Plenty of millennial fashion staples have already fallen victim to the curse of Generation Z (people born between 1997 and 2012). The likes of skinny jeans and ankle socks have been rejected, but so it seems, have the dreaded high heels.
Back in the heyday of the 2010s, millennial women would don their favorite heels and head out for the night, ready to dance away the pain to Katy Perry and Flo Rida. But now, Gen Z are far too concerned with their comfort to wear six-inch heels, and they often opt for sneakers instead.
Given that flats and sneakers appear to have become the norm for younger generations, many of them are baffled at how millennials even managed to wear heels. But one woman who lived through it, Lindsey Piette, 43, thinks that millennials were “just built different.”
Piette, from Ontario, Canada, recalls dancing for hours in painful heels and drinking her way through the agony. Never mind the blisters and swollen feet, they were tomorrow’s problem. She told Newsweek that those memories are the epitome of “youth, energy and excitement” as life was so much simpler before.
@lindseyjayn / Instagram
Back then, the biggest difficulty was choosing which business-casual dress to wear to the club, or which pair of heeled boots stuck the floor the least.
“Millennials were able to wear heels to go dancing for hours on end because we were drunk and we couldn’t feel our feet. If we could feel the pain, we would go grab another tequila shot,” Piette said. “The only thing I miss about the days of high heels in the club is the euphoric feeling you get from hours of dancing to loud music in a crowd of people, all singing the same song, the walls shaking from the base and the condensation dripping from the ceiling.”
Piette shared a video on Instagram (@lindseyjayn) recalling how millennials learned to power through and dance all night in heels. The video went viral and had generated over 1.5 million views and more than 61,200 likes at the time of writing.
After seeing what younger generations are wearing these days, Piette couldn’t help but notice how different their style is. So much of it is centered around comfort now, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
In a way, Piette applauds Gen Z for dressing for themselves and not suffering in the name of fashion.
“I think we looked cute back then and dressing up felt good, but I think the culture has changed. We often used to dress for the male gaze, but now, women dress for comfort and if they do dress up, they do it for themselves not for men,” Piette told Newsweek.
As she now has a 13-year-old daughter, Piette loves showing off some of the fashion staples from back in the day. Indeed, many of the styles have even made a comeback, including skater jeans and baggy tees (but still no return for high heels unfortunately).
“I think the biggest takeaway from seeing how things have changed is how drinking culture was so different back then,” Piette continued. “Binge drinking was so normalized, and while it was fun, there are serious consequences. We have amazing stories, but I love seeing the new generation taking better care of their bodies.”
Since the clip was shared on Instagram, Piette has been blown away by the response. Plenty of fellow millennials shared similar memories and reminisced about simpler times.
Piette hopes this will remind people of all ages to “find fun in our lives,” whether it’s dancing in the kitchen or going to a bar. It doesn’t matter if you’re in sneakers or heels, dance like nobody is watching, she says.
The viral Instagram post has amassed over 1,300 comments in just a matter of days, as one person responded: “Millennial girls at the club were unstoppable.”
Another Instagram user wrote: “This just made me happy – I’d forgotten that glorious happiness feeling! Unmatched!”
While one comment reads: “A good night meant my shoes came home in my bag.”
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