Trend Alert on Friendship Bracelets–What Are We, 14?

OK, OK – so they say that nothing in fashion is new – everything is repeated. As someone who sat through a semester of the History of Apparel, I can vouch for this validity, save a few styles like wearing cones of scented beeswax on your head (Egyptians. Oh yes they did!) and Chinese foot binding (do you know where men use to put those teeny tiny feet? Oh yes they did!).

We’ve seen Empire waistlines several times: the first to rock out this style were our Greco-Roman sista’s who called it a Peplos or Chiton. If you’re an 18th century novel junkie like I am, you know that’s what all the hip gals wore back then (think: Emma, Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Darcy [*swoon*]). We saw them again with the 1920’s flappers (the true rebels: they whacked off all their hair into bobs, refused to wear corsets and drank gin and danced the night away!) and then again with the hippies in the 1960’s. Now go ahead and Google yourself “empire waist dress” and you won’t find any of the above. What you will find are links to ModCloth, ShopStyle, Zappos. Go figure. What truly goes around, comes around.

So apparently we’re back to friendship bracelets.

These first became popular in the1960’s as part of the whole hippie/free love bullshit. They were originally fashioned after American Indian weaving techniques. Did you know that? In the 1980’s there was a resurgence of friendship bracelets that I believe was due to the first 1960’s revival (trends tend to cycle on a 20-25 year turn). I mean, The Grateful Dead hit Billboard’s Top 40 in 1987 for crissakes (I swear, even now if I hear that song, I want to claw my eyes out)! Honestly, I much preferred the late punk/New Wave scene myself. At any rate, I wore plenty of friendship bracelets. I remember summers at the beach with embroidery floss looped around my big toe, knotting myself into a frenzy of BFF love. I had a purple and lavender colored one I wore around my ankle for years. It was the one friendship bracelet (anklet?) I wore until it fell off. You know that’s the point, right? The friend ties it on and then you never take it off – you let it wear off. Yeah. As a sign of your never-ending friendship. Right. In hindsight, that’s pretty fucking gross. 

I had another one that I wore around my wrist for like, ever. It was WAY special. It was given to me by one Shane Fontayne, the guitarist for Lone Justice, my most favorite 80’s band of all time (love me some cowpunk!). That band got me the worst grounding of my life. Me and a friend showed up WAY early at a club where they were playing in hopes of catching a sound check or something since we too young to get into the club. It worked. Marie McKee showed up, took pity on us (most likely because she was coked up out of her skull) and took us in through the kitchen and we hung out backstage. I’ll spare you all the teenage dream details, but I ended up making out with the guitarist. He had no idea I was 16. What I do know is that I broke curfew big time and spent 30 days chained to my house, with 2 weeks of that with NO CAR. Like, I had to take the goddamn bus to school. *shudder* I got this severe punishment because as I was being lectured to within an inch of my life, I got fed up and said the following: “Well, if I had to do it all over again, I would do it exactly the same way.” Not. Smart. Pops whipped out an “Oh yeah?” and quickly processed me into the worst suck punishment EVER.

And you know what? If I had to do it all over again? Hell to the yeah I’d do it again! That night ranks in with the top 10 best nights EVER! It was worth every minute of grounding.   In fact, in exchange for the friendship bracelet the guitarist gave me, I tied the scarf I was wearing in my hair around his neck. He’s wearing it here on MTV’s 6th Annual Rock and Roll New Year’s Eve Bash. Yeah, I’m that old. And apparently he liked that scarf cuz he’s still wearing it here.

ANYWAY, total digression. Back to friendship bracelets. I recently came across a bunch of crap in my studio – embroidery floss from the 80’s! For reals. Check it:

And I even found this little nugget of love in that tangled mass:

Holy shit. First, I should be shot for that disgusting color combo decision, but that, my friends, is the tail end of a friendship bracelet made only God knows when. Nice. I wonder who I gave it to? 

So the bracelets today are much fancier and totally too expensive.

Ariel Gordon for $108

$198 via Bottica

$40 from Max & Chloe

$30 from Disney Couture Kidada Collection

They are just too fancy. I mean, the point of them is that they are supposed to get grungy and dirty and nasty and wear off. But I guess as with all things that go around and come back around, there’s always a little something different to make it new again.

Me? I’ve been there, done it already. I can’t get on board with it, just like I can’t do leggings again. Or brightly colored Ray-Bans. Or drop-waist dresses or RaRa/Bubble skirts. Nooooooooooo. I cannot. What about you?

Comments

[abby]

I just bought 12 brightly colored flosses to make bracelets for my boys.

They asked me to.
Friendship bracelets weren't even on my radar, but they saw a neighbor girl making some and were intrigued. I drove them over to Hobby Lobby and stood there while they painstakingly choose 4 colors each completely changed their minds and started all over.

I sipped lukewarm coffee and stood there remembering painstakingly choosing my own colors 25 years ago :)

Now I just need to remember how to make the damn things!!!!

ab

ps...Pretty fucking cool about the scarf. You are hands down the coolest chick I know.

[Louise]

Cool? More like lucky I didn't get arrested or attacked. Or drunk. Or offered cocaine or any of the myriad of other atrocities that could have played out in a seedy Georgetown club in the 80's!

[abby]

Hey! I did get arrested once and I wasn't having nearly as much fun as that.

Best "cool" I've got was getting my ass grabbed by Chris Barron of the Spin Doctors over in Spain.

ab

[Louise]

Ew. Abby, that's kinda gross. Or rather, he's kinda gross.

[Mom]

The things a momma can learn reading her daughter's blog! Oh my! But I must (rather sheepishly) admit that if I had been 16 and had a chance to make out with that guitarist, I probably would have done it too -- for his time, he looks pretty hot. :) Pretty cool about the scarf too. How nice to have a duaghter with a famous scarf!

[Jenny- Adventures Along The Way]

Great story. And I also still have embroidery floss from the eighties. :)

[anna and the ring]

Funniest/creepiest thing I have read today.

You were one naughty teen!

How I feel so vanilla in comparison! I really want to make you a friendship bracelet to send you now. I know I still have the silks somewhere!

Ax

[Louise]

Anna, actually in comparison to my brother and many of my friends, I was a freakin' SAINT!

[lyn]

Now THAT is an amazing story. Well worth the grounding!

[Bastian]

I used to make a ton of these but seem to have forgotten, does anyone have a youtube video or instructions on this????? Maybe I'll email my sister :p

[CJ]

I bet I can dig through some old memory boxes and whip out a few of these :)