Sweatshirts or Hoodies? By África Sánchez Caballero (2º B ESO)

Do you have to buy a sweatshirt or a hoodie to be cool?

Nowadays, young people, especially those in their early teens, love to wear sweatshirts. Currently sweatshirts are on fire among teenagers. There are lots of types of sweatshirts in different colours and materials, expensive or cheap ones, with or without hoods, with original logos depending on brands.

From my point of view, you should own several to be trendy. Personally, I am very lucky because I have been given lots of them as presents and I can choose a different sweatshirt every day. I think that sweatshirts and hoodies should be worn only on casual occasions, or if you have a crystal-studded hoodie like some celebrities, you could wear it even in a wedding!

But, do you know what the origin of this kind of clothing is?

If we go back in time to Medieval Europe, we can find that monks used to wear a long hood attached to their tunics. And a hooded cape was very commonly worn by any outdoors workers. However, the first hooded sweatshirt was produced in the United States in the 1930s for laborers working under freezing temperatures. But it was in the 1970s with the hip hop culture when high fashion designers contributed to make this garment so glamorous.  

In the 1990s the term hoodie became popular and in the United Kingdom it was trendy to wear it if you were a student from a university or a high school. In fact Ralph Lauren, Giorgio Armani, and other famous designers, have sweatshirts or hoodies in their collections.

I personally feel much cooler when I go out dressed in a trendy sweatshirt with no hood. My favourite one has a logo with an eagle and the word “BOY” on it.