Written By: Lily Rothman, Liz Ronk
As the Council of Fashion Designers of America gathers on Monday for its annual fashion awards, it will be an occasion to praise those whose contributions to the world of style has been outstanding this year. But to find out whether their achievements will make a mark on fashion history, we’ll have to wait a while.
When it comes to American clothing of the 1960s and 1970s, however, the verdict is already in. Those decades made their indelible mark on the way the nation dresses, from big-picture changes (the general move toward more casual dress, for example) to the smallest details (monokinis: still a thing.)
MORE: See the Best Fashions of the 1950s
But, as these covers show, the fashions of the ’60s and ’70s were hardly monolithic. From mod maxi dresses and matching trouser suits to minidresses and 1950s nostalgia, the look of LIFE was ever-changing.
September 26, 1960 cover of LIFE magazine.
Milton H. Greene LIFE Magazine
December 1, 1961 cover of LIFE magazine.
Mark Kauffman LIFE Magazine
August 30, 1963 cover of LIFE magazine.
Carlo Bavagnoli LIFE Magazine
September 2, 1966 cover of LIFE magazine.
Jean-Claude Sauer LIFE Magazine
January 27, 1967 cover of LIFE magazine.
Howell Conant LIFE Magazine
August 18, 1967 cover of LIFE magazine.
Franco Rubartelli LIFE Magazine
September 27, 1968 cover of LIFE magazine.
Norman Parkinson LIFE Magazine
January 12, 1968 cover of LIFE magazine.
Greene-Eula LIFE Magazine
August 22, 1969 cover of LIFE magazine.
Vernon Merritt III LIFE Magazine
October 17, 1969 cover of LIFE magazine.
Yale Joel LIFE Magazine
March 13, 1970 cover of LIFE magazine.
Milton H. Greene LIFE Magazine
July 10, 1970 cover of LIFE magazine.
Co Rentmeester LIFE Magazine
August 21, 1970 cover of LIFE magazine.
John Dominis LIFE Magazine
December 10, 1971 cover of LIFE magazine.
Berry Berenson LIFE Magazine
June 2, 1972 cover of LIFE magazine.
Bill Eppridge LIFE Magazine
June 18, 1972 cover of LIFE magazine.
Bill Ray LIFE Magazine
July 28, 1972 cover of LIFE magazine.
Douglas Kirkland LIFE Magazine
