Stumbled on a fact about 1970s bell bottoms that blew my mind

I was digging through old sewing patterns at a thrift store near Akron last weekend and found one from 1973. The pattern said the hem circumference was a full 40 inches wide. I always thought my mom was exaggerating about how huge they were back then. Has anyone else seen some crazy old pattern measurements that seem impossible now?

3 comments

3 Comments

sam171mo ago

My uncle still had a pair from 72 that measured 42 inches around each leg.

elizabethn561mo ago

Respectfully, gotta disagree on this one. 42 inches around each leg sounds like a sail not pants. Most bell bottoms back then were more like 24 to 30 inches tops. Maybe your uncle had some custom made ones or his tape measure was off. I remember the 70s style well and that just seems like an exaggeration to me.

the_charlie17d ago

Haha @elizabethn56 sounds like you missed the era of pants that doubled as emergency parachutes. 42 inches per leg is basically a pair of pants that could also serve as a small tent for a backyard campout. Maybe your uncle was just ahead of his time with the whole convertible fashion thing. Honestly though, those 1970s patterns make modern skinny jeans look like medical compression stockings. What kind of fabric even moves at that width without looking like you're wearing a marquee sign?