How did these quirky fashion trends begin?

Fashion fads come and go, some are subtle changes to our wardrobe and others are more OTT. Take double denim, for example, sported by Britney and Justin at the 2001 AMAs or the infamous platform trainers worn by girl bands of the nineties. We investigate quirky fashion trends from over the years and how they began:

Top trends

When it comes to tops, there’s a huge range out there. From casual t-shirts to dressy blouses, every woman has an extensive collection — but what trends have we seen? Madonna set a memorable trend in the nineties when she made underwear as outerwear famous with her cone-shaped corset designed by Jean Paul Gaultier (thankfully, this garment never met the high street). Lindsay Lohan was also once seen on the catwalk with a black corset top layered over a white shirt — paired with a bootcut jean of course. In 2018, we’ve seen the Kardashians bring the trend back with a ‘mini corset’ worn around the waist to show off curves over a loose shirt dress. Other celebrity influencers have also taken on the trend, although they’re not as big as some of the trends we’ve seen.

Then came denim overalls, a dungaree-style garment. A low-maintenance look made famous by the Fresh Prince and other nineties celebs. If you wanted to look uber cool, you’d wear it with one strap undone.

Cropped legs

During the nineties and the mid-noughties, many people sported the cropped trouser leg. When it came to high waisted jeans for women — pedal pushers were definitely in and they were either denim or a pale pastel shade. This denim trend was rocked by fashionistas at the time including the Spice Girls and Christina Aguilera. It seems this one is coming back around too, with many celebrities sporting their designer cropped jeans – Jennifer Lawrence wore them with heels and a sheer top for Dior’s SS17 Paris show and Selena Gomez has been spotted in a pair, teamed with patent loafers and a casual white shirt.

Another style that everyone was hot on the tail of was the cropped combat trouser. British girl band, All Saints, was a fan of this fad and rocked cargo pants, crop tops (having your midriff on show in the 90s was compulsory too, apparently) and trainers with the tongue out of the trouser leg.

Another big trend was the two-piece tracksuits — remember velour Juicy Couture? It was Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez and Paris Hilton who started this trend off. Britney even had her bridal party dressed in two-piece tracksuits ahead of her wedding to Kevin Federline. Then, they became slightly over-worn by more Z-list celebs and fell off the radar…

Footwear trends

What quirky trends have we seen in the footwear world? Platformed trainers were a big trend, again started by every girl’s fashion icons — the Spice Girls. Whether they were white tennis shoes, lace-up boots or sandals, they had to have a huge platform to allow you to stomp around. We’ve seen this trend return with Rihanna’s range of Puma platformed trainers and (for something more alternative) Gucci’s rainbow platform metallic sneakers that are currently on sale.

And, do you remember jelly shoes? It is thought that they were invented due to a leather shortage during World War II, leading to a French shoemaker creating shoes from plastic. This is one of the trends that has come and gone throughout the years, with a surge of the shoes in 2002 and another rise to popularity in 2009.

We know that when it comes to fashion, what goes around comes around! It’s likely that we won’t have seen the back of these unforgettable fashion trends. And, there’s bound to be many more fads to come that we’ll cringe at before buying into.