Bohemian style (also known as boho fashion or boho chic) is an alternative type of fashion style that was made popular by the “hippies” in the 1960s and 1970s. Retro patterns, flowy, unstructured silhouettes, natural fabrics, attractive hippie-inspired prints and patterns, oversized sunglasses, earthy shades, headbands, open-toed sandals, and statement accessories were some of the characteristics of the bohemian style.
More than 200 years ago, the term bohemian detikindonesia.id signified an exotic fashion style, generally associated with the artists of that era, as well as writers and eccentric intellectuals.
Bohemian is a culture in its own right!
Bohemian style is much more than just a fashion trend. Bohemian is a culture on its own, one that is associated with a specific ideology and complicated history. The bohemian fashion represents an ideology that presents a substitute for the traditional way of dressing, combined with a more progressive, free-thinking lifestyle and a social standpoint against everything from materialism to society’s restraints.
While the boho style is closely and strongly associated with the hippie style of the 60s and 70s, these days, bohemian style has become a part of the mainstream culture. However, the fact remains that bohemian fashion actually commenced as a counter-culture back in the 18th century.
The History of the Bohemian Fashion
Bohemian style has a long, fascinating and rich history. The Boho culture moved from the streets of France to UK and finally to the US before emerging as a global phenomenon. Let’s dive into detail about this vibrant boho style and culture back to its very roots.
The Humble Beginnings
The Bohemian fashion movement began in the artistic streets of Paris towards the end of the 18th Century. It originated in France after the end of the French Revolution. Back then, several artists such as writers, musicians, painters, and creative people were forced to live a hard life of poverty as they were deprived of the royal patronage of the affluent French royalty and aristocrats. These sad and pathetic economic conditions forced the artists to adopt a simple life that was minimalistic. Thus, artists of that era began wearing old and used clothing. Even when the economic crisis struggled towards recovery, the artists kept expressing their creativity through clothing in artistic and quirky ways.
Why were they labelled as ‘Bohemian’?
As this new group of artists dressed in a peculiar way, the common public initially compared them to the nomadic gypsies who had their origins in the Balkan area of Eastern Europe, in a place known as ‘Bohemia’. In the beginning, the French society described the term ‘Bohemian’ in a belittling manner pointing toward the ethnic Romani population. However, over a period of time, the term ‘bohemian’ became a synonym with a counter-culture, associated with free-spirited artistic expression, eccentric dressing style as well as disregard for mainstream, social restraints.
The Romantics and French Bohemians – Early 19th Century
Towards the middle of the 19th century, the Romantics (intellectuals who stressed the significance of aesthetics and emotions in art, literature and music) got connected with the French Bohemians. Both the groups began merging medieval elements, free-flowing garments, gipsy-inspired accessories, hair accessories, weathered fabrics and colourful materials into their dressing style. This style was drastically different from the mainstream fashion of that period.