Emo fashion: The Skinny Jeans

One of the recent, and perhaps also one of the most enduring, fashion trends is the wearing of skinny jeans. There are many ways to wear the skinny jean, otherwise known as slim-fit pants in other parts of the globe.

It would seem there is a prevailing mindset that it is mostly emos that wear skinny jeans, and as such the article of clothing itself is classified as emo. Well, like many other articles of clothing, it doesn’t really matter much if you’re emo or not; it’s what you wear together with the piece of clothing that will make up your emo fashion.

Did you know that the skinny jean traces its origin way back to the 1950s? Elvis himself wore something called drainpipe jeans, a close cousin of the skinny jean. Other stars and TV personalities such as Marilyn Monroe and the Lone Ranger wore some variety of tight-fitting pants.

The glam rock scene of the 1970s saw the revival of drainpipe jeans to counter the hippies’ flares. Red drainpipes, for example, were exceedingly popular especially in the punk scene. Famous bands that sported such pants include the Ramones and the Sex Pistols. Tight-fitting acid-washed jeans were also a trend in the heavy metal-dominated parts of the 1980s.

When you think about it, the skinny jeans of our current times offer more styles and have been adapted for modern tastes. When Kate Moss was pictured wearing one, it set off a cascade that made skinny jeans popular once again. Now, skinny jeans are commonly associated with fashionistas, indie bands, and—you guessed it—the emo subculture.

How do emos wear skinny jeans? It won’t be emo if you wear skinny jeans with that new cute pastel-colored top you found at the mall.

The right way is the common emo way: lots of black. Wear a black top with your skinny jeans (which are also preferably black, and maybe sometimes crimson or some of those bright-colored variants). In terms of footwear, skinny jeans go really well with those Chuck Taylor high-tops or those black Vans sneakers.

Of course, it’s all up to you to mix and match. Just make sure you don’t lose the essence of the emo subculture when you zip up those skinny jeans.