Halter Necks
Lovely little backless tops for the girls, which tied up round the neck and midriff. Very nice in the summer months. Again the 1970s had many variants of the Halter necks, You could find halter neck casual sun tops but in the main they were incorporated into dresses and held in position by shoulder straps. Sometimes the strap would be like a neck ring too, but whatever strap held the dress on, it gave the impression that the dress was very free flowing. A sexy natural look revealed the wearers back and went well with a suntan.
These wonderful and delightful dresses were normally front covering, allowing the back to be more exposed. They were great for casual wear, and for the more formal backless dresses that became very popular at the time. The Halter necks could be flimsy; they could be highly decorated and flouncy, or be very straight. They were even made for the swimwear market too.
Halter neck tee shirt tops were popular too. In the classic Althea and Donna song “uptown top ranking” a hit in 1978 the lyrics go“see me in my halter back…nearly give you heart attack”
Halter neck dresses were often full length down to the shoes or could be ¾ length or even shorter. In general, the dressier halter neck dresses were long and flowing with lots of light chiffon material, often with a pretty design.
The major problem of the era was finding a backless bra so the look of the dress was not spoilt. In the sexy 70s it was probably the sight of the bare back that led young (and not so young lads) to speculate that the wearer was not wearing a bra. As ever the resourceful ladies and girls got round this problem by either supporting their bosoms with tape, not bothering, or by buying a bra that could not be detected!
Have Your Say.....
If you have any information or thoughts on this page, please help us by popping them in the comment box below.