Tonight I was flipping through the channels to umm find BYU TV (which is totally appropriate to watch on Sunday) But I came across a channel showing the movie White Nights. I stopped and watched it for a few minutes. It came out in 1985 and featured Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gregory Hines – both fantastic dancers. Who knew a ballet-dude in tights could look so hot? Which is exactly what I thought as and 18-year old in 1985. As I was watching them dance the thing that stood out to me is — the leg warmers. Both Hines and Baryshnikov were wearing leg warmers! I chuckled and remembered how much I LOVED my leg warmers.
I think it was the Christmas of 1983 that my sister gave me for Christmas a pin-stripped leotard and purple leg warmers. This was THE workout wear to have. I remember later that Christmas afternoon putting on that leotard and those leg warmers and doing a great aerobic workout to the Barry Manilow Album we had. I jogged, jumped, and kicked to Bandstand Boogie and Riders to the Stars and I felt so cute – which I didn’t often feel as a teenager.
The great thing about leg warmers is that they weren’t just for exercising — oh no — they were also an important everyday clothing accessory to be worn over your jeans. Going back to school after the holidays I knew I would never be the same. Perhaps I would finally fit in with some of the more fashionable and popular girls. I mean I had a great curly perm and now — I had leg warmers.
I still don’t think I ever fit in with the super-cute popular crowd but I had those leg warmers. I wonder whatever happened to them?
2 Comments
September 30, 2008 at 1:16 am
i believe i have pictures of you in those leg warmers, how much to not post them?????
October 3, 2008 at 4:21 am
i SO had a pair of legwarmers…red, white and gray striped…that I wore with EVERYTHING.
Oh, and I LOVED White Nights…LOVED IT!