Rewind to 2006. Yes, 2006, when the Sophia Coppola film Marie Antoinette was released in theaters. Featuring a post-punk/New Wave soundtrack of musicians like Adam & the Ants and Bow Bow Wow, the film combined 18th Century visuals with 1980s New Romantic sensibilities–excess, decadence, frills, and of course, style.

At a recent Easter party, I became giddy like my students when a plastic egg opened and a neon spring emerged. But this wasn’t your ordinary coil… It was a coil bracelet, or a “springy bracelet,” as I used to call them when collecting enough to shamelessly cover my arms as a child in the ’80s.

These last few weeks, Mirror80 has spent time exploring 1980s tribal and jungle styles, which often overlap. From colorful energetic patterns to palm leaf-laden music video sets, the ’80s gone wild evoked by both jungle- and tribal-inspired visuals is filled with intense hues, vegetation-rich patterns and bold geometry.

The ’80s were wild! We’re talking about a decade where people wore socks with high heels and rubber guards over the faces of their watches. But nothing was wilder than the jungle-themed visuals that permeated the art, entertainment and fashion realms. From tropical prints to vegetation-rich settings in music videos, it truly was a jungle out there…

As a counterpart to last week’s post on the return of ’80s Afropop, we were planning a follow-up post this week on ’80s musicians (and present-day acts) with a tribal sound. And then I found myself with an armful of clothes at the cash register of Forever 21 this weekend unable to believe my good luck. We’re postponing our tribal music/style post one week to focus on its tribal counterpart in the current fashion world–in case any readers want to high-tail it to Forever 21 stat to revel in all things ’80s, tribal and affordable!

When King Tut’s tomb was discovered in 1922, Egyptian motifs were all the rage. Pyramids, hieroglyphics, and sun rays appeared in the realms of fashion and interior design. Though not the first time Egyptian-inspired design had emerged, the timing of this resurgence perfectly melded with the Art Deco movement, and geometric depictions of Egyptian flair […]

My Little Pony Week continues at Mirror80 as we celebrate these delightfully bright collectible toys manufactured by Hasbro since the 1980s. Originating as larger “My Pretty Ponies” in 1981, the MLPs took on the classic ’80s form and size we know and love beginning in 1983 and had a 10-year run in the US. After an attempt to revive the Ponies’ popularity in 1997, a global relaunch occurred in 2003, when they were reintroduced to kids and have been popular ever since!