New York Fashion Week has brought back one of the most controversial fashion eras with the revival of bulky belts and a modern twist on old reliables.
The last few years have been rough, and many of us have joked about turning back time to the early 2000s. We understand the appeal. Watching Legally Blonde for the first time instead of worrying about the worldwide pandemic. Who wouldn’t prefer that? But, while the rest of the world settled for reminiscing, the fashion world took this idea a bit more literally.
After two years of being cooped up inside, we are all desperate to get back out there, and like any true fashionista, we want to do it with a bang. Or, in this case, with a delightfully over the top statement outfit. Since we don’t know what’s waiting for us after the pandemic, we look for inspiration from our past. At least, this seemed to be the approach designers took during this year’s New York Fashion Week as they tapped into this celebrity-obsessed MTV blasting 2000’s nostalgia. Oscar de la Renta channelled the Britney Spears party girl era. At the same time, Michael Kors presented us with classic glamour, determined to put the pandemic behind him. This revival has been in the works for a while but in case anyone still had doubts, New York Fashion Week provided us with the proof we needed to officially announce the awaited return of this colourful era. Take a look at what’s back in style and how to work that 2000’s glam in 2022.
Glitter, Pink and Everything 2000’s
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Have you ever wondered what a modern Barbie would look like? Well, dip it in glitter and wrap it in Christian Cowan, and you have the 2022 equivalent called a material girl. So if you spend way too much time on Tik Tok, have no idea how to manage your finances and idolized Sharpay Evans growing up, this trend is for you.
90’s HBIC Uniform
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Is it possible to see a plaid skirt jacket combo and not immediately think of Clueless? As if! Technically, we never abandoned this trend, but this doesn’t stop it from taking over a fashion week. Dress it up or grunge it up doesn’t change the fact that this screams the 2000’s, although we love a contemporary interpretation which we saw a lot this season on the runway.
Belt It
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If you were born in the late ’90s, you have lived and breathed this trend and most definitely have fond and not at all embarrassing photographic evidence of this iconic accessory that had to be hiked up as high as possible at all times because you know… Fashion? Well, here is hoping that the return of bulky belts means atoning for our past fashion sins and getting it right this time around.