The 2000s fashion aesthetic and how to achieve it

The 2000s fashion aesthetic was fun and inventive, very big on logos, very bling. A real favourite were Juicy Couture tracksuits, which had an ironically fancy logo picked out in rhinestones and quite an ironically high price tag for a tracksuit. However, it was a soft, velour tracksuit in really fun colours, like a very expensive babygro. Baby tees were worn underneath. People weren’t afraid to wear hats, and bakerboy caps as well as soft, fluffy flat caps or bucket hats were sported, by the Kangol brand.

Celebrities of YK2 fashion encapsulated the look. Think of Paris Hilton, ultra-groomed with very straight blonde hair extensions, eyelash extensions, fake tan and coloured contact lenses, in her pink Juicy Couture. Or Britney Spears, who was never quite able to pull it off. She was rather more uncoordinated. But she, too, was sent free clothes by the brands and so was Madonna, who surprisingly also wore this look which you might call “elaborate casual”.

How to get the 2000s fashion aesthetic?

So in order to achieve this 2000s fashion aesthetic clothes, you can take some simple steps. Juicy Couture as a brand still exist, and they recently brought back some of their best-selling throwback shapes. So, get the bootcut trackie bottoms, with the logo in gothic font across your bum. Get a matching jacket, with the shield logo on the back. Get a thong with a diamanté butterfly on the back, and when you put on the trousers, make sure it peeks above the waistband. This is a low waisted look. To complement the low waisted trousers, get a crop top. Now, spend a lot of money and time on grooming, and don’t think minimalist. Straighten your hair, paint yourself with fake tan, keep a big supply of false eyelashes in stock. Add wet look lipgloss. Sit in the VIP area, and voilá!

2000s fashion aesthetic – charity bracelets

2000s fashion aesthetic – Livestrong bracelet. Image via Flickr.

In 2004 Nike launched a charity initiative. They created bright yellow, stretchy silicon wristbands with “Livestrong” stamped on them. They sold for just one dollar and millions of people bought them. The money went towards anti-cancer charities and they were in honour of Lance Armstrong, a professional cyclist who had suffered cancer. The yellow was because of the colour of the Tour de France t-shirt. Many other riders on the Tour de France wore one too. It raised over $100 million.

Following this, many other charities copied the idea and people had bracelets stacked on their arms in lots of different colours. In the end there was pink for breast cancer and blue for another charity. It was a visible way to show you cared. Businesses also started to make them as giveaways stamped with their logos, with nothing to do with charity. The silicon was a good idea as it’s one size fits all, waterproof so you never need to take it off, very tough, and incidentally biodegradable, though plastic waste wasn’t a big topic then. It also looked really sleek.

2000s fashion aesthetic- Boho

Sienna Miller came into the public consciousness in 2004 when she starred in the film Layer Cake. People were instantly captivated by her, and she was constantly pictured in magazines, going about her everyday life. She had a unique style, which came to be known as Boho. This featured brimmed felt hats, long skirts, embroidered blouses, and belts loosely slung around the hips. The most popular one was made from large brass coins threaded with a leather thong. It seemed to be everywhere! Sienna liked browns and creams, with white blouses. Boho style became really popular.

Fans were also fascinated with her life and her relationship with the actor Jude Law. She was engaged to him and they lived in the London neighbourhood of Primrose Hill, and often partied with rich and famous friends like Kate Moss and Sadie Frost. But ultimately Law cheated on her with the nanny, to the delight of the tabloids. Sienna Miller also sued the News of the World for hacking into her phone. She won. It was an odd time because this media obsession was intense, and they loved to follow celebrities everywhere even when they were doing the most boring things. And that was why what celebrities wore off duty, and not just at parties, had such an impact on the 2000s fashion aesthetic. But Miller’s case helped to change the media scrutiny.

The Olsen Twins

The Olsen Twins, two beautiful sisters, also loved Boho style. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen had been famous actors since they were babies. They took turns in playing the same character on a TV show. In real life, they did not dress identically but obviously loved each other’s thoughts and sense of style as they dressed similarly. It was clear they borrowed clothes from each other all the time. They made the Boho style their own, with lots of layering and transparent lace. There were long strands of beads dripping from their necks. They wore a lot of eyeliner and had long, artfully tousled or carefully waved golden hair. It was rather more gothic and imaginative than Sienna Miller’s sort of cowboy look.

Pashminas

Part of the 2000s fashion aesthetic was a pashmina. Pashminas are a kind of shawl, but not just any shawl. They are made from a certain kind of animal hair to be very light and floaty but warm, and have actually been a status symbol amongst rich people for a very long time. A true pashmina is eye poppingly expensive. Celebrities started to wear them casually thrown over their evening wear in the 2000s. They came in a rainbow of colours, and were sworn by as a very light, elegant cover up. They also came in handy as a lap blanket on flights. Nowadays “pashmina” just means a thin shawl, and it can be made from any material, often acrylic and they can be very cheap, too.

• 2000s
• menswear
• WOMEN