Fashion trends are in constant rotation every year. In the past few years, social media and fashion have combined quite a lot. People share what clothes they wear and do so on social media, and other people buy them to try them out. Recently, a fashion trend that is coming back is 2000s fashion, or what you may see called “Y2K Fashion.” Y2K fashion entails styles from the year 2000 to 2010. There were many celebrities at that time who were the face of that era’s fashion, including Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Paris Hilton, Mariah Carey and even Beyoncé. This fashion trend was as popular as it was thanks to them and many other personalities. So, what does Y2K fashion incorporate?

Well for starters, the term ‘Y2K’ means the year 2000. The ‘K’ stands for the unit kilo, which is in thousands. You put those together, and the term Y2K was born. Y2K fashion involves lots of denim, crochet, feathers, prints, accessories and more. Jeans were a HUGE statement for Y2K fashion. For women, jeans were usually in a low-rise cut worn with a cute top, and for men, they were very baggy and large. Sometimes, the jeans would even have sparkles or designs on the pocket to make them stand out when the person wearing them turned around. Even on the red carpet, celebrities wore jeans with their dresses to give themselves a bit of a modern style and feel. A lovely example of a dress-with-jeans look is Anne Hathaway in 2004 at the premiere of her movie “Ella Enchanted.”

During this period, a brand named Juicy Couture was extremely popular. Their comfortable velvet tracksuits came in all different colors and styles, which were loved by celebrities during this era. You can see pictures of Kim Kardashian, Britney Spears, Beyoncé, Lindsay Lohan and – more famously – Paris Hilton sporting Juicy Couture. These tracksuits were a staple outfit for Hilton. In 2019, in an interview for Vogue, Hilton stated, “The first time she put on the tracksuit, she fell in love with the brand. She needed it in every color and it became like a trademark to her.” Ever since the 2000s, Juicy Couture has increased in popularity with the general public, mostly due to those dressed in the Y2K fashion. 

While the fashion was very extra and always colorful, how you styled your hair was also a huge part of what could make or break an outfit. Small braids throughout your hair, half up and half down styles, low space buns, hair spikes, crimped hair, barrettes and beads were all major staples during this time. People had fun doing whatever they wanted with their hair and adding their own twist to it. Even in movies during this time, some characters would have their hair worn in these styles. Hillary Duff is seen with low spiky loop buns in her time on the Disney properties “Lizzie McGuire” and ‘The Lizzie McGuire Movie.” Danielle Fishel is seen crimping her hair during her time on the show as Topanga in “Boy Meets World.”

Lastly, accessories were an amazing source of expression in the early 2000s. You would see some accessories paired with outfits others may have never thought of doing now in 2023. Scarfs were paired with just about anything. 2000s Disney star Ashley Tisdale is even seen wearing a feather boa and sleep mask on the red carpet, which is now an extremely popular look from when she was younger. Other Y2K accessories include handbags, bracelets, rings, sparkles and more.

Y2K fashion has made its way back after 20 years thanks to social media and the recycling of fashion trends. Thrifting for these items has been easier than ever thanks to how quickly the cycle of this fashion has come back around. Sometimes, it takes over 50 years for a certain fashion to become popular or ‘trendy’ again. Out of all the fashion trends that have come back around, the Y2K fashion has certainly been a fan favorite!