source: associated press
By: Samantha Critchell
Miley Cyrus' rocking wardrobe for the third season of Hannah Montana reflects Madonna's 1980s fashion sense.
In the third season of Hannah Montana, Miley Cyrus channels Madonna circa 1985.
And somehow, on the cute and playful 16-year-old, tiered miniskirts, leopard prints and fingerless gloves look good.
So the masses of mini-Montanas are sure to emulate the look of the tween favorite, even if they are too young to know its origin.
The style was created mostly for the onstage Hannah persona to wear, costume designer Dalhia Foroutan said -- with hints of the '80s added to the wardrobe for much of the cast.
The teenage stars didn't experience leg warmers or ripped-neck sweat shirts the first time around, but they do recognize the look as cool and retro, she said.
Foroutan, who also works with Cyrus on her concert clothing, has slipped in some intentional flashbacks from the Lucky Star and Like a Virgin days.
"I didn't like her (Madonna) so much in the '80s," Foroutan said, "but, looking back, she was so new and different, and she really influenced fashion in the '80s. I respect her for that."
One of Madonna's fashion legacies is that today's teens have adopted her crafted-careless look.
"It's girlie, rocker, thrift shop. It says, 'I don't care,' but it took an hour to pile on and rip those fishnets. To anyone who knows anything about getting dressed, you knew it took a long time to put together," Foroutan said.
Cyrus says she's loving the style because there's a lot of room to put her stamp on it -- and if Cyrus wears it, so will countless others. (In the third quarter, Hannah Montana was the highest-rated TV show for kids ages 6 to 11 and No. 2 for tweens ages 9 to 14, according to Nielsen Media Research provided by Disney Channel.)
"I can mix and match a cute shirt with some skinny jeans under a leather jacket, and it looks fun and unique," Cyrus wrote in an e-mail to the AP. "That's why I love the signature leather gloves that are a part of the new Hannah look. I like to put my own style into what I wear mixed with something from the past."
It's probably not a coincidence that the '80s are back, considering that the mothers of millennials wore highlighter-color outfits when they were coming of age.
The icons of the day include Olivia Newton-John in her Physical gear, Molly Ringwald and Flashdance's Jennifer Beals.
Teen Vogue has shot a lot of outfits with this vibe already for spring, said fashion director Gloria Baume, and the magazine sees it as a trend going forward.
The runway shows of Marc by Marc Jacobs, DKNY and London's Christopher Kane furthered the return to the era of excess.
"I think the '80s were so maligned because it was a time of ostentatiousness, a time when everything was done to the top," Baume said.
"It was the first time for big gold chains and Rolexes, so much glitz and glamour. It represented what we think is bad taste today, while the '60s seemed more natural, spiritual. It was the '80s that led to the so-minimal '90s."
Teens can learn from this to have fun with fashion and use it to express themselves.
But Baume also thinks this generation is simply more style savvy than those that came before it.
"The '80s look is safe with these girls. They know too much to have the bad taste that we had. . . .
"These girls just don't have the bad taste in their DNA."
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