To dress well

Every decade has a signature look — your parents can probably still name popular brands from their youth just as we know what’s hot and what’s not. “Hot” really is a product of the time, though. Trends we love and embrace might make us cringe later on. Anyone with a fauxhawk has probably laughed at someone with a mullet. A girl wearing a Tiffany’s-style heart bracelet might easily scoff at her grandmother’s bouffant hair. We have no idea how funny we’ll look years later.

After being approached by readers and receiving e-mails about certain overdone campus looks, it occurred to me that we are in the act of committing future fashion atrocities — so let’s step back and figure out where we’re guilty.

The first is like shooting fish in a barrel: It is just as chic to bash Uggs as it (apparently) is to wear them. Already the resurgence of a past trend, Uggs have been around for years, seen on almost every young woman alive. While surprisingly unpractical, Uggs are ugly because they accentuate the widest part of the calf, rendering any pair of legs chunky. If you wear Uggs tucked into jeans, with miniskirts or sweatpants with words printed across the butt, your children will laugh at you. And, frankly, people are laughing now.

However, a shoe even more hated, repugnant and laughable will be remembered as a terrible trend of 2004. Facebook groups are devoted to their ugliness. I don’t care how comfortable they are — I can’t be friends with a person who wears them. They’re made of rubber. One can buy accessory buttons to snap into their holes. We are going to look back and cry when we remember Crocs.

Converse shoes, though, are also enjoying a renaissance — we wear them because they’re (supposedly) ironic and kind of indie, and they come in many different colors. Newsweek ran an article on the Chuck Taylor retro resurgence a couple years back, and the shoe’s popularity is still growing. In years to come, we will remember owning them in every color and using the white toe as a personal doodle-exhibit. This is a classic reinvented, destined to be a signature of the new millennium.

The North Face jacket (in any color, but specifically black) must be magical. Otherwise, I can’t account for the multitude of people wearing them daily. Ask your parents about the Members Only jacket, which is actually beginning to catch on again. The North Face jacket is our generation’s version. Sure, fleece is warm and the Pacific Northwest is awesome, but why does everyone need the same jacket? Strive for creativity and novelty the next time you’re looking for cold-weather wear, if for no other reason than to look like you think for yourself.

Polo shirts are classic, but currently suffer overuse-abuse. Like the white undershirt of the 1950s, the polo is today’s symbolic guy-wear. Solid-color pique, lightweight, fitted, modern updates or covered in asymmetrical graphics — I like polos, but I think it’s time to find new ways to wear them (like less frequently).

There doesn’t appear to be a specific name for this next item: You know those hoodies in black, white, gray or 80s-inspired greens, pinks and teals, covered in illogical, random prints? A staple of skaters and the independent set, these are also gaining rapid popularity with anyone who wants to look like a skater or independent sort. If fewer people wore them, I’d probably wear one myself. In fact, we just generally seem to love us some hoodies and sweatshirts.

Very few things are as cute as a girl in skinny jeans and ballet flats, but we should expect this to be the next poodle skirt and bobby socks. It’s a popular trend, and many find it to be fresh and hip, but there are ways to look classic (that is, not dated) when your kids find your photos. Look to the actresses of the 1950s to see how fitted pants and flats first started and update the look as you see fit.

Oversized sunglasses are also popular. Since Breakfast at Tiffany’s, these have been a fashion statement staple. But the white-framed ones are distinctly recent, but they will probably not have the staying power of the Audrey Hepburn originals. No matter the color, though, these sunglasses are both an homage to the past and a setup to look foolish later. But they’re hot, so weigh the pros and cons for yourself.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to our generation’s stereotypical looks, and I don’t expect we’ll know what the kids will be laughing at in 20 years until then. But when your kids are getting dressed up for “1990s Day” and “Early Millennium Day” in grade school, don’t say you weren’t warned.

Do you have any style questions or fashion queries you need answered? Feel free to send me any questions, suggestions or ideas.