Clara's 1980s Jumper

After I finished Clara's outfit for this week, I looked at her, and she looked very hot. Maybe it was just because we were in Maryland and it was 92° with very high humidity. It was sticky and I couldn't imagine anyone wanting to wear a turtleneck in that weather. Now, back here in Arizona today it's about 108°. Even hotter than Maryland and definitely not turtleneck weather.

Now, I never did like wearing turtlenecks, even though they were quite popular in the 80s, when I was a teen. The high neck made me feel claustrophobic. But they were the style for winter wear for quite a while, and you know Clara needs to be stylish. Clara's outfit for today is a cute Jumper with some daisies. The stems of the daisies decorate the edge of two pleats that give the jumper a little flare. And I made a version with a t-shirt instead of the turtleneck, so Clara gets a summer and winter version of her jumper.

Clara's shoes are penny loafers... back in style from the 1950s, along with some bobby socks. The penny loafers could be black or brown, or they could be dyed blue, green, red or teal. For some of those who may not be familiar with penny loafers, there is a little slot in the top of the shoe... a sort of pocket made by the design cut into the band across the shoes. You would tuck a penny in each little pocket as a fashion statement of some sort. It was one of those inexplicable fads that seem logical at the time, but just look silly now.

In the 1980s, bright colors and patterns were very popular. The original jumper was grey with red and white daisies. The turtleneck was ivory. The penny loafers were plain black leather. Along with black, white, and gray, here are some colors found in the clothing of the 80s:


To print Clara's Dress, use this PDF file:
Clara's Dress 19 (747k)

Clara is a free, printable paper doll. Clara will be available on this blog as long as I continue to post new fashion pages for her. You can read the introduction for the Clara paper doll here.

To print the Clara paper doll, use this PDF file:

The Clara Paper Doll (718k)

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1980s Dress with Square Collar

Ok, don't laugh! Girls really did wear their hair like that in the 1980s! My sisters and I all had perms and big bangs. The perms may have fried our hair into frizzy messes, but that was the style. Celebrities and movies stars did the same with their hair.

Looking back, a lot of fashion from the 80s was just in bad taste. Punk rock and gothic styles abounded. Movies like Flashdance and Valley Girl influenced fashion designs throughout the decade. Do you remember leg warmers, leggings, bangle bracelets, huge earrings, and ripped sweatshirts? All these fashions were based on pop culture. Workout clothing, baggy clothing, zebra stripes, bright colors... some of the clothing from the 80s is so over-the-top that it borders on the ridiculous.

Clara's dress for today, however, is from the "new romantic" movement in clothing. Lace, flowers, bows, and lots of frills were typical of this movement. Some of the lacy frills of the 80s went over-the-top as well, but overstatement seems to have been the trend of the 80s. Clara’s outfit is a classic style from the late 1980s with lacy, scalloped edges. The dress is a tea length, and pretty conservative for that decade.

Clara’s shoes are some simple vinyl slip-ons with low heels and square toes. Instead of being made of leather, synthetics were more prevalent as shoe materials. Even plastic shoes were popular.

The original Clara paper doll has a short, straight haircut, not in character for the 80s. So today, Clara has some frizzy, permed hair with stiff, hairsprayed bangs to go with her 1980s style dress. Personally, I would skip the "big hair," but it sure shows a major hallmark of the decade.

My husband has a great hairspray story from the late 80s. He and a group of friends decided to have a campfire one evening. As they sat by the fire, one girl pulled out her can of hairspray to add another layer of lacquer to her bangs. Unfortunately, the fire ignited the fumes, and caught her hair on fire. The quick thinking boys were able to pat the fire out, and the girl was unharmed, although she had some very singed hair. I wonder if she used less hairspray after her hair grew back?

In the 1980s, bright colors and patterns were very popular. Flowery impressionistic prints and neon colors were fashion fads, too. Along with black, white, and gray, here are some colors found in the clothing of the 80s:


To print Clara's dress, use this PDF file:
Clara's Dress 10 (909k)

Clara is a free, printable paper doll. Clara will continue to be available on this blog as long as I post new fashion pages for her. You can read the introduction for the Clara paper doll here.

To print the Clara paper doll, use this PDF file:
The Clara Paper Doll (718k)