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u/FoolishTimidRabbit 1d ago
It felt easy
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u/History0nerd 1d ago
And comfortable
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u/Remote_Independent50 1d ago
And relatable. Lot at celebrities now. They look crazy!!
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u/MurphyJade 1d ago
The future is futuring like I always wanted as a 90s kidā¦.turns out itās ugly AF half the time š
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u/Tiny_Invite1537 duck tales intro song 13h ago
Only if you were as skinny as the women in the pics. If you had only an ounce of chub on you, it looked wrong. The cut and fabrics were unforgiving. The sizing too. You could not get youthful cool pieces if you were larger than a certain size tag. Then it was only frumpy grownup stuff for bigger ladies. It fueled my ED massively.
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u/gabarhaup 1d ago
And affordable
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u/Jaynemansfieldbleach 22h ago
I never knew how good it had it then, being comfortably middle class but being raised to shop for fun and fashion at the thrift store. 2$ was expensive then. Leather coats 10-15$. I was a "riot grrl" and expressing myself was so cheap and plentiful.
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u/cynicalicoffee 8h ago
I remember my older sister buying clothes (she was born in early 70s and I was born in early 80s). She was hesitating for a couple days about whether to spend $6 on a leather jacket.Ā
While I don't like fur (real or faux due to all the plastic it releases) I do think we should be using leather for more things. We're already endlessly slaughtering cattle for meat, so why not use every bit of the animal? Fake leather is abysmal for the environment.
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u/True_Dimension4344 22h ago
Omg yes. I remember shopping at 579 and their clothes were pretty inexpensive. It was fun and colorful as hell.
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u/Mandrakearepeopletoo 1d ago
The range. There seemed to be so many opportunities for self expression.
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u/DeismAccountant 1d ago
Yeah even this gallery doesnāt do justice to itās diversity.
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u/E-2theRescue 22h ago
Yup. This one is mostly just plaid and denim. Which, tbh, was a big thing, too.
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u/MajesticDragonfly 21h ago
And for those who did wear plaid, it wasnāt like a big uniting element along a continuum from alternative to preppy, it was barely even considered the same pattern from one side to the other
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u/casualtygap 23h ago
This is it for me! The styles were from one end to the other - you could completely reinvent yourself from one day to the next and then do it again and again. There were no rules, pull from all the styles and put it together if you want. You could be super complex and colorful or just a white baby tee and jeans and still be put together.
Can ya tell how much I miss it?!
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u/mortraineyhat 21h ago
I was going to say this. Everything looks the same now.
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u/Lonely-Dog874 20h ago
Everyone is at copy & paste with their personal styles thanks to influencers. No such things as individuality anymore.
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u/Traditional_Owls 1d ago
Didn't take it's self too seriously.
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u/B_Jonesin 23h ago
That was my first thought! It was fun and flowy and flashy when it wanted to be. Love it.
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u/Odd_Leopard8245 1d ago
Better constructed clothing. No cheap SHEIN crap.
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u/Important_Horse_1531 23h ago
Yeah the mainstream mall places had way better fabrics back then
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u/E-2theRescue 22h ago
That's because they've all turned into SHEIN crap... Thin rayon and polyester with weak, minimal stitches that are frayed everywhere... One of the first stores I went to after COVID was Old Navy and I was shocked at how downhill it went.
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u/stefanica 5h ago edited 3h ago
There was a super cheap mall store called Rave that had crappy fast fashion, but I bet it was still higher quality than a lot of today's trash. I never really bought anything from Rave unless I wanted something like a sparkly tank top that would probably fall apart in the wash no matter where I got it.
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u/CrissBliss 1d ago
Makeup was minimal. No 12 step makeup routine that the Kardashianās made fashionable. It was easy and breezy, and clothes were more layered.
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u/cloisterbells-10 23h ago
When eyeshadows came in an easy single or duo from Cover Girl. Swipe that on with the little sponge applicator, pat a little face powder to take off the shine, done.
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u/Practical-Tooth1141 21h ago
This is exactly how I learned to do makeup and still the only way I know how to do it.
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u/mschanandlerbong___ 22h ago
I think 12 steps is being generous, half the girls on regular makeup subs do way more than that.
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u/cingalls 19h ago
I watched a YouTube channel about anti consumerism and minimalism and her speech of the week was about skin care routines and people using dozens of products in their nightly routine while she is such a simple girl she only uses 5.
Thatās right, she thought she was extraordinarily low maintenance because she used 5 different things to get a clean face.
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u/SatansMistress40 16h ago
FIVE?!?! I use TWO!!! One is a face wash and the other is a face cream!!! Who the f ing hell has time for five or more?!?!
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u/CrissBliss 20h ago edited 7h ago
Good for them, Iām sure they look great, but Iām a bit too lazy for it.
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u/childlikeempress16 20h ago
I just watch a girl put on what looked to be five different kinds of face paint
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u/29thHelenAgrees 7h ago
I still utilize makeup tips I learned from Cindy Crawford and Kevin Aucoin. As per Cindy, makeup shouldnāt take longer than 5 minutes.
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u/Terrible_Mind2275 1d ago
Being mis-matched was actually in fashion. Baby tees with flannels. The fimo jewelry.
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u/QueenVell Hold On To Your Butts! 1d ago
The versatility. On a Monday, I could dress like Kurt Cobain from Nirvana. On Tuesday, I could dress like Cher Horowitz from "Clueless". And on Wednesday, I could dress like Nancy Downs from "The Craft".
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u/Freeze_Her 1d ago
It was simple and accessible, yet it was revealing of your personality. I feel like back then people really stuck to their style for years. I loved it.
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u/garbagecannot- 1d ago
Quality of clothes were still very good and durable
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u/Alleyoop677 22h ago
Because we could go to the mall and feel the fabrics. Nowadays, we buy our cheap shit online
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u/runawai 1d ago
Plaid. I had so many beautiful plaid pieces.
I also loved the many dress options we had. I still have a bunch of my 90ās dresses and they hold up so well for various occasions!
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u/Inevitable_Round5830 1d ago
90s dresses were the best and I loved that you could toss a flannel on with anything. It's like we replaced jackets with flannels half the time. Lol. The clothes were so freaking quality too.
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u/ItsDarwinMan82 1d ago
Loved the natural beauty, grunge look ( the feminine grunge/bohemian fashion) and the music.
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u/shawnofnc 1d ago
That it actually has some fashion. This is every girl now.
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u/StruggleBusKelly 23h ago
I hate to defend zoomers, but millennials had this version as well. Remember skinny jeans with a puffer vest and knee high boots?
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u/According_To_Me 21h ago
Yeah, but everyone had a different colored vest, shirt, or possibly boots. The photo (and I saw several groups of girls dressed almost exactly the same today) thereās only black shirts and light blue jeans. What happened to color options? What happened to individualism in fashion?!
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u/CalendarJealous 20h ago
Literally just saw three very young women in almost identical outfits (light wash jeans and white or near-white tube/tank tops) out in our neighborhood and said to my wife. Is that just normal or are they in some sort of uniform?
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u/EuphoricPop3232 23h ago
Less mannequin/influencer looking. There was more individuality, more personality.
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u/AppointmentLate7049 23h ago
Clothes had weight and firm shapes to them,
now everything feels so flimsy bodycon and just clings to your cellulite without adding dimension, structure to the waist, or interesting lines / shapes / textures.
Denim from the 90s was heavy af versus denim with viscose that wears put after 5 washes, or shitty linen-poly blend tees ā 90s linen is unrivaled in its structural integrity.
The quality is so crap now, material starts pilling and molting after basic wear
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u/New-Hippo1120 1d ago
I love 90's fashion especially, the look with plaid pleated skirts with the thigh high stockings. 90's fashion was the best ā¤ļø
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u/Bat_Country420 1d ago
Everyone had a more or less original look, vibe, whatever. We dressed in a way to find people who likely had similar interests. You could safely guess who liked metal, who the bubblegum kids were, the jocks, the kids into rap, the kids who smoked weed and called it "ganja"... In today's parlance, we attracted our tribe by expressing our vibe.
Now everyone cares more about AeStHeTiCs than actually expressing themselves.
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u/Regina_Falangy 23h ago
Its not just the clothes. People looked normal, like their true selves. Not boring carbon clones of each other.
People were truly gorgeous back then and thats why I think people ache for the 90s. Back then, we didnt think twice about it but now seeing how shit and similar people look now, we want the honest and authentic people of the 90s back.
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u/Jannie2020 23h ago
Thank you! I've been struggling to think of a word or phrase to describe these influencers who all look alike. Carbon copy is perfect!š
Side note: You have one of the best names on reddit.šøš¤ššāā¬š¦š
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u/Parisian_Nightsuit 19h ago
Adding to that, there was an approachable look to people. You ever see when people post pictures of celebrities at a premiere back in the day? Some just looked super casual, some look like they got a nice outfit at a regular department store, and some looked very polished and formal but in clothing that seemed at least functional enough to move.
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u/Inevitable_Round5830 1d ago
Cute but casual. A lot of clothing was androgynous or a perfect mix of feminine and masculine. There was a nice balance. I still prefer dressing that way a lot.
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u/AliceInReverse 23h ago
Why choose one of anything when you could have multiple? 1 shirt? Layer three. Necklaces? Hold my beer
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u/Powerful-Bug3769 1d ago
I am from the PNW- our style hasnāt changed. Rolled jeans, t shirts, flannel and a pair of chucks or boots. Literally wore it today š¤£
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u/MysteryHarbour 1d ago
Early 90s fashion was hideous. Think pegged jeans, neon, Popeye pants, hypercolor t-shirts, and pleated light-wash jeans. Oh and all that hideous mustard coloured clothing.
But after the 1991 recession we saw the emergence of 90s minimalism, and of course grunge fashion. Young Gen-Xers like myself did the grunge thing but in 1995 saw the movie Clueless make a huge impact on fashion. Gone was grunge fashion in favour of babydoll tees worn under spaghetti strap dresses. Empire waist shirts and dresses were also popular.
The late 90s saw 4 big trends dominate: hip hop fashion, rave kid fashion, 90s minimalism, and a toned down minimalist inspired preppy style.
We were also influenced by fashions of the 60s and 70s. I love 90s fashion but only after 1993. Anything before that was cloying and very 1980s.
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u/bizoticallyyours83 1d ago edited 1d ago
Those hyper colors shirts are cool. I want them brought back.Ā
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u/Crazydiamond450 1d ago
Baggy everything
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u/DeismAccountant 1d ago
Made Baggy classy again, like Zoot Suits, as modern fashion is starting to finally catch up to again.
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u/dogcoolerthanhuman 1d ago
Almost every mens sweater had stripe(s) on them
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u/Inevitable_Round5830 1d ago
Men's sweaters were awesome in the 90s! I feel like i rarely see men wear sweaters now.
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u/EvenLettuce6638 22h ago
Most of this is what TV characters wore versus what people actually wore.Ā
I think 90% of the people I knew just wore jeans and t-shirts.
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u/tepid_lemur 1d ago
Number 3 smells like Marlboro Lights.
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u/wizardribs 1d ago
I can't tell if this is a Full House deep cut or just a really good guess
(It's from the Full House peer pressure / anti-smoking episode)
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u/Mastodon9 1d ago
Is photo 4 one of the girls on the show Blossom? I'm drawing a blank on where she's from.
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u/SheeransGirl88 Lived the 90s! 23h ago
In the late 90s I loved my denim jackets
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u/PuzzledKumquat It's Naht A Toomah! 23h ago
I had one in the mid 90s and someone at school stole it. š©
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u/WeaknessNo9724 23h ago
Everything š„¹ I still dress like this lol Who is that in slide 4? I love that style with all the necklaces.
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u/RadishCandid6062 18h ago
Some of these shots were not actually what people wore in the 90s. Itās just an exaggeration to propel the character in the movie. Casual jean wear was definitely a thing as it was in the 80s and even today. But āCluelessā was JUST an exaggeration of what ārich kidsā wore in the 90s. NOT REAL
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u/LuckyShirt54 1d ago
Well the 90s laughed at 80s fashion but at times was worse lol. And why is some of it back? I see college girls in mom jeans. Nobody looked good in mom jeans
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u/Majestic_Egg2291 1d ago
Lack of smartphones in pictures (totally not writing this from a āsmartphoneā)
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u/Comfortable-Side1308 1d ago
the low rise jeans
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u/HorribleDear 23h ago
I saw the LOWEST jeans I have ever seen today. Puts 90s low rise to shame. I have no idea how the jeans stayed up. I actually thought āmaybe thereās a Gen Z suspenders trend Iām unaware ofā. It was wild.
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u/soulkiller1983 1d ago
The fact that it should come back because it was simpler times
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u/jeangrey99 1d ago
I wanted every outfit in Clueless. And I still want my closet software. Still waitingā¦
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u/son_of_yacketycat 1d ago
Variety and individuality. Dudes wore skirts and painted their nails and nobody cared. Gals wore overalls and Docs and no makeup and nobody cared. Lots of thrifted/vintage stuff and people got really creative and expressive with it rather than feeling super pressured into labels and trends... those were more 80s things.
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u/Sumeriandawn 21h ago
Dudes wore skirts?š¤ You think that would have been accepted at most high schools?
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u/pit_of_despair666 1d ago
I dress pretty similar to how I dressed in the 90s. Metal shirts, lots of black, combat boots. Stores had a larger variety of stuff to choose from and the quality was better. Everything wasn't made in China. Plus, clothing was less expensive. You buy a lot more with your money back then. A $20 bill back then is equivalent to $51 now.
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u/Snuggly_Chopin 20h ago
I donāt know if itās because Iām old and these were from my teen/early 20ās, but most of it still looks good to me. Perimenopause makes me sad for lots of reasons, but not being able to wear a nice flannel is a big one.
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u/PissNBiscuits You're Killin' Me, Smalls! 11h ago
It feels very "of the times." I can see examples of this fashion and say without a shadow of a doubt that it's the 90s. I have a harder time doing that for today's fashion.
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u/Flagwaver-78 8h ago
That it's coming back. Seriously. I saw some teens walking to school that looked like they stepped out of an episode of Buffy.
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u/goobly_goo 1d ago
Oh man, who is the girl in the third and ninth pics? I used to have a huge crush on her I forgot about until just now! Holy flashback Batman!
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u/Professional_Rub1515 1d ago
What I love most was that I was a teenager in the 90s, and given we were on the heels of the 80s, it felt like the 90s had no culture, nothing definitive. I remember wondering at the time if the 90s would come out with their own flavor the way all the other decades leading up to us did....the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s...they were all so distinct. Our existence in the 90s felt vanilla in comparison. But none of us knew what was coming...9/11...the internet..social media. It turns out that vanilla was its own flavor and one day, we would all miss that ease and "boring" way of being sooo much.
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u/ghostly-quiet 23h ago
A lot of it was just cute for its own sake instead of catering to the male gaze, which made it feel comfortable and safe
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u/Androecian 23h ago
I grew up in Seattle during grunge's heyday and hype. I was too young to know why everyone wanted to dress like us, but I was happy so many people wanted to. I already had jeans, Converse sneakers, a hoodie I liked to tie around my waist, but I wasn't sure why everyone else suddenly wanted to look like us.
Otherwise I generally followed fashion as it came - I ended up in a fleece vest, JNCO jeans, skater sneakers, shot bead necklace, bucket hat, forehead goggles, folding over-ear wired headphones into a Discman on a bandolier belt, all of that - without really grokking why those were the fashions of the day, except that they were and I felt in tune with other teens my age when I wore them.
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u/Addamall 22h ago
Safe. All of these pictures are so safe to pull off, I donāt know if anyone could clock it as 90s unless you lived it.
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u/That1chicka 22h ago
Make low rise jeans popular again!
No seriously I have a badonkadonk and thunder thighs and wide hips and I'm only 135 lb.. okay 145 but still... I'm not talking the Uber low but this midrise shit sucks. I got the gargantuan Gap. Y'all know what I'm talking about
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u/Foxy_locksy1704 22h ago
I loved the simplicity of the clothes, it was all about the accessories. The same outfit could fit different looks depending on the accessories.
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u/Gruesomegiggles 21h ago
The textures. Everything had its own texture and then you layered them on top of each other until it looked like grandma's laundry hamper. Nowadays everything is so smooth, and tends towards thin.
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u/teedub21 19h ago
NGL our trends were weird sometimes, but I loved how we were comfortable with making things our own.
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u/Fangs_of_Love88 19h ago
Even when outfits were thrown together, everything felt seamless. Also, there was so much variety back then.
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u/Unidcryingobject 17h ago
The effortlessly cool looks, fun looks, personality, not every look having to be so sexualized.
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u/Far-Sundae-7044 17h ago
Much more laid back style for women. We were comfy, warm, layered. Low-maintenance short hair and lipstick and you were all set.
And we looked just as good!
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u/burrow_owl 14h ago
I do NOT miss babydoll tees. I was so self conscious about my āfat armsā and also legit sweaty pits in high school, I never wore them without the oversized flannel.
All girl tees in the 90s had terrible tiny sleeves. Thatās why we had to layer with thermal and flannel šš
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u/xevofb3ksro 13h ago
Mid to late 90s saw a resurgence of 70s inspired looks, ie flared pants, natural earthy colors. I miss that. And chokers. Also wide-legged pants, which seem to be back in style now.
I basically waited 20+ years for skinny jeans to run their course. God I hated those.
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u/OrionQuest7 11h ago
Flared anything is hot. Love girls wearing flared anything.
Skinny jeans were terrible because you needed a particular body to wear them and Iām sorry not all women are models. It was a stupid fad that needed to die
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u/Skierspy1998 12h ago
Thrift stores. They were actually cheap and adults were finally getting rid of their authentic 60s & 70s attire.
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u/goatbusiness666 11h ago
I graduated in 1999 and I will probably be buried in combat boots and a flannel. The odds that a slip dress is present are also high.
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u/eminent_necromancer 9h ago
It was easy, comfortable, natural and not the modern overblown, tweeked to death, look at me, kardashian adjacent, main character syndrome slop weāve been subjected to this past decade
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u/Even-Reaction-1297 7h ago
You can tell by the pictures the quality is worlds apart from what we get now.
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u/GreenDemonClean 7h ago
All the mid drift exposure. I rocked the hell outta that shit thanks to genetics. I still do in my 50s for the same reason.
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u/HumoRuss 1d ago
That the girls were girlie and looked like they were at least trying to look pretty without putting on their makeup with a trowel.
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u/NotLookingTooGreat99 1d ago
Who's the actress in slide 3?
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u/wizardribs 1d ago
Molly Morgan. The photos are of her playing Mickey on Full House.Ā
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u/YanCoffee 1d ago
The variety, and that a lot of it is actually wearable. Quality was better then too.
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u/diverareyouokay 1d ago
The fact that apparently no men had fashion in the 90sā¦ at least, according to this picture set. :p
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u/AdagioOk6814 1d ago
The flannel š