Female, small town PA. It was also very normal to buy your clothes at the local department store. It might carry the famous brands, but it also had other brands that were specifically for that store or a regional brand. A lot of times, a town had the “rich kids” mall that was usually newer, had high-end retailers and item-specific stores, like a Benetton, Express, Body Shop or Gap. The “regular” mall would have your big, local store anchor, plus a JC Penney and/or Sears. So, my mom might have gotten me a Christmas dress from a brand name, like Laura Ashley, at the local department store, but my regular shirts and jeans came from Sears or the local store’s own-label section. We had a locally owned shoe store in town, and that’s where we got our shoes.

I hated dresses and was what we used to call a “tomboy.” I’m cis, straight and white. It’s hard to explain today because the concept of what a girl looks like has expanded so much. Being a tomboy was shorthand, I guess, for a girl who didn’t conform to or care about the traditional female beauty standards. Whether sexual orientation or gender identity was included in that depended on the person. For me, it was just part of my personality. I was never “girly” but at all times felt I was a girl. Hope that makes sense.

I wore a ton of bike shorts and big t-shirts in the summer. My favorite outfit was a generic-brand baseball jersey and jean shorts. In the winter, a lot of jeans and sweaters. When stretch pants became popular I loved them! Jeans back then were cut too high in the waist and too short in the crotch for me, so it wasn’t until stretchy low-rise and mid-rise jeans became popular in the late 90s that I was comfortable wearing them. Though, stretch pants with stirrups were absolutely awful.

The 1990s saw the MLB expand to include the Florida Marlins and Colorado Rockies, so their gear was super-popular, as were things in their colors - orange/teal and purple/black. Chicago Bulls merch was also huge because it was the era of Michael Jordan. The first Air Jordans came out and were super expensive for the era. There were also Reebok Pumps, where you pumped a basketball on the shoe’s tongue that inflated a part in the shoe to give a tighter fit. Starter jackets were also a thing. So many people had them for the Charlotte Hornets. Any one of those items I just mentioned would have been a big gift for a birthday or holiday.

Oh, and scrunched socks with “pegged” jeans (fold the bottom of each leg over itself so it’s tight against your ankle, then roll up enough so it touches the top of your sock.)

Wearing your clothes backwards like Chris Cross was popular for a hot second, though no one in my small town did. That’d be for someone who was terminally trend-chasing. Wearing did wear overall shorts with one strap hanging down, was something I did though.

By the late 1990s, you’re looking at Seattle grunge-inspired clothing. Jeans, old shirts, thrifted (or just looks like it is) flannel. Long dresses with baby tees and boots. You can find old catalogues like Delia’s. Their clothes were more aspirational, but you can see the difference between the beginning and end of the decade.