Shoulder pads are back this autumn/winter. But don't panic, things have changed since the stuffy boxy shapes and big hair of the 80s. This season’s shoulders are sculpted and architectural adding wing-like qualities and injecting a modern twist to classic shapes. Nipped in waists, slim cuts and shorter lengths keep the look fresh and in context of contemporary fashion, and hair is kept sleek and neat to warn off any of those niggling 80s references. It was Christophe Decarnin’s spring collection for Balmain that seemed to kick off the latest fascination with the trend last season. His combination of rock-chick swollen-shouldered military jackets along with bejewelled dresses set fashion mouths watering for more, and the A/W 2009 collections didn’t fail to disappoint.
This silhouette is no longer restricted to the balloon-like tailoring it was in the 80s - then shoulder pads were used to support the wider cut of sleeves that were fashionable, this season cuts in tailoring are lean and close to the body allowing for a neater exaggeration at the shoulders which, in some cases, is purely implied by simple material tucking. Twenty8Twelve have stitched pads into loose-fitting vintage feel rock Tees, Erdem has used soft rounded shoulder shapes to add edge to his floral prints, Danielle Scutt teamed hers with bright red cut-out lapels and Julien Macdonald with biker jackets and knitted dresses. The Boyfriend blazer is also still going strong but this season with the added impact of robust shoulders with Opening Ceremony, among others, offering one in navy wool. Roksanda Illinic’s shoulder shapes perfectly illustrate how this previously masculine trend has been flipped to depict femininity this season. Paired with pretty metallic, crocodile-stamped gunmetal brocade, violet duchesse satin, and silvery velvet they are capped, tucked and embellished on pencil dresses and evening jackets. Meanwhile, Marc Jacob’s are blanketed in crayola-brights, and are probably the biggest of the season. Teamed with crimped hair and Boy George-esque eye make-up the 80s vibe is definitely strong, perhaps because Jacobs was fresh from working on his coveted Stephen Sprouse inspired collection for Louis Vuitton when he presented the show in February. And, Vivienne Westwood, a long-time fan of shoulders used pleats, ruffles and puffs to create the illusion.
Of course, runway shows are fantasy and much of what we see paraded down the catwalk does not translate into the everyday, and if it does it is greatly watered down. But, exaggerated shoulders are one trend that can. For once, size was kept to a reasonable, wearable scale. A strong shoulder line gives the illusion of a neat waist and slim neck as well as smoothing out postural imperfections and can be simply achieved by adding a set of shoulder pads to existing garments.
In the 80s it was all about women dressing to fit into the male dominated world of corporate business. The masculine silhouette formed by shoulder pads empowered them. They were breaking through the glass ceiling of society and strong shoulders gave them that extra pushing power. A similar theory could be drawn as to why this trend has come back into favour. We are in the depths of a financial crisis; everything is unsteady, uncertain and unreliable. Perhaps the structure formed by exaggerated shoulders can make us at least feel in control, professional and a little more confident about ourselves, if not the economic situation. Plus, we’re now far more likely to be buying a couple of statement pieces each season as supposed to entire looks, and big shoulders can easily rework and update tired pieces from past seasons and add an edge to a simple jeans and T-shirt look.
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