How to Wear 70s Style Now: Capitol Glam or District Homespun

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping opens on 20 November, and the cast have already said which decade it's dressed in. Mckenna Grace, who plays Maysilee Donner, told E! News that Stevie Nicks was on all the mood boards and that the look was "very '60s, '70s-inspired". I'm pleased about that, because the 70s is the decade I most want to wear and the one I'm most likely to get wrong.

Panem has always had two wardrobes. The Capitol overdresses and the districts make do. Put a 70s filter on both and you get the two halves of the real decade: Saturday-night disco on one side, corduroy and hand-knits on the other. Joseph Zada, the film's young Haymitch, told E! his first costume is a shirt "made out of handkerchiefs" with trousers cut from flour and wheat sacks, and that for his later looks he asked for "darker greens and browns", which is the homespun half in one outfit.

You can wear either half to work or to the pub and nobody will think you're queuing for a midnight screening. The method is the same for both: one 70s piece (two at most), in a 2026 fit, with plain things around it. (If it's the cast's red-carpet outfits you're after, those are in our premiere looks post.)

The Capitol half: disco glam for a night out

Disco clothes were made for low light and a lot of movement, so the fabrics are liquid and something always catches the light. The fancy-dress version wears all of it at once with a wig on top. The wearable version is one shiny thing. That could be a gold sequin top with black trousers, or a satin blouse with a bow at the neck, half tucked into jeans. My pick is a halterneck jumpsuit in a plain dark colour. It's the most 70s shape you can buy, and in black or chocolate it looks like something designed this year.

Shoes are where I'd spend the least. A metallic platform sandal is a party shoe and nothing more, so the cheap pair will do. If you'd prefer your shine from the waist down, there's a separate guide on how to wear satin trousers.

The District half: homespun 70s for daytime

This is the half I'd wear all week, and it's a different thing from boho. There's no fringe here and nothing floaty (the grown-up boho guide has that covered). This is the practical end of the decade: corduroy, a checked shirt, a knitted tank top over a collar, denim with some width at the hem. They're clothes that look as if somebody's mum made them to last.

Colour does more than cut here. Zada's "darker greens and browns" is a good steer, so think moss, rust and chocolate, with cream to lift them. A cord pinafore over a roll neck is the quickest way in, and it takes thick tights, which counts for a lot in a British November. Flared cords are the bigger commitment. Get them high on the waist and long enough to cover most of your boot.

How to mix the two halves in one outfit

Panem keeps its two wardrobes apart. You don't have to, and the best 70s outfits now take one piece from each side. A gold sequin top with brown cord trousers is my favourite, because the cord calms the sequins down and the sequins stop the cord looking like a geography teacher's. A satin bow blouse under a knitted tank top does the same job in reverse. For a day that ends in the pub, wear a checked shirt open over the halterneck jumpsuit and take the shirt off when you get there.

The coat to wear over both

In November the coat is most of what people see of your outfit, so it has to belong to it. The 70s answer is a long coat with a fur collar, and a faux-fur one does it. Over cords it looks deliberate. Over a halterneck it keeps your shoulders warm on the way to the party, and a velvet blazer underneath wouldn't hurt either (how to wear velvet in the day has more on that).

If you're seeing the film on opening weekend, a knitted tank top or a pair of gold shoes is plenty of a nod. Prices and sizes on these rails change daily, so if something's right, don't sit on it. You can also tell the SO-ME stylist what you're after ("brown cord flares under £40", say) and it will search new, preloved and rental in one go.