The phenomenon started in 1947 when 25-year-old Juli Charlot needed a skirt to wear to a holiday party in Los Angeles.
Because she couldn’t sew, she cut a big circle of felt with a hole in the middle to fit her waist and appliquéd Christmas trees to it. Felt was the only material available that was wide enough to cut a complete circle skirt without any seams. The skirt was a huge hit.
A week after the party she sold the skirt to raise money to go to design school and learn how to sew.
Eventually as demand for her skirts grew, she opened her own factory. Although she continued to get orders, money was tight. Then a New York designer visited her factory, found her in tears, and invested enough money for the business to take off.
Although many appliqué designs were used on the skirts, it was the elegant, well groomed Poodle with a swirly leash that proved to be the most popular. In fact circular skirts with other designs were often called Poodle skirts.
The full skirt was a welcome change from the straight or pleated below the knee skirts that were worn by young girls and women of the day. Poodle skirts were worn with flirty petticoats and a wide cinch belt.
The skirt looked cute on young girls, but pretty silly on their mothers and grandmothers. In other words Poodle skirts were one of the first “too young for you” fashions.
From that time on, seeing a youth market with money to spend, many designers worked exclusively on clothing geared to the young.
The 60’s mini skirt and go-go boots followed this youthful trend. A mini skirt accessorized with support hose and orthopedic shoes is a definite fashion blunder.
Today we might say that these are “too young for you” fashions:
A nose ring with bifocals
Multiple ear piercings with a hearing aid
Spiked green hair with a bald spot
Speedos and cellulite…
Well, you get the idea.