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There’s nothing Gen Z loves more than eclectic style choices, and it seems the celebrities of our generation share the same sentiment. Music artists PinkPantheress and Latto both attended the launch event of NikeSKIMS — a new brand by the notable athletic and shapewear brands — wearing some controversial and cyclical fashion trends from the early 2000s.
PinkPantheress arrived at the event wearing a red, form-fitting, mid-length dress paired with a pair of straight-leg pants and matching red ballet flats.
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Latto wore a pair of the new collab leggings with an almost windbreaker-style jacket and leg warmers with her heels.
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Leg warmers originated as a purely functional garment in the world of dance; it was common to see them on your favorite ballerinas as they made their way to rehearsals. It was a means to keep leg muscles warm and prevent injury; they were made from wool or other knits and were never intended as a mainstream fashion item. However, during the balletcore era, it made sense for the style to return to the sartorial center stage, with ballet flats and brands like Miu Miu adopting the dancer aesthetic. Leg warmers also gained popularity during the 1980s, when aerobics culture, dance-inspired workout videos, and films like Flashdance helped catapult leg warmers into pop culture. Now, it feels like a full circle to see a celebrity like Latto wearing leg warmers to attend an athletic brand clothing launch.
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Similar to leg warmers, one of the most defining and sometimes divisive style trends in the early 2000s was layering dresses over jeans or pants. Popularized by Disney Channel stars like Ashley Tisdale, Miley Cyrus, and Hilary Duff, the look embodied the playful experimentation of Y2K fashion, characterized by the obsessive nature of double layering that was often featured in our favorite teen shows. Whether it was a sequined mini dress layered over bootcut jeans or a flowy tunic paired with skinny pants, the combination became synonymous with mid-2000s teen pop culture.
Though the trend faded by the 2010s, it has found fresh life in 2025 amid the Y2K renaissance. Fashion’s cyclical nature, fueled by TikTok nostalgia and runway revivals, has reframed the look as both ironic and innovative — something that makes total sense for PinkPantheress, who has been dubbed one of the Y2K style leaders of this current generation.
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While many might hate these two trends (especially those who have already gone through a cycle), we’re approaching them a little differently. Fashion will always look back on itself when considering its move into the future. And now more than ever, fashion should be fun. So, throwing on a pair of jeans with your dress or adding leg warmers to a look is precisely what we want to see stylistically when celebrities are getting dressed. After enduring the quiet luxury and clean girl phase, it’s fun to see celebrities get a little bit more playful with their choices. We all should be having a lot more fun with our fashion choices.
Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue
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