60s Dress Up: How to Build a Mod or Hippie Look, Piece by Piece

Dressing up 60s style starts with one decision: mod, the sharp early-decade look built on a geometric shift dress or a slim suit, or hippie, the late-decade look built on flares, fringe and flower prints. Pick a lane and the outfit assembles itself in four steps: silhouette, print, accessories, hair. We make complete packs for both lanes, every design checked across 30+ measurements, and below we build each look piece by piece, including the version you can pull from your own closet.

Table of Contents

• Mod or hippie: the decision that shapes everything
• The mod build, step by step
• The hippie build, step by step
• The finishing layer: hair and one good prop
• 60s dress up for school spirit days
• Three mistakes that break a 60s look
• Frequently asked questions

Mod or hippie: the decision that shapes everything

The 60s moved fast enough that its two signature looks barely overlap. Mod owned the first half of the decade: clean lines, short structured shapes, bold geometric color. The hemline itself was a moving target, and the V&A's fashion historians note that skirts only got genuinely short around 1966, right as the look peaked. Hippie style answered from about 1967 onward and reversed every rule: long over short, loose over structured, handmade texture over sharp tailoring.

That split is useful, because it means you never have to build "the 60s" in general. You build one look, and every piece either serves it or fights it. If you want a ranked rundown of complete outfits before committing, our 60s outfits guide compares the looks side by side; this page is the build manual for the two big ones, with every piece pulled from our decade costumes range or your own closet.

The mod build, step by step

Mod is the more precise of the two looks, so build it in order:

1. Silhouette first. An A-line shift dress that skims rather than clings, ending above the knee. This one shape does most of the work.
2. Then print. Swirls, checkerboards, targets or color blocking, the bolder the better. One loud print beats three quiet ones.
3. Then legs. Opaque tights, white or colored, with low block heels, flat boots or go-go style knee-highs if you own them.
4. Then hair and face. A sleek bob or a backcombed crown, plus graphic eyeliner. Mod makeup lives at the eyes; keep the lips pale.

The one-box mod option

The Women's 60s Pink Swirl Dress Costume covers steps one and two in a single pack: a swirl-print shift in the right above-the-knee cut, matching sleeves and the headband. Add your own tights and flats and the build is done in five minutes, which matters when the party is tonight.

An honest note for the men: our men's 60s range leans late-decade, and we do not currently stock a dedicated men's mod suit, so we will not pretend otherwise. The closet build works instead, and it is a good one: a slim dark suit with a narrow lapel, a thin tie or a fitted turtleneck, and pointed shoes or ankle boots. Sharp, simple, and the room reads it instantly next to a swirl dress.

The hippie build, step by step

Hippie style is the easier lane to fake and the harder one to finish, because it runs on accessories. The scale it reached is real history: Britannica puts the crowd at Woodstock in 1969 at roughly 400,000 people, more than double the 186,000 tickets actually sold, and that crowd is still the reference image for the look. Build it in layers:

1. Base layer. Flares and a patterned shirt, or one long floral dress. Long and loose is the rule; anything structured breaks it.
2. Texture layer. A fringed vest, a crochet piece or a suede jacket. This is the layer that photographs.
3. Accessories. Round sunglasses, a head-tie or flower crown, and a peace necklace. Two minimum, all three if the party is worth it.
4. Hair. Center-parted and long, natural waves over styling. A wig gets you there faster than growing it.

The men's shortcut: five pieces, one box

The Men's Hippie Costume Kit packs the whole accessory problem into one order: a printed T-shirt, a curly brown wig, ombre sunglasses, a head-tie and a peace necklace. Wear it over jeans you already own, ideally the widest-legged pair in the closet, and steps one through four are handled.

The women's base-plus-texture pack

The Women's Long Hippie Dress Costume handles the first two layers at once: a long floral dress, the vest over it and a headband. It is cut on the 125GSM+ breathable fabric we build our stretch pieces on, so it lasts a full evening of dancing like it is 1969.

Going deeper on this lane, flower crowns, face paint and all? Our hippie costume guide covers the full wardrobe; the build above is the fastest honest version of it.

The finishing layer: hair and one good prop

Hair decides whether a 60s outfit reads from across the room or only up close. Mod hair you can do at home: a sleek bob shape if your hair allows it, or a backcombed crown with the ends flipped up, set with more hairspray than feels reasonable. Hippie hair is harder to improvise on short or styled hair, which is where a wig earns its slot in the budget.

The instant-hair option

The Long Brown Wavy Floral Hippie Wig is the center-parted, waves-past-the-shoulders shape the whole late-60s look hangs on, with a floral detail already worked in. It pairs with either of the hippie packs above, and it survives repeat wear better than a night of teasing your own hair does.

Then stop at one prop. A single peace-sign pendant, one flower crown or one pair of round sunglasses finishes a look; all three at once plus a guitar and a protest sign turns it into a scavenger hunt. Restraint is what separates a costume that reads from one that rattles.

60s dress up for school spirit days

The decades-day pick for kids

Decades day hits every school calendar eventually, and the 60s slot is the fun one. The Girls Hippie Costume is a full look out of one pack: a swirl-print dress, headband and leg warmers, cut on soft breathable fabric a kid can wear through a whole school day. If the size misses, returns run 30 days.

Two school-day practicalities. First, skip props entirely; anything carried gets confiscated, lost or traded by lunch. Second, care: these are costume fabrics, so the rule is cold hand wash and air dry, never the washing machine, which keeps the print sharp for the younger sibling who inherits it.

Three mistakes that break a 60s look

• Blending the eras. A fringed vest over a geometric shift dress reads as confusion, not range. Mod and hippie sat on opposite sides of roughly 1966; pick one side of the line.
• Drifting into the 70s. Sequins, platform boots and anything mirror-ball shaped belong to disco. If it sparkles, it is the wrong decade.
• Buying the print, skipping the shape. A swirl print on a bodycon cut or flowers on a blazer misses both eras. Shape first, print second, exactly as the builds above run.

Frequently asked questions