Y2K fashion has become one of the biggest retroactive fashion inspirations for For You Pages everywhere. Blame it on the algorithms or an innate need to wistfully long for the past, but we just can’t seem to escape a rebirth of aughts-era glory a la micro mini skirts and low-rise jeans.
There are some trends, however, that should never reemerge. Some may argue they should have never been a part of our style zeitgeist in the first place. Below, we take a look at five trends we would perfectly content to never see a return to prominence again.
Fedoras
Taye Diggs. Image: Sylvain Gaboury/FilmMagic for Getty Images.
Accessories should elevate an outfit, not set it back. But these cowboy meets children’s magician hats have not propelled anything forward since Ne-Yo’s debut album. Suffice it to say these hats make us all feel “So Sick.”
Kings of Comedy-era suits
Steve Harvey (L) and his then-wife Mary. Image: LUCY NICHOLSON/AFP for Getty Images.
We love a dapper moment, but any suit that looks like it could be worn by anyone in the 2003 draft class… it’s just a hard pass (no pun intended). When it comes to suits, bigger is not always better; in fact, some would argue there is nothing sexier than a great tailor!
Plaid Bermuda shorts
Image: courtesy of Walmart.
Before biker shorts became the pinnacle of Instagram baddie apparel in the mid-2010s, we had these plaid above-the-knee monstrosities. I cannot pinpoint exactly when or why middle-aged golfers became sources of design inspiration for this era, but these shorts were a major whiff.
Gauchos
Image: courtesy of Etsy.
I’ll be the first to say that functionality is not a guiding principle in my wardrobe, so I may be speaking out of turn in saying I hope these too-breezy-for-comfort capris never find their way back into favor.
I mean, they do look super comfortable –for an interpretive dance rehearsal.
Statement belts with cotton T-shirts
Christina Milian. Image: Donato Sardella/WireImage for Getty Images.
We all want to make a statement, but this is not the way to go about it. These larger-than-life elastic belts were a fashion staple for a greater part of the 2000s than many of us would care to admit. We get it; the cinched waist was and still is all the rage. Thankfully, we now have an abundance of ways to give us a more snatched silhouette that aren’t so optically jarring.
