It Came Out of the Threadwork: '70s Fashion
No, this is not sceince fiction; what you are seeing actually happened. WARNING: use caution when scrolling this page. These images are not pretty, and you cannot unsee them.
These were the clothes I grew up with, and like it or not, they dominated the clothing stores. Congratulate yourself, for you are about to embark on one of the bravest journeys of your life: '70s fashion. It was pure fashion costuming, though at the time, none of us were aware of it. Since it was the norm, everybody looked perfectly natural. However, there were a few oddities that could not go unnoticed.
Bell Bottoms, Flares and the Beyond
Bell bottoms and flared jeans were enormously popular, and earmarked the early to mid-'70s. '70s fashions were a bizarre splash of wild colors and even wilder design. Vertical and horizontal stripes all within the same ensemble were perfectly normal, and the more outldandish the designs, the more popular they became. Plaid was back, and '60s paisleys hung on long enough to take a ride on the seventies style train. The new trend in guys and girls styles were like a dinner with all the wrong entrees.
Bell bottoms were highly favored and accepted on girls. However, on guys, I couldn't stand them. 
The flare-legs were okay, but the flapping bell bottoms were comical to me. Again, girls had carte blanche to wear whatever they wanted and get away with it. 
However, some women's fashions—and hairstyles—were as grisly as anything us guys had to go through. Rhoda Morganstern from the "Mary Tyler Moore Show" wasn't the only gal who sported scarves as headbands. Anything that dangled, swept, or was emblazened with color encompassed '70s fashion.
The Stuff I Wore
I was no fashion prince, though on ocassion I did wear baseball jerseys and Wallace Beery shirts when I wanted a button-down look. I mostly wore Harness bootsEngineer boots were a second favorite, but they were a little too clunky for me. Years later when I got a motorcycle, they were perfect. I wore the big leather watchbands and I was never without my Yes belt buckle. Generally I wore straight leg levis (a person could still get them at G.I. Joe's), and black or white T-shirts. Anything that sent messages as to who you were was like wearing a uniform, and self-defining logos and designs spoke volumes of the person who wore them.
Another thing we used to do was rip out the hems of our Levis. I used a hem ripper from my Mom's sewing kit. It took a lot of work, but it was worth it to have that "shaggy" look hanging down from my pant legs. Another fad was to bleach your jeans so they looked old and faded. At one point in time we lived in an apartment with a swimming pool and I would float several pairs in the chlorine-laden water to fade them.
Good News for Guys: Legs Were Back!
Here was the next big 3: Mini, Midi, Maxi. Well, Maxi wasn't so great, but it was indeed a strong statement in '70s fashion accoutrement. "Mini" skirts and dresses were just that; a skirt with just a bit more length than a belt. 
The "Midis" were those that came a little farther down obscuring more thigh or perhaps to the knees. "Maxi" dresses actually looked very good on some women. They were the dresses that came to the floor or ankle. The mini-dresses, and the girls who wore them, were equally wonderful. Gams with glam were never more glorious than with this marvelous fashion statement. Let us not forget "Hot Pants" as the shortest shorts possible. I was a big fan of the "Wallace Beery shirts" and I had a favorite shirt that was nothing more than an American flag baseball jersey with red stripes on the body and blue sleeves with white stars. The shirt was actually pretty cool.
Buckskin Fringe, & Wild Colors
Bright colors that clashed were also a true '70s fashion statement. Wearing clothes that matched was no longer a requirement. Huge sweeping collars, belled cuffs on shirts, beads or stitching were hot stuff then. Wild, uncontrollable color was the thing; if your clothes looked like they required sunglasses to look upon them, you were in style.
I did, on ocassion, try some of the more colorful stuff, but if it met with no reaction, I went back to my tried and true style. I was very partial to buckskin jackets with fringe, but I never did have one. Even then they were very expensive.
Macramé & Hand-Stitching
Fashion was Never More Cruel than it was for Men
Leisure suits were hot stuff. Women's fashions were still okay because, let's face it, girls just looked great no matter what. But guys, oh boy, us guys, we went through the fashion ringer in the '70s. 
Plaid bell bottoms, with wide vertical stripes, high-heeled boots, wide medieval belts, checks, polka dots, and much, much more were a part of the '70s man's wardrobe!
Fashion spilled out onto the deck not only with unseemly clothes, but hair styles as well. Super-long sideburns were in, and for men who wore shirts and ties, extremely wide-collar shirts and bib-sized neckties. Then it got worse: There were crazy plaid suits; polka dots where there should be no dots; stars and stripes, checks; mismatched colors, awkward design, and fringe on just about everything. The '70s wardrobe was a masterpiece of audacity. Yes, those were the '70s.
