Style and clothing
In addition to short hair, skinheads are identified by their specific clothing styles. Skinhead fashions have evolved somewhat since the formation of the subculture in the 1960s, and certain clothing styles have been more prevelant in specific geographic locations and time periods. The following list includes many of the clothing articles that have been worn by skinheads.[29][30][31]
Hair:
Men: Originally, between a 2 and 3 grade clip-guard (short, but not bald); beginning in the late 1970s, typically shaved closer, with no greater than a number 2 guard. Now some skinheads clip their hair with no guard, and some even shave it with a razor. This started with the introduction of the Oi! scene. Some skinheads sport sideburns of various styles, usually neatly trimmed.
Women: In the 1960s, many female skinheads had normal or mod-influenced hairstyles. During the revival, many started wearing a Chelsea hairstyle, which, in some cases, is a shorter punk-influenced version of the feathercut. A feathercut is short on top (the crown), with fringes at the front, back and sides. Some Chelsea cuts are shaved almost entirely at the back, only leaving fringes in the front, and bangs. Feathercuts tend to have longer fringes.
Tops:
Men: fitted Ben Sherman, Fred Perry, Brutus, Jaytex, Arnold Palmer and other brands of button-up or polo shirts; Lonsdale shirts or sweatshirts; V-neck sweaters; cardigan sweaters; sweater vests; T-shirts (plain white or with text and/or images related to bands or the skinhead subculture); fitted blazers. Traditional skinheads sometimes wear tailored suits — particularly tonic (also called shark-skin) suits, so named for the shiny material. Some Oi!! and hardcore-oriented skinheads wear plain white wifebeater undershirts, especially in North America.
Women: Same as men, with addition of dress suits — comprised of a ¾ length jacket and matching short skirt.
Coats: MA-1 type flight jackets (popular brands: Warrior and Alpha), usually black or green; blue denim jackets (Levi's or Wrangler); Harrington jackets; monkey jackets; Crombie-style overcoats; sheepskin 3/4 length coats; donkey jackets; parkas.
Bottoms:
Men: Levi's, Lee or Wrangler jeans (usually blue), straight leg with rolled cuffs (turn-ups) to show off boots, often with hem cut off and sewn to give neater, flatter turn-up; Sta-Prest flat-fronted slacks and other trousers; bleachers (jeans splattered with bleach to resemble camouflage trousers), popular among punk-influenced Oi! skins; combat trousers (plain or camouflage), popular among Oi! skins and scooter boys.
Women: Same jeans and trousers as men, or skirts and stockings. Some skingirls wear fishnet stockings and mini-skirts, a style introduced during the punk-influenced skinhead revival.
Footwear:
Men: boots, originally army surplus or generic workboots, then Dr. Martens (AKA Docs, DMs or Doc Martens) boots and shoes, and later brogues and loafers (especially among suedeheads). Other brands of boots have become popular, partly because Dr. Martens and Grinders footwear are no longer made in England. During the 1960s, steel-toe boots were called bovver boots — thought to derive from the Cockney pronunciation of bother (in this context, meaning violence).
Women: Dr. Martens boots or shoes, monkey boots, loafers or brogues.
Hats: Trilby hats; pork pie hats; flat caps (AKA Scally cap, Benny or driver cap) or winter woolen hats (without bobble). Less common have been bowler hats (mostly among suedeheads and those influenced by the film A Clockwork Orange).
Braces: Various colours, usually no more than ¾ inch in width. In some areas, wider braces may identify a skinhead as either white power or a poseur. Braces are worn up in an X or Y-shape at the back. Some Oi!-oriented skinheads wear their hanging braces down, so they can be seen when wearing a jacket.
Badges: Button badges or sewn-on fabric patches with text and/or images related to bands or the skinhead subculture. Politically-minded skinheads sometimes wear badges related to their ideological views.
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