Ideas for a Hippie Outfit

Hippie clothes are retro-chic.

Whether you're headed to a costume party dressed as a hippie or just want to try to get into the mindset of the Summer of Love, you may be wondering how to dress as a hippie. Fortunately, it's fairly easy. And since you can buy most of the hippie costume items from the local thrift store, it's fairly inexpensive as well.

Peasant Skirt or Bell Bottoms

If you're female, wear a long peasant skirt with a drawstring waist. If it has bells or beads on the bottom, that's even better. Both genders can create a convincing hippie outfit by wearing bell bottom jeans---the more worn, the better. As with skirts, go for bells or beads on the bottom of the jeans for an added hippie touch.

Flowers

Be sure to wear flowers if you want to look like a hippie. A big, bright flower stuck behind one ear works, as does a daisy chain worn on your head like a crown. For an authentic hippie look, your flower or flowers should be freshly picked. If you don't have access to fresh flowers, or if it's the wrong time of year, an artificial replacement will do.

Headband

If you can't find a suitable flower, either natural or artificial, use a headband instead. Don't wear one of the ultra-feminine Alice in Wonderland-style headbands that goes from the top of your head to behind your ears and holds your hair out of your face. Instead, go for the stereotypical Native American headband look---the kind that goes all the way around your head and across your forehead.

Earth Tones

Most of the colors in your hippie costume should be in relatively muted earth tones. For the most part, go for greens, browns, blues and yellows. Many modern hippie costumes and stereotypes contain a high proportion of neon colors. While this gets the point of "hippie" across, most authentic hippies did not dress like this.

Tie Dye

With that said, hippies did often wear a lot of bright colors---in the form of tie dye. You can buy your tie-dyed items already made, but if you really want to get into the spirit of the hippie era, create your own. All you need is a tie dye kit and a plain white T-shirt.

Bare Feet

Don't worry about trying to find shoes for your hippie outfit. The most convincing hippie footwear is a complete absence of shoes. If you absolutely need to wear shoes, wear sandals or flip flops that go with the rest of your costume.

Natural Fabrics

Don't wear nylon, spandex, polyester or any other synthetic fabrics in your hippie costume. Instead, try to create a costume using only cotton, linen and other natural fibers. The more obviously natural they are, the better.

Peace Symbol

Last, for a truly authentic touch, be sure to have at least one peace symbol clearly visible in your costume. Whether it's a necklace, a ring or a part of your tie dye, no hippie outfit is complete without one.

References

• Fifties Web: Hippie Clothes
• Fibers: How to Dress Like a Stereotypical Hippie

Resources

• Hippyland: Hippies from A to Z