70s Look - which ones would you choose?

[freestyle75]

Hey everyone,

after having been in and out of hospital for the past few weeks due to kidney stones (last smaller surgery this Friday), I plan to invest in a nice 70s look once I have recovered completely, i.e. flared 70s style jeans, maybe some longer tunic, a hobo bag and ... 70s type sandals. I have looked online for a few pairs that have a platform and a block heel, just like the usual 70s like sandals were.

Number 1 and 2 have suede upper leather, which might be more forgiving to ones feet (less prone to blisters), number 3 has plain leather and number 4 is the "modern" take on the 70s with some sort of poly-blend upper. I would like to buy a sandal that looks close to the 70s, but is also wearable once the trend is gone (probably 2017...) and doesn't look too outdated then (not too sure therefore about #2 due to the massive 2.3" in platform).

Which one would you take if you could only order one pair (I want to limit my shopping...):

 

 

[Black_Boots]

I would go for number 1, but number 2 is more 70ish...

[Jkrenzer]

None,the 70'S was in my opinion the worst decade in the history of fashion for either men or women. 

[Thighbootguy]

Freestyle75 - I'm glad to hear you are on the mend.  I tend to agree with @Jkrenzerabout the 70's style but, if done in moderation, you could make it work.  If memory serves, the flared jeans back then also had a high wide waist, but with a long tunic the waist would be hidden. I also remember the flair being extreme (which is where my moderation advice comes in).

#2 is probably more like something from the 70's, but like the extremely flared jeans, I wouldn't advise it. My eye immediately went to #1, probably because of the light color but also because of the style.

My vote id #1.

You can probably make the look work for you but stay away from the psychedelic color schemes. 

[Heelster]

Having grown up in the 70's, High waisted was common, but low rise hip huggers were far more common. I still prefer low rise to this day.

#4 --- Could wear with skinny jeans too.

 

[Steve63130]

I vote for #1 because the straight heel profile is in style now and probably will be for a while. The curved heels are more 70s but will be out of style more quickly. The 70s were a goofy time for men and I clearly remember my heeled sandals, loafers, and clogs. In retrospect, even though they were fun to wear, their appearance wasn't nearly as pleasing as the styles women have always had.

Steve

 

[maninpumps]

Going against the grain here , I chose number 3 . The look of the wood and brown shade of the leather look more 70s to me . The suede seems to be a little overdone in my opinion . I have some very close to # 3 and love them . They will look great with flare leg jeans and a tunic . The #1 pair would be my second choice . The buckle and wide straps really set them off . My older sisters wore the Bell Bottom style jeans and tunic with #3 styles all the time .They also wore clogs quite often with wide leg jeans. Check the internet and you will see what I am talking about .

Freestyle75 , at the end of the day it's your choice . I wish the best of luck and glad to hear your health is getting better .

Respectfully, MIP

  

[Cl0setheels]

Not really a fan myself but if I HAD to choose...it would be 4. :-)

[Chorlini]

Other then some of the music I'd rather forget everything about that foul accursed decade. ESPECIALLY the fashion. It boggles the mind that people still want to dress like that. 

[Thighbootguy]

I feel very sure that @freestyle75 does not want to duplicate anything from the 70's, rather he will create a contemporary image based on the 70's look.  He has far better fashion taste than to duplicate the 70's.  But that is a fairly low bar because anything that is based on the 70's look, that is done by someone with any fashion taste at all, has to be an improvement.

(I was there , and it was that bad.)

[freestyle75]

Hi everyone,

first of all: Thanks for all of your answers (wow, quite overwhelming) !

On a personal note: I returned from hospital today, where they removed a pigtail stent that was still inserted between my left kidney and bladder due to the previous surgeries (4 of them) where they removed multiple kidney stones. Geee... I feel soooooooo relieved now. I wasn't able to wear any of my slim fitting trousers or jeans (major pain due to the stent), wasn't able to walk in heels, ... I was barely able to walk at all. After they removed that thing I am back to normal. After 6 weeks of not being able to walk further than about 50 yards without wanting to sit down due to agonizing pain, it feels like total freedom again . My kidney has not fully recovered from the surgeries yet (still some swelling), but I am taking meds that will hopefully bring it back to normal. No pain at the moment. First time in 6 weeks that I am without pain and can probably sleep without waking up during the night. I am so happy right now. Unbelievable. But I digress... anyway... that also made me want to treat myself after this truly exhausting and painful 6 weeks.

For those that don't like the 70s style fashion: Well... I get you now. After some of you started saying that this was a horrible time, I searched for "original" photos from that time, and found several that really made me question why I would want to replicate any of that ...

But then again, @Thighbootguy is right. If you look at the current jeans that are offered stating that they are a "70s" look - they are FAR away from a true 70s look. According to one website, when the flared jeans reached their peak, the bottom bell/flare opening had a width of up to 32 inches... meaning that the flares were HUGE. Nowadays, flared jeans are just a bit wider than boot cut jeans, not coming close to the originals from the 70s. Which is a good thing. It looks a little more refined.

So, when I want to create a 70s look, it's probably not even remotely 70s, but what someone who never experienced the 70s (I was born 1975, so the 70s as an era can't be too bad ) would imagine the 70s to be. Using more modern cuts, less flare, less platform... taking what the original idea of the 70s was, but not overdoing it as they did back then.

Before I started the poll, I leaned towards No. 1, which was my favorite. Half way through the poll, the majority had selected No. 1 as well, which confirmed my original thought. As the store only had one size 11 left, I ended up ordering No. 1 today. Only after I ordered, the poll changed towards favoring No. 3 and 4.

By the way - No. 1 is also the most expensive one ( 1 € = 1.14 USD):

• No. 1: 595 € from Gianvito Rossi
• No. 2: 180 € from Jeffrey Campbell
• No. 3: 130 € from Windsor Smith
• No. 4: 250 € from Vic Matie

I will now first wait for the No. 1 to arrive. If I don't like it, I may order No. 3 or 4 and see what fits better.

@maninpumps: No. 3 is truly 70s like, I agree. I am still torn whether I want to have something "truly" 70s like, or whether it is just leaning towards something that takes a flavor of the 70s, but with a more modern spin. This I can only decide once the No. 1 pair is delivered and I can try them with some of my flared jeans.

I think that @Heelster also made quite a good point on No. 4 being wearable also with skinny jeans. No. 4 in my opinion takes some elements of the 70s, but combines it with a very modern color scheme and materials (rubber coated leather). The main disadvantage about No. 4 is that the strap that runs across ones feet has quite a sharp edge (only visible on the shop's website when you zoom in), so I could imagine that you either end up with a painful "dent" across your toes at the end of a day, or even with minor cuts. Otherwise I might have gone for No. 4, as they look most modern in my opinion of all.

I will post a couple of pics once they arrive, which should be later next week.

Thanks again for all of your comments and thoughts!

 

[Steve63130]

Glad to hear your recovering! Let us know how you like No. 1 sandals when you get them!

Steve

[DProud2700]

Number 1 looks like what a lot of the girls in High School were wearing when I was in School in the Mid 70's

[RonC]

I'm with several that feel the 70's were a horrible time, especially for women's fashions.  If I had no other choices but these four, I'd go for #3.  That noted, I am very sad to see this stuff again....

[HappyinHeels]

I voted for #1, though the heel is lower than I would normally buy, it does match perfectly the color of a fringe handbag I have. I have a pair very close to #3 and have a handbag matching that color as well. While some things from the 70's were dreadful like some fashions and certainly some cars there were other things I seem to remember which were great. I rode a bike with no helmet, drank water from the garden hose, and actually played outside in -15F/-25C weather. Hell...I should have been dead years ago. Oh, also no road rage and no school shootings. No speech police or agencies listening to your every phone call.  No expensive flip-flops either. Our country treats our veterans better now than then until they have to get treated at the VA hospital. I like high heels...from the 70's and the 21st century as well. HappyinHeels

[freestyle75]

Hi everyone,

the sandals (No. 1) have arrived in the meantime, but since I am back to work, I didn't really have that much time making photos. I will post an outfit photo probably on Sunday this week. As a quick preview, I photographed the shoes with the two bags that would work in combination: My Proenza Schouler PS 1 in suede, as well as the (cheap) Yves Saint Laurent copy from German company Hallhuber. This fringe bag was very much "in" in 2015, but still is being used in variations of this design even in 2016 quite often. As the second bag goes out of style much faster, I didn't want to buy the original, which is quite pricey. The sandals match both colors quite well - not exactly, but close enough.

I wasn't entirely sure whether I wanted to keep the sandals. Size-wise they are ok, but the cork material (platform & heel) seems to have been protected with some surface layer which makes it look a little "plastic-y" in some areas. Not visible on the picture above, I might make a close-up of that in one of the later posts. Still, I decided to keep them as the suede is very soft, which could make these sandals the first that don't cause blisters (every other sandal I have causes them...). In addition, I already tried the sandals together with a (slightly) flared jeans, and I really liked the look. More pictures to follow!

[freestyle75]

If you wanna see my full outfit with these sandals, click here (posted under "Freestyle" photos).