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western wear

western wear is a type of clothing for men, women, children and even babies which gets its unique style from the clothes worn in the American West in the late 18th and early 19th century especially by cowboys in Texas, Oklahoma, Arizona, Colorado, Utah and New Mexico. It also includes reproductions of clothing of other American pioneers like mountain men, miners, gamblers, farmers and civil war soldiers. Western wear first gained popularity with the general public in the 1940s and 50s when the singing cowboys like Gene Autry and Roy Rogers as well as many other entertainers dressed in this style. In the 1960s western blue jeans became the mainstay of  ”play clothes” for young boys. The more rural parts of the United States saw western wear as well as country music as symbols of the unique American culture. By the 1970s as city populations continued to explode, western wear continued to make inroads into mainstream apparel.
In 1980 the hit movie “Urban Cowboy” took western wear from a specialty apparel to the most popular style of clothing. John Travolta and Deborah Winger, the stars of “Urban Cowboy” made a fashion statement that was heard around the world. Designer jeans, fancy western shirts, western style belts, all types of leather boots and even cowboy hats became the fad for even the most sophisticated city dweller. From New York to Los Angeles, from France to Japan, designers rushed to incorporate western styles into their latest creations. In the 1980s and 90s western wear became the “thing” from main street to wall street and from London to Thailand to Rio.
The 21st century has continued to embrace the western look. It would now be difficult to find anyone, male or female under 50, in the U.S, (and maybe the world) that does not own at least one pair of jeans. Although western boots have often given way to clogs, canvas shoes and other footwear, many of us still have a pair in our closets. Western shirts with their snap buttons may not be the sellers that  department stores made a fortune on in the 1980s but I see them more than I did before the “Urban Cowboy” phenomenon. Western jewelry from simple bolos for men to beautiful turquoise bracelets and necklaces for women remain popular.
The popularity of country music whose stars usually wear western attire continues to give western wear a boost in sales. In the past country singers like Johnny cash and Loretta Lynn had crossover hits exposing their western look to more general audiences. Their more modern counterparts like Tim McGraw, Alan Jackson, Dolly Parton and Faith Hill have brought that look into every day life for most of us.
Fads in clothing come and go, however, western wear has a couple of advantages which have helped it remain generally popular with all types of people. First of all, jeans are comfortable as well as durable. They will probably be around for a long time. Secondly, western wear represents the wild American West. With all its problems, faults and historic distortions, the “cowboy culture” represents individual freedom and reminds us of a time when almost anything was possible even for the common man. That image, true or not, will survive far into the future.
The history of western wear is not a history of the old west. A person from that time period would probably not recognize a pair of Calvin Klein jeans as representing the 1800s. Nor would a diamond necklace be very western because it was set in turquoise. Rather the history of western wear is the story of the common American and how we have come to find clothes that represent our past and shared them with the world.
About the author
I was one of those young boys in the 1960s who came home from school and had to change into my jeans to go out to play. We got the jeans when we went from New York to  Mississippi to visit my grandparents. My grandmother worked at the Wrangler jean factory in Tupelo. In the 1940s she had worked at a sewing machine next to Mrs. Presley who often worked overtime to earn enough money to buy her son Elvis a guitar for Christmas. I wonder if he ever learned to play it. 



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