The 1960s were a decade of political and social movement in Australia. Young people in the 1960s rebelled against tradition. They said ÃÂnoÃÂ to what had gone before. There where demonstrations against the Vietnam war, conscription and the nuclear industry and against tradition in the home.
Australia's population increased throughout the decade, as European and British migrants arrived. The late 1960s also saw changes to the White Australia Policy.
Clothing styles have always represented the current attitudes of the times and this is certainly true in the fashion in the 1960s. The decade saw social change and the domination of youth culture. Baby boomers were growing up and invented their own fashion style. Mod, short for ÃÂModernÃÂ, refers to a youth lifestyle that came about from London during the 1960s, and quickly spread throughout Europe, America and Australia. The original mod movement died out around 1964, after riots on the beaches of Brighton between modÃÂs and there enemies, the rockers.
The word mod had a different meaning by 1965 as it referred to the ÃÂSwinging London/ Beat GroupÃÂ style of clothing.
The 1960s saw the appearance of the mini skirt. Until that time skirts and dresses in Australia had to finish below the knees. Mini skirts became popular after model Jean Shrimpton wore one to the Melbourne Cup in 1965. She shocked everyone because the dress was 10cm above her knees and she did not even wear stockings or gloves. Towards the end of the 1960s the hippie movement had arrived in Australia. Rebelling against the wars of the past and wanting something different, peace and love were in.
As television technology developed throughout the 1960s, it continued to be the entertainment choice for most Australians. By 1965, it was estimated that 9 out of 10 Australian families owned a...