Editing Preppy

{{short description|Modern, widespread subculture in the United States}}
{{other uses}}
{{redirect|Preps|the singular|prep (disambiguation)}}
{{distinguish|text=[[Survivalism|Prepper]]}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}

[[File:Columbiaman.jpg|thumb|A 1902 illustration of a [[Columbia University]] student, containing many of the attributes stereotypically associated with the preppy subculture]]

'''Preppy''' (also spelled as '''preppie'''), or '''prep''', is an American [[subculture]] associated with the alumni of [[college-preparatory school]]s in the [[Northeastern United States]]. The term, which is an abbreviation of "preparatory", is used to denote a person seen as characteristic of a student or [[alumnus]] of these schools. Characteristics of preppy individuals include a particular subcultural speech, vocabulary, dress, mannerisms and [[etiquette]] reflective of an [[American upper class|upper class]] and [[old money]] upbringing.<ref name="colman">{{cite news |last=Colman |first=David |title=The All-American Back From Japan |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/17/fashion/18codes.html |work= [[The New York Times]] |date=17 June 2009}}</ref>

== Definition ==

The term ''preppy'' derives from the private [[college-preparatory school]]s that some [[American upper class]] and [[upper middle class]] children attend.<ref name=FashionEncyclopedia>{{cite encyclopedia |url= http://www.fashionencyclopedia.com/fashion_costume_culture/Modern-World-1946-1960/Preppy-Look.html |title= Preppy Look| encyclopedia= Fashion Encyclopedia | access-date= 19 December 2016}}</ref> The term ''preppy'' is commonly associated with the [[Ivy League]] and broader group of [[Colonial Colleges|oldest universities in the Northeast]] as well as the prep schools which brought students to them,<ref name= Hogan>{{cite web |url= http://www.mensflair.com/style-advice/the-roots-of-american-preppy.php| first= Chris| last= Hogan| title=  The Roots of American Preppy| website= MensFlair.com| publisher= Men's Flair | access-date= 19 December 2016}}</ref> since traditionally a primary goal in attending a prep school was admittance into one of these institutions.<ref name= FashionEncyclopedia /> Preppy fashion derives from the fashions of these old Northeastern schools in the early to mid-twentieth century.

Lisa Birnbach's 1980 book ''[[The Official Preppy Handbook]]'' was written to poke fun at the rich lives of privileged Ivy League and socially elite liberal arts college students. It portrays the preppy social group as well-connected, and although exclusive, courteous to other social groups without fostering serious relationships with them. Being educated and well-connected is associated with an upper-class [[socioeconomic status]] that emphasizes [[higher education]] and high-income professional success.<ref name= Hogan />

== Fashion ==
For men, preppy fashion has its roots in, and substantially overlaps with, the [[Ivy League (clothes)|"Ivy" style of dress]], which originated in the early 1900's and [[1945-1960 in fashion#Ivy League|had become widespread by the late 1950s]].<ref>{{cite book | title =Elements of Fashion and Apparel Design | year = 2007 | publisher = New Age Publishers | isbn = 978-81-224-1371-7 |page=25 |quote=Ivy League: A popular look for men in the fifties that originated on such campuses as Harvard, Priceton {{sic}} and Yale; a forerunner to the preppie look; a style characterized by button down collar shirts and pants with a small buckle in the back.}}</ref> The "Ivy" style took its name from [[Ivy League]] universities where it originated. [[J. Press]] represented the quintessential purveyor of Ivy League style. In the mid-twentieth century, [[J. Press]] and [[Brooks Brothers]] both had stores on Ivy League school campuses, including [[Harvard]], [[Princeton University|Princeton]], [[Columbia University|Columbia]], [[Yale]], and [[University of Pennsylvania|Penn]].

Ivy Style was inspired by leisure activities commonly enjoyed by the upper-classes in the United Kingdom and northeastern United States (such as [[polo]], [[sailing]], [[hunting]], [[fencing]], [[rowing (sport)|crew rowing]], [[lacrosse]], [[golf]], [[tennis]], [[rugby football|rugby]], [[squash (sport)|squash]],<ref name= Hogan /> and [[swimming (sport)|swimming]]) and adapted the sportswear associated with these activities as everyday wear. As such, it incorporated aspects of traditional [[British country clothing]] ([[tweed]] [[sport coat]], [[brogue shoes]], etc.). Distinctly preppy fashions then emerged as a still-more-casual, youthful interpretation of Ivy League style ([[rugby shirt]], [[boat shoes]], etc.). Thus, the sportswear, casual lifestyle apparel, and outdoor gear offered by retailers such as [[L.L. Bean]] in the Northeast (with its eponymous "[[Bean Boots]]") and [[Eddie Bauer]] in the Pacific Northwest came to form an important component of preppy style. Both outfitters, along with Vermont-based [[Orvis]], were featured in ''[[The Official Preppy Handbook]]''. The mostly [[tongue-in-cheek]] guide published in 1980 described L. L. Bean as "nothing less than Prep mecca." Their catalog was said to be "the biggest seller of the rugged New England Prep look."<ref>Birnbach, Lisa (ed.) (1980). ''The Official Preppy Handbook''. Workman Publishing. pp. 151, 154. {{ISBN|9780894801402}}</ref>

By the 1980s, mass marketing of brands such as [[Ralph Lauren Corporation|Ralph Lauren]], [[Lacoste]], [[Daniel Cremieux]], and [[Izod]] brought a resurgence of Ivy and preppy styles and moved them into the mainstream.<ref name="Peterson Kellogg 285">{{cite book |author1= Peterson, Amy T. |author2=Ann T. Kellogg  |name-list-style=amp |title=The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Clothing Through American History 1900 to the Present: 1900–1949 |year=2008 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-0-313-04334-5 |page=285}}</ref>

For women, preppy-influenced fashions emerged in the 1960s, a trend led by designers such as [[Perry Ellis]] and [[Lilly Pulitzer]], influenced by designers such as [[Oleg Cassini]], and popularized by female students at the [[Seven Sisters (colleges)|Seven Sisters Colleges]], sister institutions to the Ivy League.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Encyclopedia of New York State |year=2005 |publisher=Syracuse University Press |isbn=978-0-8156-0808-0 |page=550 |editor1-first= Peter R.| editor1-last= Eisenstadt |editor2-first= Laura-Eve| editor2-last= Moss }}</ref> These classic ensembles of the 1960s and 1970s include tailored skirt suits, low heels, wrap dresses, shift dresses, silk or cotton blouses, and jewelry with a refined style. Such clothing often includes elements drawn from typical preppy styles, such as nautical stripes, pastel colours, or equestrian details.

''The Official Preppy Handbook'' points to daughters "borrowing the clothes her mother wore in Prep school. Before long, they share a charge account at [[Talbots|The Talbots]]." The handbook also stated that "Behind the red door on every [[Talbots]] catalog cover is the best selection of women's Prep fashions anywhere." And that "the clothes here are a rare combination of Preppy, tasteful, and sophisticated."<ref>Birnbach, Lisa (ed.) (1980). ''The Official Preppy Handbook''. Workman Publishing. pp. 128, 154-155. {{ISBN|9780894801402}}</ref>
[[File:Kennedy_bros.jpg|thumb|From left to right, [[John F. Kennedy]],  [[Robert F. Kennedy]], and [[Ted Kennedy]], all dressing preppy in different ways.]]
Though traditional interest in the preppy style generally fell in the 1990s, some of the newer outfitters such as [[Polo Ralph Lauren|Ralph Lauren]], [[J. Crew]], [[Tommy Hilfiger (company)|Tommy Hilfiger]], [[Vineyard Vines]], [[Gant (retailer)|Gant]], and Elizabeth McKay are often perceived as having preppy styles, with designers such as [[Marc Jacobs]] and [[Luella Bartley]] adding the preppy style into their clothes in the 1990s.<ref>{{cite web |author=Camille |date= 2 December 2010| title= The Preppy Look: A Brief History |url= http://www.camillereads.com/2010/12/preppy-look-brief-history.html| website= CamilleReads.com |access-date= 19 December 2016}}</ref>

Examples of preppy wardrobe staples include:
* Navy [[blazer]]s with brass buttons
* Repp stripe and silk knit [[necktie]]s
* [[Sweater]]s (as opposed to sweatshirts, windbreakers, etc.), particularly those with [[cable knitting]], [[Argyle (pattern)|argyle patterns]], or a university name/logo
* [[Grosgrain]] ("ribbon"), surcingle, or woven leather belts
* [[Seersucker]] and [[Madras (cloth)|madras]] cloth 
* [[Chino cloth]], [[Corduroy]]  trousers or [[go-to-hell pants]]
* casual [[button down]] shirts
* [[Loafers]] (particularly [[penny loafers]])
* [[Derby shoe]]s made of [[Buckskin (leather)|buckskin]]
* [[Polo shirt]]s and [[rugby shirt]]s
* [[Boat shoes]] and other [[moccasin]]-style shoes<ref name="colman" /><ref>{{cite book|author=Olian, JoAnne|title=Everyday fashions of the fifties as pictured in Sears catalogs|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gsNgpxElARsC|date=5 September 2002
|publisher=Dover Publications
|isbn=978-0-486-42219-0}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Bon chic bon genre]]
* ''[[Filthy Preppy Teens]]''
* [[Greaser (subculture)|Greaser]]
* [[Fuerdai]]
* [[I.J.G.B.]]
* [[International Debutante Ball]]
* [[Jock (stereotype)|Jock]]
* [[Kogal]]
* [[Nerd]]
* [[Old money]]
* [[School uniform]]
* [[Sloane Ranger]]
* [[Yuppie]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|40em}}

== External links ==
* {{cite news |author=Allen Salkin |date=6 May 2007 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/06/fashion/06bar.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |title=Pink Shirts Welcome}}
* [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/preppy "Preppy" at dictionary.com]'
* [https://andreampds.com/como-llevar-el-estilo-preppy-2/ Estilo Preppy como lograr vestirse con este tipo de ropa]

[[Category:1970s fashion]]
[[Category:1980s fashion]]
[[Category:1990s fashion]]
[[Category:2000s fashion]]
[[Category:2010s fashion]]
[[Category:Academic culture]]
[[Category:Academic slang]]
[[Category:Age-related stereotypes]]
[[Category:Fashion aesthetics]]
[[Category:History of subcultures]]
[[Category:Social class subcultures]]
[[Category:High society (social class)]]
[[Category:Upper class culture in the United States]]
[[Category:1980s fads and trends]]
[[Category:Upper middle class]]
[[Category:Stereotypes of white Americans]]
[[Category:Stereotypes of the upper class]]