A key characteristic of clothing trends within the modern indie culture is a focus on fashion trends associated with music from the 1960s (Psychedelia, Mod, Counterculture), 1970s (rock, punk and country) and 1980s (New Wave). Common clothing items include band T-shirts, vintage clothing, striped tops, glasses, blazers, distressed jeans, waistcoats, ties, cardigans and scarves. Some of the most popular footwear choices include Converse or other plimsolls, slip-on shoes of all manners, ballet pumps, flip-flops and various styles of dress shoes. Another kind of Indie fashion in Great Britain (mostly by Males) is to wear items of clothing that usually the other sex would wear, this was made popular by Suede frontman Brett Anderson. A somewhat counterintuitive result of this is that though individuality is prized, or at least vocally espoused, indie culture does have an identifiable look, making it less than truly individual and more like any other subculture. This is particularly evident in the case of the Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars shoes which has become the most successful brand of shoe in history, as a result of the make being prized for its “independent” style. Surprisingly, the increase in demand for “Chucks” has, as of late, driven up the market price for the once-inexpensive footwear.

Brand labels are sometimes rejected as an exemplification of mainstream culture, and several small companies cater to the indie style, including Tourist Attraction and Artus. American Apparel, however, has broken this mould and is one of the few brand labels that is accepted amongst the indie culture. A few products that are a favorite in the indie culture include low cut v-neck shirts, drain-pipe jeans, lip, nose, and septum piercings, short cut-off jean shorts or short athletic shorts, cardigans, any sort of small slip-on shoe, and an emergence of early 90’s culture such as cartoon T-Shirts and Jumpers, hats and high waisted jeans have also become very popular. There are counterintuitive consequences here as well: though adherents to indie culture would criticize those who patronize mainstream retail outlets for spending too much on mass-produced items, the retailers that cater to indie culture tend to be at least as expensive, if not significantly more so. The clothing chain Urban Outfitters is one example.

Indie fashion has become popular on the highstreet as the subculture grows. Stores such as TopShop, Miss Selfridge and especially H&M stock more vintage inspired quirky pieces- that, ironically, wouldn’t have necessarily sold so well 10 years ago.

The fashion of the Indie Subculture also features a wide variety of hairstyles, ranging from very stylized and shaped haircuts to hair that is intended to appear as though very little, if any, effort has gone into its arrangement.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indie_(culture)