1893 'Clothing of the Future' Predictions Are Hilarious

Dateline: 1893. The subject: fashion of the 20th century. The place: the human imagination, where anything is possible. Did the visionaries of the Gilded Age correctly predict what people would be wearing in the centuries ahead? Nope! And it’s awesome.

The folks at Public Domain Review dug up a fashion preview from the January 1893 issue of The Strand magazine. Let’s go on a journey through the future as seen from a vantage point more than a hundred years in the past and thank our lucky stars that labels are pushing buttcheek pinching shorts rather than glorified witch hats.

Check out what they thought we’d be wearing in the 1930’s.

Important question from Dodai: What is going on with those shoes on the far right? Why is everyone wearing enormous tulle underskirts? Unanswered questions! At least they predicted leggings.

Here’s the 1970’s, which have a sort of Sergeant Pepper’s vibe, if you squint.

Those are sort of bell bottoms, right? A little?

And here’s what they predicted would clothe denizens of the 1950’s. Nary a poodle skirt in sight.

Although I do appreciate the hats.