4 Bizarre Fashion Fads From History

The medieval and Renaissance period has witnessed some bizarre and strange fashion fads. The female corsets that started as a bodice evolved as a tight-laced garment leading to the health hazards of women. Crinolines became popular for their silhouette but creating several risks to women's life. Chopines (high platformed shoes) were worn as a symbol of wealth but lead to an inelegant gait to the women. Powdered wigs started as a fashion fad but were used to cover male baldness and philandering.

Let's explore 4 bizarre fashion fads from history.

1. Corset

The corset was a simple bodice that became popular in 16th-century Europe and became a fad in the Victorian era. It went through varied design changes over the centuries.

In the 16th century, it started as a quilted-waistcoat that covered a female body from neck to the waist; lingerie that seduced men and was used as a prop for eroticism.

Gradually, in the 18th century, an outer tight-laced corsetry made its way in women's wardrobe that became suffering rather than a fashion fad.

The dress reformists of the 1800s concluded that the tight-laced bodice caused health hazards to women.

Tight lacing created extreme waist constriction that damaged or rearranged internal organs and impacted the fertility of women. The extremely tight clothing resulted in mucus in the lungs, reduced blood circulation, and caused heavy breathing problems in women.

This garment was heavily criticized as it caused severe health dangers to women's health for the sake of fashion.

2. Crinolines

A crinoline was an extended version of a hoop skirt that evolved during the 18th and 19th centuries. The materials like whalebone, cane, gutta-percha, rubber were used to make the hoop. But steal became the most popular for creating hoops up to a circumference of more than six yards.

This clothing too created a number of risks to women's life. Crinoline flammability became common around the 1850s till the 1860s. Thousands of people succumbed to the Church fire in Santiago, Chile and most victims were women wearing crinoline skirts.

The other risks associated with wearing this garment included women getting caught in carriage wheels or furniture and losing balance in the blowing wind.

A case was reported in an Irish newspaper in 1864 where a woman was severely injured after her crinoline was caught in the revolving machinery in a factory.

3. Chopines

The high platformed shoes became popular in Venice from the 1400s to the 1700s. The chopine had unusually high heels. The primary purpose of this creation was to protect the women's feet from mud and dirt.

But during the course of time, they were worn to show the grandeur and status of Venetian women in society.

The higher the chopine, the higher the status of the wearer.

According to the researchers, these pairs of shoes caused unstable balance and inelegant gait to the women.

It is also presumed that these shoes were criticized as the taller height of women stirred inferiority complex in men and they denounced their wives.

4. Powdered Wigs

The powdered wigs were used as a fashion fad in the middle ages but this accessory became a necessity when syphilis reached epidemic levels in the 15th-century western world.

This disease infected the upper and middle classes resulting in rashes, soars, symptomatic smells, and not to mention, baldness.

To hide the smell and baldness, people used wigs made up of horses or goats, and human hair wigs called perukes.

This powdered wig became a rage when Louis XIV started wearing it and he had syphilis too.

The main objective of these fashion trends was to portray grandeur, wealth, and male chauvinism but this massively impacted women's health and her life.