The master of low-rise was, without question, fashion designer Alexander McQueen – though his focus was the bottom of the spine more so than the navel. McQueen’s “bumster” pants, revealed in his very first fashion show (“Taxi Driver”) in 1993, were a springboard for extreme waist-dropping, which stretched the imagination beyond that which had ever been seen before.
“It wasn’t about showing the bum … I wanted to elongate the body, not just the bum. To me, that part of the body — not so much the buttocks, but the bottom of the spine — that’s the most erotic part of anyone’s body, man or woman.” (Alexander McQueen)
McQueen has been described as twisted, controversial and years ahead of his time. There is a wonderful book about him that is serious coffee table material, as well as a great documentary film about McQueen. Head designer for Givenchy before forming a partnership with Gucci, McQueen committed suicide in 2010 at the age of 40; the fashion world is a lesser place without him.
Prior to McQueen, low-rise pants were a large part of the counter culture movement of the 1960’s, worn by musicians Jim Morrison, Robert Plant, Iggy Pop and many others. They were low, they were tight and, in some cases, they left nothing to the imagination. At the time, belts and belt-like scarves were the accessory, not tattoos or navel jewelry – that came later, largely influenced by Indian culture.
Low-rise pants with exposed briefs became a big thing among skaters, R&B and hip hop artists, shooting sales of Calvin Klein underwear to the moon (while also creating Justin Bieber heart-throb moments) and, finally, thongs and g-strings (aka whale tails) were added to the mix.
“I wish I had invented blue jeans. They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity – all I hope for in my clothes.” (Yves St. Laurent)
“Wearing low-rise jeans I really felt like a totally bad bitch.”
Fast forward to today, low-rise pants are “in”, but this time with more comfort thanks to lycra and, in some cases, complementary attire that is worn underneath to conceal certain unmentionable body parts. Feast your eyes on these low-rise beauties. Are you ready to wear pants with a 1” zipper or will you be just a looker?
We hope you enjoyed the show.
Now challenge yourself and your friends to our Ultra Low-Rise Jeans Quiz of the Day, by downloading Quizefy from the app store if you haven’t already done so, then see how much you know and Strut Your Smart. Our Ultra Low-Rise Jeans Quiz is only available today, then it disappears. We’ll be back again every Tuesday with a special blog posted at www.quizefy.com, along with a new trivia quiz on the same topic as the blog. Don’t forget to follow Quizefy in social media, so we can remind you of upcoming blog and quiz content.