That’s so last century: What we wore 1950s – 1990s

That’s so last century: What we wore 1950s – 1990s showcases fashion and ways it has impacted different parts of society in Aotearoa. 

Explore photographs, magazines, LPs, trade catalogues, manuscripts, clothing patterns, and books held in Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections. Learn about the history of clothing manufacturing and the importance of home sewing and knitting in Aotearoa in the latter part of the twentieth century. Explore articles and images featuring a handful of Aotearoa’s many wonderful fashion designers and discover different places Aucklanders shopped for clothes. Listen to tracks telling stories of fashion in Aotearoa drawn from Auckland Libraries’ oral history and sound collections. 

Enjoy reminiscing, shaking your head or nodding with approval at the numerous fashion trends on show: from mini-skirts, cardigans and paisley print to shoulder pads, knee-high socks and bow-ties.

_{Image: The mirror: the home journal of New Zealand. Auckland: Mirror Pub. Co., October 1962.}