District L

"Y2K could be the event that could all but paralyze the planet." Newsweek, June 2, 1997

It was Valentine’s Day 2000 in London when Plum Sykes wrote her Style.com review for the fall/winter collection of Arkadius. Futuristic fashion mushrooms with face armor hit the runway just weeks after the world didn’t end on Y2K. That same afternoon, Matthew Williamson presented Day-Glo halos and chainmail dresses. Julien MacDonald ended that London Fashion Week with an out-of-this-world metallic smash. Days later in Paris, models in pixilated prints walked the runway for Balmain.

It was a simpler time before Craigslist killers, 9-11, and Facebook poking. Celebrity Deathmatch was in its heyday, Blink-182 was wondering what their age was again, and Party Monster had not yet become a feature film. We were coming off the indulgently angsty 90s, but hadn’t yet succumbed to the blind optimism of 2004-2006. The future was then -- and the rest was history.

Julien Macdonald

Arkadius

Balmain

Matthew Williamson

Post by Amanda LaMela

Images by Style.com

Remember the 90s? It doesn't seem that long ago, but I was only 11-years-young when "party like it's 1999" meant drinking hot chocolate with extra marshmallows before bedtime.

Consider Laver's Law denounced, because while only a little more than a decade has passed, subtle 90s reminders have already been welcomed back onto the runway and into streetstyle reports. In August, WWD ran a nostalgic article on Daria, the 1998 MTV cartoon character. The apathetic, teenage caricature donned combat boots and over-sized glasses, a look we have all grown to embrace and appreciate this season. Jean Paul Gaultier channeled this punky, rebellious mood in his SS11 collection, which included the aforementioned lace-ups, as well as neon piping and generous eyeshadow application.

Unable to avoid mass-market saturation, the combat trend managed to remain relevant nevertheless. But don't worry - this write-up is not about the obvious boot trend, but instead about how one popular late-90s look managed to spawn a new generation of reckless offspring.

Pay attention, because runways and showrooms alike have been promising a spring of pyramid studs, midriff cutouts, sloped bucket toppers, and [Nick's favorite] gaucho hats.

Get ready, because not even a fashionista with the cruelest intentions could force-feed you Teen Spirit without your consent. Let's face it: Not everyone is ready to remember [or...um, imagine] that mocha-lipsticked world sans Google, YouTube, and V Magazine.

Pshh... As if.

Post by Amanda LaMela