"In" colors

[Szdfan]

In the film "The Devil Wears Prada" Meryl Streep, playing a thinly disguised analog for Anna Wintour (editor-in-chief of Vogue Magazine) describes how the fashion industry makes decisions that trickle down to consumers.

[Ken]

Retro as the young folks call it is a real phenomenon. It seems to cycle about every 40 years. The only things I have not seen recycled in terms of clothing are hoop skirts and dickies.

When were Dickies an "in" thing?

Dickies I forgot about them. I wore them I think back in the 50's or 60's.

What I think has been a use of colour (if one regards black as a colour) are the car rims that after so many years started to use black. This obviously makes your car stand out as quite a recent model and I wonder if this was part of the strategy in 'keeping up with the Joneses'.

Also, I really like some of the new flat paint colours on some new cars. I wonder what will be the next colour strategy for cars. Perhaps they will bring back the wood look that was put on some of the station wagons years ago.

The funny thing about car colors is that back in the 1920s when automobiles were new, it was colors that were most fashionable and expensive cars came in a rainbow of different colors once Dupont developed long-lasting metallic colored paints.

But fast forward to today and the fanciest cars are almost all colorless black, grey, white, and neutral shades in-between. And it is the cheap cars that come in rainbow colors. Look at the color options for the Mercedes S-class, for example. Almost all neutral shades of black, grey, silver, and white. You don't see green, red, or yellow Mercedes. But if you buy the cheapest new car on the market like Kia Rio or Nissan Versa they come in all kinds of bright colors. Mercedes are marketed to older rich people, small Kias are marketed to young people.

EDIT I did find this interesting chart. What happened to green cars? I've always been partial to metallic silver/green cars and they have all but disappeared. I think Subaru is about the only manufacturer that still makes them.

[ohio jones]

Look at the color options for the Mercedes S-class, for example. Almost all neutral shades of black, grey, silver, and white. You don't see green, red, or yellow Mercedes.

Emerald Green, Manufaktur Olive, Rubellite Red, Kalahari Gold, Manufaktur Kalahari Gold Magno matte ...
... and yes, 4 blacks, 5 grays, 2 silvers, 2 whites, and 3 blues.

The coupes and roadsters certainly do come in bright primary colors, though.

[MaxPC]

Retro as the young folks call it is a real phenomenon. It seems to cycle about every 40 years. The only things I have not seen recycled in terms of clothing are hoop skirts and dickies.

When were Dickies an "in" thing?

A dickey/dickie was used in formal attire once upon a time. I was not referring to the brand name in overalls.

I suppose the rather extreme or hideous things are never brought back.

[Soloist]

Back when I was tangentially involved in the fashion industry (2012), I learned that the entire industry collaborates on a new set of colours each year. This encourages buying new clothes and to get people to throw away last year’s stuff. Media, entertainment also participate.

That particular year the colour was a bright red - there was a collaboration between Taylor Swift (whose album was called, well, Red) & American Greetings plus Target (both of whose corporate branding is also red). The colour palettes in the rest of the fashion industry followed.

It is amazing so many different businesses will work together if it means you can get more people to buy pointless stuff they don’t need.

Wife: Ah, yes. The year of Big Tomato.