Anyone over 40 will remember the shoulder-padded days of the 1980s, when Dynasty-style ruled, but it’s been a long time since the female silhouette has been quite so dramatic. However, all that is poised to change as shoulder pads start to make their way back into our wardrobes. Hilarie Stelfox reports

SHOULDER pads, beloved of Joan Collins, Princess Di, Mrs Thatcher and just about everybody in the 1980s, are quietly making a comeback.

Already seen on the couture catwalks and worn by celebrities such as Victoria Beckham, Kate Moss and Rihanna, it won’t be long before the High Street will be awash with exaggerated shoulders and a certain Eighties throw-back style.

Pixie boots, leggings and baggy tops – Eighties staples – have been finding their way into all the major fashion collections for some time now. The shoulder pad will be next.

Marks & Spencer, whose fashions are often seen as mainstream, is favouring shoulder padding in its summer 2010 ranges so it won’t be long before we’re all wearing them.

But as with most fashion revivals the original rarely returns as it once was. Shoulder padding for 2010 has already taken a different turn with pagoda shoulders – steeply angled pads and ‘puffed’ shoulders – seen in many winter collections.

“When I was buying for last season I noticed that shoulder pads were coming through,’’ says Selina Bashir, who owns the Pixie boutique in Huddersfield’s Queen Street. We had some big shoulder padded tops and pagoda shoulders that just flew out of the shop.

“Interestingly, we sold a lot to our older customers.”’

Selina stocks the directional brand Super Trash, endorsed by singer Pixie Lott, which, she says, has embraced the retro look. “They revive old trends. We are going to be seeing more shoulder pads, more Lycra and leggings,’’ she added.

The last few years have seen an upsurge of interest in Seventies and Eighties retro style, with fashionistas trawling second hand and charity shops for original garments.

Ironically, Eighties clothes are in short supply as until recently many charity shops found they were unable to sell heavily shoulder-padded garments and consigned them to the rag bag.

“Unfortunately, we just don’t have enough storage to keep everything until it comes back into fashion,” said Maxine Wallis, manageress of the Kirkwood Hospice shop in Huddersfield.

“The Eighties stuff looked so old fashioned and no-one wanted it.’’

However, the occasional items do appear in donation bags and most charity shops have a vintage rail, which is eagerly picked over by students and youngsters too young to have worn them in the Eighties.

Maxine did manage to find an original Eighties-style jacket with shoulder pads, which was modelled for this feature by hospice shop volunteer Lauren Abbott. (To complete the look we asked Benefit consultant Francesca Brand at Boots to give Lauren an Eighties make-up make-over – heavy on the eye make-up and blusher).

Of course there are many women who shudder at the thought of the return to Eighties power-dressing and for those who really can’t bear the idea of wearing shoulder pads or lack the confidence to try, contemporary fashion collections have the answer.

“There are a lot of garments around with Eighties-style shoulder detail without the padding,’’ says Selina.

“That way you get the look without huge shoulders. Top Shop had a collection with Michael Jackson-inspired shoulder detail. We’ve got tops with punk-inspired chains on the shoulders.”

Some of the really cutting-edge design for fashion 2010 is actually a careful blend of Seventies and Eighties styles, so it’s really a question of taking the best from each decade.

In fact, shoulder padding can emphasise a feminine silhouette by making the waist appear neater and balancing the hips while pagoda shoulders or leg o’ mutton sleeves – also big in the Seventies – are flattering and pretty.

But the great advantage for women in 2010 is that fashion is much less rigid than it once was. And if you really don’t like shoulder pads or pixie boots then you don’t have to wear them because this is the decade when, quite literally, anything goes.