What's your first thought when you see this picture? It's a simple piano lesson, but odds are you're thinking something along the lines of "Why is this whore getting a piano lesson?" or "Is this the beginning of a porno?" Somewhere in the eighties, miniskirts became associated with loose women, and it's never quite rebounded.
When they first came on the scene in the 1960's, they were a symbol of freedom, of feminine liberation. Sure it was sexy, but didn't mean trashy - it was a statement of youth and an end to false modesty. It went out of favor by the middle of the decade, not because of negative connotations, but rather because of the natural capriciousness of fashion. It merely evolved into the hotpants, an equally suggestive garment.
Not so in the 1980's. The early eighties saw a rebirth of the mini.... but it was hijacked. Somewhere along the way, the miniskirt became the uniform for hookers and tramps. Whether this was a media creation (if you wanted to depict a prostitute in a movie, you had her in a mini) or a result of the new conservatism of the Boomers is anybody's guess. Whatever the case, the mini got a bad rap.
I think we're getting past that sad infantile mental association (miniskirt = slut) that leans rather scarily towards a fundamentalist mindset (thou shalt not expose thine legs; the legs are the devil's temptress; etc.). Hopefully, I'm not being overly optimistic.
That being said, the "trashy period" is still an important moment in Miniskirt History. So, without any further justification, here's a few minis from when they were "trashy". Enjoy.
