Recently I asked the BuzzFeed Community to share a current fashion trend that used to be kinda cringey but is now considered cool. People had some interesting responses, and even shared certain trends they were bullied for wearing, but that are now actually super mainstream, which I guess could either be incredibly vindicating or infuriating depending on how you look at it. Here are some of the best responses:
1.“Colorful hair. It was so incredibly rare to see when I grew up in the late ’90s/early ’00s, and when people did have it, it was very alt people. Now, it’s everywhere, on everyone.”
“I got a lot of weird looks and comments on my pink hair in the late ’90s/early ’00s. Now it’s everywhere, and I’m glad it’s embraced as more mainstream.”
2.“Buying used clothing from thrift or consignment stores.”
3.“Logos on everything. It was cool for a minute in the Hollister/Aéropostale days, but then it went out (thank god). Now it’s back with, like, Supreme, Gucci, etc.”
4.“Pants that stop at the ankle! When I was younger, if your pants didn’t drag on the floor and get caught under the heel of your Vans/Converse, you were doing it WRONG.
As a tall girl, this was particularly hard for me because my jeans were always a few inches too short (we love women’s clothing sizes 🙄). Long story short, I was picked on constantly for what is now considered ‘trendy.’ Clearly I was before my time ~sigh.~”
“Freaking high-water jeans. I cannot tell you how desperately uncool and tragic I felt wearing jeans that were a little too short. Showing the tops of your shoes or even (gasp) your socks was the worst! Now? Totally fine. Cool, even. I’m dead every time I see it.”
—anonymous
Jfizzy / GC Images
5.“Thick eyebrows. I was beat up for it once. Now they are soooo popular.”
—anonymous
6.“Large, bulky tennis shoes! I hated them growing up; they were considered dorky mom shoes. The cool shoes of my time were Converse, Vans, and bowling shoes (lol). The first time I saw someone young and trendy wearing large, white tennis shoes, I was shocked. I think they’re super cute now, though!”
—anonymous
7.“Cow print. Ever since Cassie rocked it on Euphoria, I’ve been seeing it everywhere.”
8.“Definitely Crocs. You used to get made fun of in school for wearing Crocs. They were known to be ugly ‘wear around the house but not in public’ shoes. I suddenly started seeing a bunch of my students wearing them and was like, ‘what the…?’ Now they have those little charms and everything. I think they’re cute on the kids, but I just can’t wrap my head around them enough to buy myself a pair.”
—anonymous
9.“Champion sports gear. It used to be a cheap K-Mart/Walmart brand that you had to buy when you came from no money. All of a sudden, it’s $50 for some warm-up pants or $65 for a HUGE-logo-branded hoodie.”
—anonymous
10.“Christmas sweaters were the naffest thing going in the ’90s and ’00s. Now everyone wears them with pride (or possibly irony, IDK) except me. My inner eye-rolling teen just won’t allow it!”
11.“Bootcut jeans. I was bullied for them at school but now they’re trending.”
—anonymous
12.“When I was little, my mom made me wear an expensive peacoat that went down past my knees. I HATED it. Now, they’re everywhere, and I love mine.”
13.“Sewing your own clothes.”
14.“Flannels. They were cool in the ’90s during the grunge era. But when I was in high school in the mid-2000s, people would say, ‘Omg, are you a lumberjack?'”
15.“Mom jeans — high-waisted, acid wash or light wash, bulky at the bottom, loose fit jeans. There was literally a whole SNL skit about it. Flares and bootcut were all anyone wore when I was in high school (early ’00s), then along came skinny jeans. I couldn’t believe it when I started seeing the mom jean trend (and basically all the cuts that are considered cool now). I’m 100{05995459f63506108ab777298873a64e11d6b9d8e449f5580a59254103ec4a63} on board with it, though. I don’t think I can go back to skinny jeans at this point.”
—anonymous
16.“New balance shoes. I used to get bullied for wearing them, but now they’re popular and ‘retro.'”
—anonymous
17.“Freckles, apparently. I used to be teased in school because I have a ton of freckles (I have Irish skin!), and a few years ago, they became so trendy that the same people who made fun of me started drawing on fake freckles.”
“I used to get called ‘spotty’ and ‘gross,’ but now I get compliments!”
18.“Leggings as pants. I used to hate it, but now I love it.”
19.“Middle parts! When I was in middle school, it was not cool to have a middle part.”
“Remember the ridiculous ‘zigzag’ part that was practically mandatory instead? 😂”
20.“Chokers, the thin rubber bracelets that apparently indicated your sexual experience, and bandanas on your head. These used to be accessories for the ‘edgy kids,’ and now all the kids at the high school where I teach wear some combo of these.”
21.“I grew up in the ’90/’00s. High-waisted jeans, round wire-rimmed glasses, and ballet flats were all signs you were stuck in the ’80s.”
22.And finally, “Wearing oversized clothes.”
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
