50 Things That Will Never Go Out Of Style (And Why They’re Timeless)

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  1. The Beatles. The Beatles appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show” in 1964, which marks the official start to Beatlemania in the United States, and somehow, the Beatles craze is still going on today.
  2. Thank you notes. They originated long before email chains and LinkedIn connections. Yet nothing goes farther than a hand written Thank you note.
  3. Martinis. The first James Bond movie was released in 1963 – right around the time Don Draper was knocking martinis back with Roger Serling. Bond is still going for them, and so are you. Shaken, not stirred.
  4. Red lipstick. Because we’ve been trying to look like Marilyn Monroe for the last 50 years, and don’t intend to stop.
  5. Lace underwear. We may no longer have the attention span for garter belts, but we can still invest in some lace.
  6. Harry Potter. Millennials grew up with the movie characters in Harry Potter. We had the first and second book read to us by our parents, and finally forged ahead to the third book on our own. We waited in line for the books at midnight, cried when Dumbledore died and we’ll be dammed if we don’t read them to our children.
  7. Your natural hair color. There’s a reason you were born with it.
  8. Scrabble. Bananagrams and Words with Friends are just glorified versions of Scrabble. The concept stands: we really like spelling shit.
  9. Denim. The first pair of jeans was patented in 1873. In the 30s, cowboys wore jeans and in the 40s, Rosie the Riveter (and other women in the factories) embraced them. The 50s brought James Dean looking sharp in denim for “Rebel Without A Cause”, and in the 60s, the bellbottoms craze hit. And you’re not giving up your perfect pair of skinny jeans anytime soon.
  10. Love. As it will always, in some way, elude us.
  11. Beer steins. They’re a salute to Oktoberfest, which has been celebrated since the early 1800’s. The bottom line is everyone likes drinking out of oversized beer mugs with handles.
  12. Homemade apple pie. There’s a reason we say, “It’s as American as apple pie.”
  13. Mystery novels. Our parents read Agatha Christie and will forever be Hercule Poirot fans. We lived through the days of Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, Cam Jansen and Amelia Bones. We’re ready for the next modern-day Mata Hari.
  14. Calling someone on their birthday. Because it will always means so much more than a text, an email, or a Facebook post.
  15. Wearing all black. The images of Audrey Hepburn and Twiggy in all black will stay forever etched in our minds’, only to be joined by images of T. Swift in that black veil.
  16. Weed. If you don’t believe that stoners were cool 30 years ago, ask your parents.
  17. Monet. That painting in your living room that you grew up with and always remember fondly? It’s Monet’s “Water Lilies.” You’ll have your own copy one day.
  18. Las Vegas. Let’s put it this way: The “Ocean’s Eleven” with Brad Pitt and George Clooney wasn’t the original.
  19. Candles. Because we’ll always need them for decoration, during power outages, or for Shabbat dinner.
  20. Bachelorette/Bachelor parties. Is there anyway the sport of getting a bride or groom shit-faced before their wedding would ever be discouraged?
  21. Fireplaces. Something about that crackle just can’t be duplicated. And don’t try to tell me you didn’t Instagram a picture of a fireplace this winter.
  22. Champagne. There’s champagne for each stage of your life: College champagne (Andre), holyshit-I’m-not-in-college-anymore champagne (Barefoot), wedding champagne (Moet) and parent’s anniversary champagne (Dom Perignon).
  23. Natural looking makeup. There will always be make-up trends, but accenting your best features will never go out of style.
  24. Chapstick. There’s a new Chapstick trend every six months: from Katy Perry sending cherry Chapstick sales through the roof, to Burt’s Bees, to those little Chapstick balls. The days of lip smackers may be over, but Chapstick is in it for the long haul.
  25. Traveling. We’re explorers by nature. There was never a time, and never will be a time, when we don’t want to see new things.
  26. The Superbowl. In 2015, we’ll play the 49th Superbowl. Something about the consumption of sports, beer, wings, and obscene amounts of snacks just says: America.
  27. Limousines. They come into the picture during weddings, funerals and proms – all of which aren’t going anywhere.
  28. Ski weekends. We were taught how to snow plow on the bunny slope and we’ll put our kids through the same training.
  29. Sex. Just FYI, you didn’t come from the stork.
  30. Sex mixed with political scandals. Everyone likes politics more when sex comes into the picture. Or when Tina Fey comes into the picture.
  31. Whiskey. It’s the simplest gift for any whiskey lover in your life.
  32. Getting tested. As long as sex is still on this list, getting tested is too.
  33. Playing catch with your dad. Either you did this during your childhood, or like Gob from Arrested Development, you have serious insecurities because you didn’t. It’s never too late.
  34. Lobster. Once a poor man’s go-to, lobster caught on as a popular treat amongst New Yorkers and Bostonians in the mid-19th century. It’s been a thing ever since.
  35. The Summer Olympics. Superior to the Winter Olympics since 1896.
  36. Boat parties. It’s the party that we all aspire to attend.
  37. Leather jackets. Danny Zuko was rockin’ them in Grease, there were all the awkwardly long ones that the Secret Service wore on the West Wing in the 90’s, and they’re still a staple now.
  38. Old books. “Great Expectations” is going to sit regally on your shelf for the rest of your life. It just looks right.
  39. Prom. It’s one of those events that will come up intermittently throughout your life because it’s a common experience. Literally everyone, except the kid who had a softball game early the next morning, went to prom.
  40. Barbeques. Our need to put on red bandanas on the 4th of July, grill burgers and drink all American beer will never tire.
  41. Karaoke. As long as tequila shot deals still exist, Karaoke will inevitably follow. Anyone can sing after 4 tequila shots, right?
  42. Rosie the Riveter. The 40’s are over, and Rosie is still one of the most recognizeable symbols of feminism.
  43. French Manicures. A nice, clean French manicure will never go out of style. The random design you put on an accent nail, over the French manicure, will.
  44. Tiffany & Co. Tiffany’s jewelry has been a staple since the 1800’s. It’s a symbol of luxury, and each store around the world is considered a “palace of jewels” – which was first noted by The New York Times in the late 1800’s. 
  45. Moleskin notebooks. It’s sturdier in your hand than any other kind of notebook and it sometimes feels as though it will preserve your words, better than any old notebook. I mean, it won’t, but whoever marketed moleskin notebooks did a damn good job on me.
  46. Fountain pens. Who knows when friends of your parents will realize that it’s not 1960 and this is no longer an acceptable graduation gift. It’ll be at least another couple decades.
  47. Music festivals. From Woodstock to Coachella, we will always gravitate to the mecca for drugs and music, where people go to piss off their parents and be owned by the sound.
  48. Giving back to your community. Helping others will always benefit you too. It will always boast your morale, sense of self, or at the very least, your college application.
  49. Tea. While you may have only discovered your love for Oolong a few years ago, the Japanese tea ceremony has been a thing since the 9th century. And then of course the British became v. fond of it. Now that Oprah’s given chai tea her endorsement at Starbucks, it’s not going anywhere.
  50. The Oscars. It’s George Clooney in a tux, you’re really not going to watch?