“Grunge is about not making a statement, which is why it’s crazy for it to become a fashion statement.” (James Truman, editor of Details~ Voguepedia)
Grunge is all about being scruffy and not making a statement. It’s about all those plaid shirts and bad hair days and ripped jeans, and about all those nights when you may have stayed and listened to Nirvana, or looked at Kurt Cobain moments from a long while ago. It is a trend in itself, but it has not always been this way. At its birth, it did cost some people their jobs at big fashion houses, but those people saw potential, and this is the reason grunge is still alive today.
History
Grunge, is most commonly reffered to as a music genre, but it did not take that long until fashion claimed it as an inspiration. It has most commonly been seen around the Seattle music scene and the fashion scene was introduced to it, when the band Nirvana took off in the late 1980s, early 1990s.
“Grunge is nothing more than the way we dress when we have no money,” (John Galliano, Vogue, 1993~ Voguepedia). As John Galliano observed, the year the trend was taken over by the fashion world, Grunge is a functional trend, it is born out of necessity, out of the need to be cool, but without having to spend larger than life amounts of money on clothes. You were scruffy and anti fashion in a way, but much less than if you were dressing punk. You were different and had that “je m’en fiche” anchored in your soul.
Grunge, as a fashion trend, was first served to fashionistas in shock and outrage, by none other than Marc Jacobs, in his Perry Ellis days, Anna Sui and Christian Francis Roth. Critics are and remain divided for this trend, that later that year cost Marc Jacobs his job. However, he saw potential in the trend and he continues to promote it.
Marc Jacobs in 1993- grunge
Photo courtesy of W Magazine
This year, the grunge trend was spotted mainly in Hedi Slimane’s version of Saint Laurent, in his Spring/Summer 2014 collection. Edie Campbell, who seems to be a grunge favorite shows us how to pull it off in Saint Laurent’s collection and the creative director of the house knows well how to pull off looks from YSL’s archives and transform them to his own desire.
Snaps from the Saint Laurent by Hedi Slimane collection
Photo courtesy of Vogue.com
However, I am not here simply to talk about the grunge trend in general, but to actually give you a few ideas and tips and tricks of how you can pull it off!
First of all, remember that the grunge trend does not imply anything pretentious, even though seen on the runways. It is simple, scruffy and mostly second-hand fashion that is just comfortable above anything.
In order to be great at pulling this trend off remember the next 5 tricks.
#1: The Shirt
However you want to look at it, the shirt has to be plaid and oversized. Just take it over your t-shirt, tousle your hair, get a beanie even and you are done for the upper part of your body. Besides, the plaid shirts are great and keep you warm, and you can even tie them around your waist for an extra touch of grunge.
You may also be interested in: 8 Ways To Wear the Denim Shirt
Here are some great shirts that you can shop online:
#2: Jeans
Take the boyfriend, skinny or boot-cut, jeans have to be ripped as this was a major trend in the 90s, when the grunge era triumphed. Make sure you keep the look to its disheveled base and you are set to go.
Here are some ripped jeans ideas you can find online:
#3: T-shirt
indulgy.com
In terms of t-shirts, just go for something that has a message, a cut-out or an interesting image on it and you cannot go wrong. Make it oversized, for the extra layered effect the grudge trend brings along and you are perfectly ready to take the streets.
Shop these amazing t-shirts online to complete your look:
#4: The shoes
fabyoubliss.com
Grunge trend-setters prefer Converse and Dr. Martens as brands of choice in terms of shoes and to be honest, I couldn’t agree more. Both brands are quite affordable, but not only that, you can find them in basically any thrift shop there is, which makes them perfect for the true grunge inside you.
You may also like: When Fashion Meets Comfort: Top 10 Sneakers!
If you don’t feel like buying your shoes at a thrift shop, check out these online ones:
#5: The Accessories
In terms of accessories, just go for anything that could make your look more disheveled than it already is. A load of rings, long necklaces, headbands and why not beanies, to cover for your bad hair day?
Here is some inspiration we found while surfing the web:
Don’t forget that this look can be pulled off by anyone, even with a very small budget. If, however you don’t find yourself to look great in a disheveled manner, just take the part that you like most, and add it to your usual look just for a change.
Remember, fashion let’s us be as chameleonic as we wish, so why not simply be?
Comment below and tell us what you liked and don’t forget, sharing is caring!
Feature image: picjumbo.com
