70's ,but it was not about wearing them to lounge around. Instead, they were reserved as a going-out staple for Saturday night. "There was a definite popularity of metallic for Saturday night fever at the disco. The shimmering metallic were ideal for strobe lights on the dance floor. Leggings were a trending look at Studio 54 and disco clubs, with the likes of Grace Jones rocking them on dance floors.

In 1980's

The transformation of the legging craze of the 1970's carried over into the 1980's when Madonna adopted them as one of her wardrobe staples, frequently wearing them on stage and infamously featuring them in her Like a Virgin video. The aerobics craze of the 1980's also fuelled the fire—Jane Fonda made a leotard worn over leggings her signature look. During the  80's, the Capri length became popular, and leggings were often colourful and patterned in keeping with the bold look of the decade.

In the 1980's, the fitness and aerobics craze turned gym clothes into fashion items and this was the first time leggings were seen as fashionable. They were a major craze in the 80's and are one of those fashion pieces that epitomise the decade. At this time leggings were worn as trousers with loose t-shirts or cropped tops as this was the trend with them being made of Lycra and Spandex. After this, they were seen as everyday casual wear and women wore them for comfort.

In 1990's

Their popularity continued into the 1990's and at this point they started being worn with skirts, dresses and baggy t-shirts and became part of a day-to-day wardrobe. In the mid 1990's, leggings were outselling jeans in the USA which shows the extent of their popularity at their peak.

After three decades of relative popularity, leggings fell off the map in the 90's as grunge swept in. The tights were put away for a full decade.In the mid 1990's, leggings were outselling jeans in the USA which shows the extent of their popularity at their peak

In 2000's

After fading from relevance for a few years at the turn of the 21st century, leggings were back with a vengeance, as the decade's biggest. The girls started wearing Capri versions of the trend again, often under dresses and skirts. Nicole Richie, the Olsen twins, Paris Hilton, and Lindsay Lohan were all on board. Toward the end of the decade, full-length liquid leggings replaced pants for the most part.

In 2005, leggings made a "comeback" into high fashion, particularly in indie culture, with capri-length leggings being worn with mini skirts and dresses. Consequently, leggings are also now popular to wear with oversized, long sweaters, denim mini skirts, plaid skirts, short dresses and short shorts. Leggings are also worn under athletic shorts. Leggings also come in Capri length and bike short length. The bike short length is popular under sports uniform shorts and under skirts and dresses as a fashionable item and to keep from showing too much. This trend towards tight pants can alternately be seen in the resurgence of skinny jeans.

Present day

leggings are now worn under another garment and it has become somewhat socially unacceptable to wear them just as trousers. The leg wear has evolved so much through several centuries to eventually become the garment they are today, and trying to stay at the forefront of fashion has meant that there are now so many styles available, from all sorts of materials, colours and patterns. They are now part of the everyday wardrobe of millions across the world, with leggings being an inexpensive garment with so much versatility.

Approximately 2015, celebrities like Gigi Hadid, Kendall Jenner, Hailey Baldwin, and Bella Hadid reintroduced leggings into our wardrobes. Like it or not, these athleisure-loving It girls have made them acceptable to wear as pants. Currently, the most popular iterations of the trend are high-waist, street wear-inspired styles and leather leggings, both of which enforce that it's once again acceptable to wear leggings outside the gym. As long as the fashion world continues to embrace comfort, we don't see the centuries-old trend fading anytime soon.

Now that we've covered the lengthy past of leggings, find out which legging trends are coming for your closet in 2017.
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