When Old Becomes New With Better Lighting
Fashionistas love to pretend they’re reinventing the wheel. A famed designer sends something revolutionary down the runway, the cameras flash, the audience gasps, and suddenly the magazines hail it as groundbreaking. But very often, the moment we lean in to take a closer look, we realize that this novel look is actually something old that’s been dusted off, reworked slightly, and then trundled off under neon lights. Here are twenty styles that generations before us wore first before they were eventually repurposed and slapped with a hefty price tag.
1. Kimonos
Every spring, racks of silky kimono jackets appear in fast fashion stores. They look chic tossed over a t-shirt, but centuries earlier in Japan, the kimono carried meaning far weightier than a festival outfit. The way a sleeve draped could signal age and even marital status.
2. The Scottish Kilt
Plaid skirts never really left us. You see them in punk shows, private school uniforms, and runway reinterpretations. While kilts may be the uniform of both prep schools and rebellious teens, they were originally practical Highland wear that let men move freely through the rugged terrain.
Melody Ayres-Griffiths on Unsplash
3. Indian Sarees
The red carpet is full of new silhouettes that are just saree drapings in disguise. The saree is one of the world’s oldest continuously worn garments, and is versatile enough to shift from farmer’s workwear to bridal regalia.
4. Military Jackets
Epaulettes, brass buttons, and high collars are now called statement coats, but in truth, Napoleon wore them first along with countless generals and soldiers. The look emphasized discipline, hierarchy, and even tried to instill fear in the enemy. Nowadays, you can buy a cheap knockoff at H&M.
5. Mexican Huipils
White cotton blouses embroidered with flowers fly off racks every summer, marketed as boho chic. The original, called a huipil, has been worn by Indigenous women across Mesoamerica for centuries. Each region stitched different symbols—birds, diamonds, and stars—encoding regional specifics in thread.
6. Cowboy Boots
Runways love a cowboy boot, but once upon a time they were work gear with functional design: sturdy leather, angled heels to grip stirrups, and pointed toes that allowed for easily sliding into those same stirrups. Rodeo culture turned them flashy, country music pushed the boundaries further, and suddenly cowboy boots were part of Paris Fashion Week.
7. Roman Togas
High fashion adores draping. We see jersey fabric cascading over one shoulder, cinched at the waist, and we think of Grecian goddesses, but in reality, Roman senators wore togas to show their status within society.
8. West African Dashikis
The 1960s brought these bright tunics with V-necks and loud patterns into the American civil rights movement as a symbol of Black pride. Once a garment for meaningful community gatherings and rituals, they’re now festival shirts.
9. Sailor Collars
The square flap collar on school uniforms looks innocent, but it’s derived from naval uniforms. This initially inspired Japan’s school outfits in the 1920s, and from there the look traveled and fashion houses reinterpreted it.
10. Cloaks
Step into Zara or Balenciaga, and you’ll find cloaks disguised as oversized coats. Medieval Europe lived in cloaks, since they were not only warm but easy to sew and layer for protection.
11. Harem Pants
Loose at the hips and tapered at the ankles, these so-called yoga pants trace back through the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. Once worn for modesty and airflow, designer Paul Poiret made them scandalous in Paris, and now they’re ubiquitous at every music festival.
Bert Green for Puck Magazine on Wikimedia
12. Ponchos
Rain or shine, ponchos work. Wool ones were worn in the Andes by Indigenous people and woven with colors that mirrored mountains and sky. Later, soldiers and ranchers used them for sheer practicality. Modern fashion brands have rebranded them as chic outerwear, adding tassels and upping the price tag.
13. Berets
The beret has a stereotype as being the unofficial uniform of painters and French artists, yet its roots lie in military use across Europe. Basque shepherds wore them too, practical against mountain winds. The 20th century turned them into political symbols—Black Panthers, revolutionaries—before they softened again into ironic fashion.
14. Flapper Fringe
The 1920s flapper look with its fringe dresses owes a debt to Indigenous North American beadwork and fringed leather garments. Designers borrowed the swing and sparkle, tucking the history behind sequins.
15. Peasant Blouses
With their billowy sleeves, smocked bodices, and embroidered hems, these so-called prairie dresses are now worn by people who’ve never set foot on a farm. They originally came from European peasants and were practical and handmade.
16. Samurai Hakama
Samurai once wore these high-waisted, pleated pants because they balanced mobility and formality. Runways adore wide-leg trousers, and Zara sells a repurposed version of this historical outfit as “culottes.”
17. Moccasins
Moccasins were practical Indigenous footwear, made of soft leather with stitching across the top. They were comfortable, flexible, and adaptable to natural terrain. Loafers mimic the same design, only instead of walking through the woods, their users stroll into boardrooms.
18. Egyptian Kohl
Makeup is part and parcel of an outfit, in a manner of speaking. Bold winged eyeliner dominates fashion shoots, but kohl rimmed eyes in ancient Egypt long predated Sephora. It offered protection from sun glare and was a marker of beauty.
19. Victorian Corsets
Corsets cinched waists and shaped bodies, and while they were once dismissed as oppressive, they’ve since been revived as empowerment. The silhouette never disappeared; it just evolved into a type of lingerie poking through regular streetwear.
20. Parkas
Today’s Canada Goose jackets descend directly from Inuit ingenuity. Parkas meant survival in Arctic conditions and were stitched from caribou or seal. Now they’re made of advanced Gore-Tex material and they’re worn in mild city winters as status symbols.
