Origins , as worn during the 17th and 18th centuries as part of the
three piece suit Before the 18th century, European men wore
breeches and
hose. In Tudor times, these breeches were loose-fitting, but by the 1660s, tight breeches were fashionable. These were popularised by Frenchmen at the court of
Louis XIII, as part of the
three piece suit that also included a type of
frock coat called a
Justacorps, a
tricorne hat, a
powdered wig, and a long
waistcoat. During the
Restoration era, the tighter breeches were introduced to England, and the rest of Europe, because the cut was deemed more flattering to the leg. From the 16th until the 19th century, the
Mughlai nobility attired themselves in tight-fitting
churidars which were worn tied below the knee. These trousers, and other elements of traditional clothing like the
shalwar kameez, were often worn by Englishmen working in India, especially officers of the
East India Company.
The early 19th century dandy wearing
tailcoat and tight-fitting pantaloons Tight-fitting trousers were fashionable from 1805 until 1850, being descended from the loose work trousers worn as a political statement by
Sans-Culottes during the
French Revolution. These "
pantaloons," popularised by
Regency era Englishmen such as
Beau Brummell, were worn high on the waist and tailored to accentuate the leg like the
breeches previously fashionable among the upper class. Pantaloons were tied (or buttoned) around the ankle and commonly put into boots.
Decline, 1890–1940 Pants, which had come to mean tight-fitting trousers, but now just a synonym, fitted more loosely from the 1840s onwards as mass-production replaced tailoring. Beginning in the
Edwardian era and continuing into the 1920s,
baggy "Oxford" or "collegiate" trousers and
plus fours were fashionable among the younger generation. As the name suggests,
Oxford bags originated at the UK's elite universities, where young upper class men pursued an active, sports-centred lifestyle.
1950s wearing drainpipe jeans. In the 1950s; the waist was higher than on modern skinny jeans. Drainpipe trousers re-emerged in the 1950s, with popular
Western stars such as the
singing cowboy Roy Rogers, The
Lone Ranger,
The Cisco Kid,
Zorro and
Gene Autry and actresses
Marilyn Monroe and
Sandra Dee wearing their pants very slim to the ankle from 1955 onwards. Tapered jeans became most notable with
country music stars and with the birth of
rock and roll in the 1950s, when
Elvis Presley donned slim-fitting jeans and shocked the country.
1960s In the early 1960s, drainpipes were worn by
The Beatles,
The Rolling Stones,
Bob Dylan and other
rock music acts. Fashion icon
Audrey Hepburn also raised the popularity of drainpipe jeans. Slim fitting pants and jeans were worn not just by members of the teenage
Mod or
greaser subculture but also ordinary people. By 1962,
Sears were selling tight jeans made from "stretch" denim that incorporated
elastane. The trend lasted until the end of the 1960s when "
hippie" culture gave rise to flared pants and
bell bottom jeans.
1970s In the early 1970s,
glam rock and
rockabilly bands reviving the
Teddy Boy look popularised drainpipe jeans in contrast to the
flared trousers worn by hippies. Red
tartan drainpipe jeans (as they were then called) were popular in the
punk subculture of the late 1970s, and were worn by many bands and scene leaders such as
Ramones,
The Clash and
Sex Pistols.
1980s band
Poison wearing stonewashed drainpipe jeans Skin-tight
acid-washed jeans were also popular in the 1980s with most
heavy metal bands, and in particular those in the
thrash metal scene, such as
Anthrax,
Megadeth,
Metallica and
Slayer. This was the trend for those who did not wear
spandex, which was popular with the dominant heavy metal scene at the time. They were often worn with white
high-top sneakers or basketball shoes like
Converse. By the late 1980s, drainpipe pants were largely superseded by
straight leg jeans like
Levi 501s, but remained popular among fans of
hard rock until the 1990s. Tight-fitting jeans were also worn by pop stars like
Michael Jackson and
Freddie Mercury. The 1980s also saw the revival of "stretch jeans," pioneered and popularized in the United States by Steven Kohn and Sal Parasuco.
1990s By the early
1990s, many glam metal bands such as
Poison,
Mötley Crüe,
Kiss,
Bon Jovi, and
Slaughter, abandoned spandex and wore form fitted jeans. Tight jeans were also worn by members of the
casual subculture from the late 80s until the mid 90s, including
Ewan McGregor in
Trainspotting. However, with the rise of
grunge and
hip-hop music in the mid 1990s and the
post thrash movement, drainpipe jeans quickly went out of fashion in favor of baggy
carpenter jeans, as worn by hip-hop/rap acts such as
Kris Kross,
Another Bad Creation, and
Snoop Dogg. Flared jeans also made a comeback from the mid-1990s onward, furthering the move away from the drainpipe styles.
2000s wearing skinny jeans, late-2000s The 2000s saw the continued rejection of slim-fitting pants and jeans throughout the early and middle years in mainstream fashion. However, in 2005, fitted pants were reintroduced to the mainstream market for women. This new style of pants was called "skinny jeans". During its first year, skinny jeans were only sold online, and they were not available in stores. Initially, they were not well received by the public, though there were some early adopters. It was not until 2006 that skinny jeans gained more steam in fashion world, and by this time skinny jeans were being sold at shopping malls. Throughout 2007 skinny jeans received more mainstream exposure as fashion trends started moving away from the
bell bottoms and
baggy pants which had been dominant for the previous 10 years. Men's skinny jeans were introduced in the late 2000s and became the norm by 2009. This has continued into the 2010s, entering the mainstream fashion in 2011. They eventually became one of the decade's defining fashion pieces for both men and women. Many men expanded their wardrobe to include tight-fitting
chino trousers coming with variety of colors, but often in khaki, brown or white. Women's skinny jeans also came in various colors, often neutral colors like khaki and white. Starting in the mid-2010s, high-waisted women’s skinny jeans became stylish. In the mid to late 2010s, skinny jeans peaked in popularity. Starting in the late 2010s, straight legged jeans would increase in popularity and lead to a steady decline in skinny jeans popularity. Stay-at-home orders during the
COVID-19 pandemic accelerated a trend toward more comfortable, loose-fitting clothing and
athleisure apparel. ==Medical problems==