History and High Heels: A Modern Hippie: Refreshing Woodstock

Forty-two years ago today was the opening day of the massive outdoor event known as Woodstock. The festival held in upper New York was originally intended to be a fundraiser for a new recording studio near Woodstock, NY. The creators recruited many big artist names, including The Who, Janis Joplin, The Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, and CCR. It was pronounced to be "Three Days of Peace and Music" and drew in over 400,000 people to attend the concert series. Despite the large crowds, very few incidents of violence occurred and largely the common theme throughout the few days were the people's opposition to the Vietnam War. This truly encapsulated a time of overt counterculture among the youth who were disillusioned with the American nation's involvement in costly wars, not to mention enjoying the largely unregulated drug market.

Today, hippie life lives on. It has definitely become less prominent and organized, but this culture can be found in sects of vegans, environmentalists, and others. I have definitely come to appreciate aspects of the bohemian/hippie look, including the long, flowy skirts as well as oversized t's. There is a need to balance this look out though, for one does not want to look like they just got transported from the 1960s. In order to modernize this look, pair looser items with structured ones. Such as, a big shirt with a vest or a unstructured skirt with a button up shirt. The contrast keeps the look fresh, while incorporating some of the more fun pieces that this counterculture brought to fashion. Adding a purse with fringe or stacked bracelets will compliment the look, especially for this fall season.