Trend Alert: Microwave

It has been four decades since Mary Quant created a scene with her eight-inch hems. The Sixties signaled a time of fashion innovation. It was an outcry from the decades past when the young dressed in slightly modified versions of the conservative clothes their parents owned. Pop singers wore gowns and actresses wore gloves. A new breed of fashion designers drew inspiration from the energy in the streets. Influences from op and pop art, and the evolution of the space age, brought styles that were more daring, colorful and exciting than ever before. For the first time in history, the fashion industry identified the potential of the new young segment. The old, dull lady that was London became "Swinging London."

The revolution’s catalyst was Mary Quant. She was perfectly in sync with the spirit of her times. Sparked by her design innovations, Sixties’ fashions exploded in bursts of crazy new colors, prints and fabrics. Soon other designers introduced big geometric patterns, vibrant shades of purple and chartreuse, dresses made of PVC, cellophane, paper, metal or mirrors, pop-inspired dyed furs, go-go boots, Nehru jackets, tweed reversible coats, and sharp and angular designs. French designer Andre Courreges introduced the mini to the chic establishment and the high-end designers, although Mary Quant made the decade’s defining fashion statement.

As Quant explained in A.E. Hotchner’s Blown Away: The Rolling Stones and the Death of the Sixties, "I think that I broke the couture stranglehold that Chanel, Dior and the others had on fashion when I created styles at the working-girl level. It all added up to a democratization of fashion and entertainment... It was very gratifying to see that not only did the mods of the Sixties want my clothes, but so did the grandees and the millionaires. They had everything else...but they hadn’t any fun clothes... Snobbery went out of fashion, and in the shops you found duchesses jostling with typists to buy the same dresses. Fashion had become the great leveler."

By 1966, everyone wanted to wear her clothes because all their heroes did. Brigitte Bardot and Nancy Sinatra were just two of her famous customers. When model Pattie Boyd married George Harrison in the winter of the same year, they both wore Quant creations. Fans could also see her clothes on the silver screen when she designed the costumes for several popular films, including the Oscar-nominated Georgy Girl and Audrey Hepburn’s Two for the Road. Unlike previous fashion designers who usually were much older than the models who wore their clothes, Mary Quant was of the same generation as her clientele. She was petite and pretty. She sported the new precision haircut and the bold new eye shadows that all the models, celebrities and stars were wearing. David Bailey, the decade’s most famous photographer, wasn’t just taking photos of Quant’s models, including Twiggy and Jean Shrimpton in her designs. He was also taking photos of Mary herself.

The mini has staged a resounding comeback. But the minis this season are more from the Eighties. Do you remember the minis then? They were straight instead of A-line. Most of designs were tight thanks to the new textile invention: the Lycra. Fashion experienced resurgence in the popularity of the Sixties’ mini in 1982.

The era’s versions were not as short. They often came as part of a set, which included a matching sweater, headband and leg warmers. Think of the movie Flash Dance. Minis were more often embellished with chains, grommets and studs or poufed out. Tina Turner definitively embodied it in her Beyond Thunderdome mode. It was the era of the power suit and the lady boss.

At the height of corporate fashion, a tiny skirt hugging the hips, barely visible beneath a very long fitted jacket with wide shoulders complete with four-inch stilettos was the uniform – master and slave in the same outfit. It was shamelessly intimidating from the waist up and attractively inviting from the waist down.

Styles ranged from the daring to the demure. This season’s micro-minis paid homage to the decade of excess, the Eighties. Montana’s perfectly cut "power" short skirts were a force of inspiration. The collection of Helmut Lang took references to Azzedine Alaña’s bondage look. Armani suits got ideas from the original "Sex" store of Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren on King’s Road in London. Marc by Marc Jacobs revealed the look’s splashier side. Tom Ford’s Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche showed a slim low-luster skirt in just-above-the-knee hem. At Michael Kors, it was casually leggy looks in suede, denim and paillettes Daryl Kerrigan sent most of her models in the new length. While Balenciaga’s Nicolas Ghesquiére revisited the power suit and the double message that goes with it: strong-shouldered jacket with a seductive miniskirt. At Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs dropped the shoulder and cinched the torso to create a sexy, yet ladylike safari suit in the tradition of YSL. Oscar de la Renta and Richard Tyler were responsible for some of the shortest on the runways. Other collections like Chanel, Galliano, Dior, Marni, Donna Karan, Versace, Celine, Ralph Lauren, Ann Demeulemeester, Mui Mui, Lanvin, Jil Sander, Balmain, Ferre, Ralph Lauren, Junya Watanabe, Alexander McQueen, Callaghan, and Valentino also gave a clear message this season. Get shorty.

Are you getting nervous now? Now that we are comfortable with the forgiving and recently de rigueur skirts in bias-cut, just below the knee, the mini is resurrected! Pulling this off isn’t easy. Spring/summer’s version is about immaculate tailoring. They are about sophistication, not shock value. The proportion tricks are a dangerous game. It also requires a killer set of legs. If you want to wear one, don’t get lazy. Pack your gym clothes and start your exercise regimen – StairMaster, treadmill or spinning. Of course, muscle-sculpting through yoga and Pilates is also essential. Do whatever it takes! Pick the style that works best for you. It will test your courage. Sky-high’s the limit.

Tip Sheet

The secret to wearing the season’s thigh highs is in the mix.

Lose the shoulder pads so as not to look dated.

Pair thigh-grazing cuts with sleek tops.

Short skirts worn with patterned tights or fishnets look mod.

Choose skirts with a bit of swing (from the pleats or fullness).

Put together a slim skirt just above the knee with a sharply tailored jacket and you are ready for the boardroom.

Get the right shoes (from flats, kitten heels, stilettos, mid-calf or knee high boots).

Accessorize with thin, double or wide belts.

Very short styles are unquestionably youthful. Although the notion of "dressing your age" is dated, micro-minis and hot pants look best on younger women.

Modify the look by going a few inches above the knee and coordinate the look with matching opaque tights if you’re not comfortable because of age, lifestyle or size.

Remember that everything – getting into a car, picking up things and sitting on a stool is a challenge. Plan accordingly.

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Send suggestions and queries to joyce@netvigator.com.