Pre-internet, pre-mobile phones, I was just a ten year old living in a localised bubble that revolved around whether I could meet friends at the cinema on time using payphones as forms of communication and it was REALLY exciting to take the 221 bus to Wood Green to go to New Look and Tammy Girl. I therefore cannot assess whether this particular micro trend was going on elsewhere outside of North London seeing as I was only a midget at the time and not particularly concerned with trend globalisation. So, here goes… did everyone round about 1994-5 have a PROPER thing about wearing a nylon puffy bomber jacket, with a fluro orange lining (click on the jacket link for a pic…), the sort that dustmen/rubbish dudes sometimes wear. They came in olive and navy but most kids went for black. Then girls would adorn their jackets with Variety Club gold heart brooches, not quite understanding what it is the Variety Club actually does. You might wear the one or two brooches on the elbow, on the shoulder, but mostly on the chest. Or perhaps it was just in the peculiar enclave of Barnet that this was happening…
We're harking back to times before I actually started dressing myself and it was the first time my mine was hell bent on wearing something in particular as opposed to the matching outfits my mum got me and my sister. I begged her for the jacket for aaaages and finally she relented but alas, when we got to Camden Market, all the girls' sizes were sold out but I persisted and went for an oversized adult one… lush… my midget bod flooping around in this massive jacket that basically swallowed me up.
Anyway… when I saw this black jacket from The Urban Collection, I saw a chance to complete this wretched circle by getting a well-fitted jacket that doesn't look like it's going to eat me and is in fact a far and away super refined version of that 90s' one. It's a bomber shape but the sleeves are sheer chiffon and rather than feeling like an awkward hulk, there's a floaty-wafty thing going on which would never have happened with the original incarnation. The mum will actually like this one heaps better too.
(Robert Cary Williams peach chiffon zipper dress, Costume Dept leggings, Forever 21 shoes)
GORGEOUS!!! Love that outfit! 🙂
I have a navy silk chiffon hoodie that reminds me of your jacket…Love the colour combo!
xx
I live in Enfield, not far from Barnet and Woodgreen. I loved Tammy Girl and New Look, I think their girls wear was called 915 or something? Maybe i’m just making that up!? and I remember having the jacket with the orange lining and the heart brooches although I cant remember where the brooches came from, maybe my grandma?! They used to advertise them in magazines i’m sure…
Theres pictures of me and my friend in the jackets with orange cropped t-shirts underneath and denim skirts with buttons straight down the front. I remember having white patent sandals with a chunky heel as well that got filthy with scufs and some kind of disgusting lime green lycra dress that I either saved up and bought from Enfield town market or nagged my mum to buy for me. Funny!!!
you brought back some memories for me , I also owned that same jacket and remeber being so jealous of my sister as she had a reversable one. One side was the waterproff bomer the other side was a satin look material obviosly poloyester but at the time i thought it was great , she could turn it inside out for a sultry evening look. Now I just think why did you buy that for me mum !!
Haha, I so remember that trend, so it was going on in Croydon at the time too! My best mates had the aformentioned bombers with orange lining but I was the height of coolness with a slimmer fitting black bomber from Miss Selfridge with a silver lining and black faux fur lined hood. Those were the days! I loved it so much I think I still have it somewhere…
Uh 1994/5 was merely a drink and drug fuelled haze for me so I have no idea what they hell folk were wearing!! LOL!
Although my equivalent of 10 years old fashion (in 1983) was body warmers. Everyone I knew went nuts for quilted body warmers which were either navy, red or black and you HAD to wear them with those wooden Scholl sandal things. It was the law.
oh my god TAMMY! cool clothes in tiny sizes. around that time we used to wear cut off denim shorts, tights and doc martens (obviously the original inspiration for the cool kids now) and round john lennon sunglasses maybe with a fido dido tshirt or global hypercolour. or pink checked baby doll dresses with clogs. please don’t forget bay trading and clockhouse. xx
Well, it seems globalization in fashion exists for a while now. I live in Greece and ALL the kids were wearing these bomber jackets in the 90’s. The really tough ones would even reverse them and wear the orange side out.
For some strange reason, I never got one. I did get a dawn-filled puffy one though, that totally made me dissapear, much like you and your menswear black bomber.
Oh, the old times!
Sorry, no idea about the orange lined puffa’s (which are still made 😐 ) but I do remember Tammy (R.I.P). Tammy served us all well. Baseball tee’s were all the rage in my day, they always had an odd satsuma head girl on the front with some mad punk hair who said something about fire. I still have the socks, hardcore.
Yup, the puffer jacket and gold heart thing was big around my way (Willesden – Acton – Ealing) at that time! Sometimes worn with large, clumpy black platform lace-ups from Dolcis, and dubious coloured jeans. Under that, Naf-Naf/Benetton or Fruit of the Loom sweaters/t-shirts…
Apparently that jacket was a global trend as in the mid 90s everyone at my high school in Canada had one. Personally I had a blue gas attendant jacket with red lining decorated with badges from hardcore bands. Oh dear, I shudder to think of my high school self…haha.
Really pretty outfit Susie! I love those shoes.
I remember the 90’s jackets also though in Oxford i’m sure it was mostly boys wearing them. I remember having a handed-down purple puffa jacket…and being very upset that I didn’t have a shell suit like my two sisters…so much so that I had a pretend shell suit jacket which I told everyone was one!
Wow, we were all so flammable in the 90’s..
This is my favourite outfit of yours in ages. Love the tones.
For my 10th birthday I was bought black lyrca cycling shorts and matching leggings from Tammy Girl. I remember feeling like i’d ‘made it’ as a teenager 😀
Alice x
http://wickedandbad.blogspot.com
ha how funny- i was just down the road from you in mill hill wearing my oversized bomber jacket from camden. I also loved a bit of naf naf at that time. The pictures are beautiful lol
Ha! It’s my birthday today and reading everything you said about being a wee girl is so true! I can remeber getting my 11th birthday outfit from Tammy girl complete with a tshirt from new look and i felt like a teenager cause i got a size 8. also nude tones look stunning on you.
A littfew years later than that time I remember wanting one soooooooooo bad but my mother simply said I shouldn’t want one because everyone else has one. (haha how cliched)
i’m from australia and was ten in 2003 but OMGOSH we had this trend at that time too! except the jacket was even more poofy and came in a myriad of colours (yellow, pink, baby blue…)from the local cheapy direct from chinese factories import store. i didn’t know much about fashion and thought they looked amazing.
i mean, we had this trend in 2003…
Yes! The black/olive jackets with the orange lining! I used to live in North Finchley so you mentioning the 221 really brings me back. Do you remember the skirts attached to trousers trend a few years later? I tried to look for photos online but they seem to have completely disappeared of the face of the earth.
Love your outfit so cute!
Esp. the colour of the skirt!
My favourite shoot. I can’t believe how well the photos came out considering we were hampered by the menu screen…maybe that forces me to focus more!
I think I just spit a little. I had that exact jacket in black (no pretty brooches though, except for special occasions)(I can’t believe I just typed “special occasions” in relation to that jacket) and wore it circa ’92-94. That was when I was just starting high school — this was in Seattle in the U.S. They weren’t a big trend but grunge was still big, so anything army surplus was not out of place.
as always, your outfit is perfection !
I know that 1994-5 I was mainly running around naked playing with grass – needless to say I was not up on the trends. But I LOVE sheer and nude together, and so this outfit made my day. I love your ability to take something kinda campy (sheer puffy jacket) and make it interesting and classy. Your style is always inspiring.
Guys, guys – don’t weep at Tammy’s grave! It’s been reincarnated at BHS. I too had a black bomber jacket with orange lining, as did 90% of my friends, but we weren’t hip enough in Croydon to decorate ours with badges. Love this outfit.
Love the nude paired with the black! Looks fantastic!
I love it when you wear those F21 shoes.
Another once proud owner of a naf naf orange lined bomber. Looked particularly nice with my ginger hair. ahem.
p.s another Croydonian here [!?!] alas I’m not not a Kate.
Yes, you’re taking me back…..
xoxo, SarahJayne @ Knockout Vintage Clothing
i like the black & nude you are wearing!
Well sorry, but here in NY I don’t recall those jackets (except on physical laborers!) But you made me think of Tammy, where I am still able to get things for my very slight little 9 year old when we come to visit. Oddly enough, I can walk into any children/ tween’s shop in the UK and find things such as pants that will fit her without major alterations. Here in the US everything is made for super-size kids… prretty sad really… My daughter and I have a blast choosing goodies for her when we visit (hopefully this summer!) Love the outfit, and honestly, I’m thinking I’d really like that jacket myself! Good show!
Do keep in touch if you’re interested in seeing some of the out of the city haunts for bargain designer goods! I’d love to be your tour guide!
Cheers,
Suzanne
PS I’m still dwelling on the whole Pam Hogg debacle, if it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have known she was back, but sadly it seems she’s the same old hag she was back in the blitz kids days ): Someone on “racked” mention getting a catsuit and sending it around to bloggers around the world so they could take pictures and I *adore* this idea!
Yes! Everyone at school had or wanted to have one of those jackets from 93-95, and I live in Melbourne!
Oh cringe! That jacket is so bounceresque! My parents bought me a puffa jacket from Benetton on a trip to London; it was bright red and, in hindsight, rather ridiculous.
And I totally remember the Variety Club heart badges. I’m cringing again!
x
The military look (green canvas army jackets, combat boots, etc) definitely made it to the northwest around that time but I don’t recall those particular jackets…
Thanks for bringing back the memories of high street shopping during the 90s. Do you remember C&A? I used to love Tammy girl and at the end of every school term when we had the school disco me and my friends would spend hours in Tammy girl trying on glittery dresses. Those were the days huh? learning the dance moves to Steps and drinking Archers and lemonade. I desperately wanted one of those puffer jackets and seem to vaguely remember snapping one up for cheap in a local charity shop. So the puffer jacket trend made it to the West Midlands too you’ll be pleased to know, however the Kappa jacket was far more popular in my town! I love your blog it reminds me of all the things I love about England and makes me feel connected even though I’m so far away. Thanks you x
ahh! i’m from Southampton and i too was rocking the orange lined bomber in the mid 90’s!
Who would have thought that in the often fickle and cruel world of school, the height of fashion would evolve from the local market!
Oh, and i also remember wearing ‘Spliffy’ or ‘Illegal’ clothing which if i recall correctly, were all drugs focused. Haha.
How on earth did my parents agreeing to me wearing clothes that had a picture of a spliff on it when i was 12?!!?! lol
This is when i am thankful that at this time digital camera’s weren’t mainstream!!!
x