Contributor post by Sheila of BeadyEyedBird
Bohemian, Gypsy, Boho, Ethnic, Hippie — whatever you choose to call it, it’s FUN!
In modern usage, the term “Bohemian” is applied to people who live unconventional, usually artistic, lives. The original “Bohemians” were travelers or refugees from central Europe (hence, the French bohémien, for “gypsy”).
At the beginning of the Bohemian ‘movement’, it was said that gypsy girls themselves “… are sexy and delightful precisely because they do not give a hoot for fashion.”
When the style was first identified, it was the early 20th century. Fast forward to the 60’s & 70’s when major designers started to routinely promote the “peasant look” and selling a range of “uniquely eccentric clothes”. (How many of you still have some of those in the back of your closet, like me??)
Fast forward again to the late 1980s, when variants of the short and fundamentally un-Bohemian rah-rah skirt (which originated with cheerleaders) were combined with leather or denim to create a look with some Bohemian or even gothic features. New names emerged, like ‘hippie chic’ and ‘boho-chic’. Similar styles were sometimes referred to as “bobo” or “ashcan chic” or “luxe grunge” — with leading proponents including actresses Mary-Kate Olsen and Zooey Deschanel.
Whatever it’s called, and whatever the iteration/era, we L.O.V.E. it. We asked our CIJ teamies to tell us their stories about their favorite ‘boho’ style (or its cousin) — and share an item from their shop that represents it. Here’s the cool stuff we got.
Robyn Campbell from RobynFayeDesigns says:
Arlene from ThisandThatCrafter says:
Annie from DesignedbyAnneliese says:
Nancy Duncan from EponasCrystals says:
GypsyGeneralStore from GypsyGeneralStore says:
thedelhistore from theDelhiStore says:
For me Boho means free-spirited. I consider myself one and am proud to raise my daughter who is 12 years old as a free-spirited young soul. We both love to dress up in bright colors.
We had lots of fun with this one, and we appreciate everyone who contributed!