If you had to go back to a past culture's clothes style, which one?

Colorful African wear for the summer, colorful furry Tibetan stuff for the winter, togas for the spring, kaftans for the fall.

Y'all love your dim mists of history. I for one call early 1970s; tight flare jeans, sideburns, women who had real curves and hair on their whatsit...Oh, and big mustaches had yet to be turned into an object of mockery.

Also, awesome cars. And rock bands who actually rocked. And the ebb tide of free love.

Not to mention, civilization with actual rights and stuff.

I have a right! I have the right to sue you for any conceivable thing!

Dia says: Victorian clothing, FUCK YEAH.

I want us all to go back to the fashion of 1795–1820. I want my beautiful flowing dress◊ and I want men to wear scarves and high collars◊.

Anybody watched Amadeus?

I want Mozart's suits.

1950s or 1960s.

For a second there I was like "wait, did I accidentally click on Yack Fest?"

Anyway, if it can be adjusted to be manufactured more easily and to be more comfortable, along with no need for social status issues, i'd go with this.

Also, anything between the Renaissance and the Victorian period.

1950s. Say what you want about social mores, but you have to admit they had style.

1920s and 1930s both seem allright to me.

I agree with robes and cloaks. So much less restrictive than suits and jackets. Other than that, I really can't think of an era in history that had more comfortable and practical clothing than we have available today. Sure, everything suggested looks pretty awesome, but can you imagine wearing a high-cut, long-sleeved, multi-layered Renaissance dress in a California summer? No, thank you.

But about saris: the traditional wedding sari and other high-end stuff is pretty much limited to yellow, red, white, and saffron, but everyday stuff runs the whole spectrum. Like this cobalt colored one.

"Other than that, I really can't think of an era in history that had more comfortable and practical clothing than we have available today."

Be that as it may, they didn't use toxic dyes and child labor half as much. Not that I find skinny jeans, wire bras, heels, and nylon particularly comfortable or practical to begin with.

You're not limited to just that, though. The stuff I wear is really comfortable. It's just about what you choose to buy, and whether you favor comfort or fashion. At least we have options.

And I'm pretty sure the labor standards in ancient times were not that much better than nowadays. It really depends on what era in particular you're talking about, but I'd need some evidence to accept that worker's rights in a past era were more developed than these days. Also, it's difficult, but you can find clothes that are made in the US or Europe.

edited 9th Jun '11 9:30:36 AM by OnTheOtherHandle

Before factory mass production, there was no way for the textile industry to inflict similar damage upon the environment, though.

Remember the mad hatter?

You could argue that was a little recent, but still, there were issues with toxins beforehand.

edited 9th Jun '11 9:31:30 AM by blueharp

There was no way for any industry to inflict much damage on the environment. In my opinion, the way to fix this is not to revert back to hardly any industry at all, but to make the shift to greener and more efficient industries. Maybe I'm an optimist, but I think this problem that technology created can be fixed by technology. But anyway, we aren't talking about going back to a period in history, just about adopting its style. And for all of us to be able to afford it, we're going to have to mass-produce this stuff. You'd have your traditional African wear and togas, but produced in a factory.

Edit: Yeah, the toxin thing has gotten better since the Industrial Era for the most part, not worse. Consumer safety regulations have helped things a lot.

edited 9th Jun '11 9:34:21 AM by OnTheOtherHandle

^^ That was an unsafe practice, certainly, but were hats mass produced prior to the industrial revolution?

edited 9th Jun '11 9:34:19 AM by BobbyG

Not a mass production issue, on the individual scale it was quite bad for a person. I do think the technique is relatively recent though.

Never! I'll have my kikoy and my kanga hand-woven and stitched, dyed with the pigment of boiled roots and flower petals!

"Maybe I'm an optimist, but I think this problem that technology created can be fixed by technology."

It can, but would that profit the corporations that have a say in the matter?

"Yeah, the toxin thing has gotten better since the Industrial Era for the most part, not worse. Consumer safety regulations have helped things a lot."

On an individual consumer level, yes, not for the environment at large. Chinese waters are so toxic that China has to import most of its drinking water. This is because of recent practices, not some industrialization-era faux pas that we have subsequently learned from.

edited 9th Jun '11 9:51:00 AM by kashchei

No, which is why they shouldn't have the say. Sure, in the current political climate, it's really difficult to pass effective environmental regulation, but I'm pretty sure it would be even harder to scale industry down to pre-Industrial Revolution levels. That'd hurt more than just the rich, too. And scaling back industry might stop us from ruining the environment even more, but the only hope we have of fixing the damage we've already done is technology.

Anyway, I probably wouldn't like to wear it full-time, but I love the look of Ancient Greek clothing, too.

I'll think I'll go with any period or culture that lets you wear the skin of a wolf you killed.

Actually, that's roughly every, if you're badass enough, so I guess it doesn't count. (Wait a minute... mhmmmm... I need to check if wolves are protected here.)

So I guess, from XVIII to XIX Century, Western Europe. Close enough to our own, stylish/retro enough to be cool.

The cloak must return.

It is a great item of clothing, awesome and practical.

Actually, I have half an idea of getting one for myself, eventually — not a "superhero" one, of course, something tasteful and useful for when it's cold.

It's not as if looking a little eccentric would damage me in my chosen line of work, anyway — I have colleagues who walk around with spiky hair and a lots of piercings and tattoos, and no one bats an eye.

Speaking of cloaks, I'd totally wear this◊.

I don't understand why it went out of fashion. It's great for keeping you warm from head to toe, rather than a jacket which leaves your legs with nothing.