Dissection of 2024 Fashion Trends
By Andy Han ‘26
2016 Fashion Vs. 2024 Fashion.
Courtesy of @drip on Threads
As the use of social media becomes commonplace and the digital platform normalized, the time between the introduction and obsolescence of a trend seems to shorten, with novel ideas being introduced and forgotten about daily.
In 2024, we saw the cyclical nature of fashion firsthand, as many returned to styles popular in earlier eras. Vintage, Y2K, and retro styles experienced a revival in popularity unprecedented in recent years, and as a result, many unintended consequences ensued.
Fashion enthusiasts, junior Callum Ellis, junior Nico Igarashi, and senior Jack Ericksen comment on the trends of 2024, sharing their likes, dislikes, and hopes for this year.
#1: Baggy Jeans
Hulk Hogan wearing JNCOs.
Courtesy of Reddit
Baggy jeans made a major comeback in 2024, aligning with the oversized clothing popular with skateboarding and hip-hop culture in the 2000s. In previous decades, skinny jeans and slim-fitting clothes dominated both high fashion and streetwear scenes, while baggy clothes were reserved for a select niche of a few subcultures (hip-hop, skate, goth, rave, punk, etc).
However, after the pandemic era, people adopted more comfortable, relaxed silhouettes, likely as a response to the laid-back lifestyle many embodied during the pandemic lockdown.
In 2024, these silhouettes remained dominant in the fashion industry in high fashion brands such as Balenciaga, Vetements, and Acne Studios, along with streetwear brands such as JNCO and Southpole.
Ericksen, a fashion aficionado and baggy jeans connoisseur spoke on the trend, aligning with the consensus that baggy jeans are comfortable to wear and practical for everyday activities. “I don’t like the feeling of clothing rubbing too close to my skin,” commented Ericksen when asked about his motivation for wearing baggy jeans.
Nevertheless, Ericksen advocates for skinny jeans despite the backlash they’ve received in 2024. Ericksen strongly disapproved, saying, “I hate when people talk bad about skinny jeans.”
When asked to elaborate, Ericksen noted the hypocrisy of skinny jeans critics, saying that “trends are cyclical” and that skinny jeans will be fashionable again in the future. It’s illogical to discredit a trend as big as skinny jeans when they were highly popular in the 2000s, with designers like Hedi Slimane pioneering them in the fashion scene for years to come.
Dior 2005 Autumn/Winter Collection, “In the Morning”.
Courtesy of Vogue
Nonetheless, baggy jeans remained a fashion staple of 2024, offering both comfort and versatility that resonate with a wide range of fashion tastes, whether they’re worn for their nostalgic appeal or practical design.
#2: Adidas Sambas
Adidas Sambas., Courtesy of Adidas
As the general public departed from the coveted “hype beast” trend sneakers of the past, with high markups and reselling making products inaccessible to all but a select few, the Adidas Sambas, along with other retro sneaker silhouettes, became the crowd favorites of 2024.
Among the most notable, slim sneaker silhouettes like the Adidas Samba, Onitsuka Tigar, and Maison Margiela GATs peaked in popularity and contributed to the shift to an elevated vintage style that shaped the collective style of 2024.
However, for some, the trend of slim, retro-athletic footwear like the Sambas doesn’t mesh well with other trends of the year, creating visual disharmony in the outfit.
Ellis commented with a distaste for the trend. When asked about what specific aspect of these shoes makes them hard to balance in an outfit, Ellis said, “I think the silhouette is too slim... It really gets gulped up and ends up looking like a squished marshmallow.”
Due to the trend of baggy jeans and the Sambas, when combined together, the pants often seem to “devour” the shoes, leaving only the top of the shoes visible. Ellis noted this phenomenon, commenting that footwear should complement the outfit to create a more balanced pant-shoe interaction.
“I remember when Sambas first gained traction in 2021 as part of the whole ‘Blokecore’ movement,” reminisced Ellis. “Blokecore,” an ironic movement mimicking the style of British football fans, was what started the trend of Sambas since they were originally shoes meant for playing soccer/football.
Tiktok “Blokecore” outfit. Courtesy of Vice
What started as an ironic piece meant to make fun of influencer culture eventually evolved into a serious trend that swept through the world in 2024. According to Ellis, “fashion gets lost in translation a lot” as trends and clothes are misinterpreted by the common consumer.
When asked about what slim shoes he would like to see in 2025, Ellis responded, saying, “I would like to see a return of slim footweaer like Vans, Comme des Garçons Converse, slim Chelsea boots, combat boots, and other, more varied classic silhouettes.”
#5: Y2K
The return of baggy jeans and Sambas is a clue of a larger cultural shift towards 2000s fashion trends, characterized by loud, colorful designs, prominent branding, and bodacious prints. As trademarks of the Y2K style, brands like JNCO, DC, Affliction, Ed Hardy, and True Religion regained their cult-like following in 2024 through the influence of social media.
Y2K MMA fashion. Courtesy of Risky Fuel
While the Y2K style offers a provocative and attention-grabbing aesthetic, modern interpretations by large companies and social media influencers have led to a fundamental misunderstanding of the style, corroding its rich history.
The main influences of the Y2K style come from the hip-hop and skateboarding cultures, attributing not only to the colorful aesthetics but also the functionality of the style. Originally, skaters wore baggy jeans for the sake of skateboarding, as it allowed for more mobility compared to slimmer cuts of jeans. For individuals in the hip-hop scene, wearing baggy clothes acted as a gesture of symbolic protest against traditional social norms of the time.
What was once a symbol of rebellion and functionality now becomes a symbol of conformity. Fast-fashion brands, companies that “make inexpensive clothing rapidly by mass-market retailers in response to the latest trends,” capitalized on the Y2K trend and began making low-quality, mass-produced Y2K-themed clothes.
Among the main offenders, fast-fashion brands like H&M, Zara, and Jaded London are known for using low-quality materials and relying on unethical labor practices in sweatshops with awful working conditions to maximize profits.
“It gets to the point where people are wearing jeans made up of 70% polyester,” Igarashi remarked, expressing his strong disapproval of these companies. Ericksen shed skepticism on the trend as well, stating that it “feeds into the idea of basic consumerism” as these companies take over the trend of Y2K.
Hopefully, in 2025, the Y2K trend will shift toward being more sustainable and ethical, returning to its roots and regaining its former glory.
#4: Vintage
Nevertheless, for some, the Y2K aesthetic remains too contemporary for their liking.
Among the most notable trends of last year, vintage fashion emerged at the forefront. There was a notable shift away from brand-focused shopping, instead emphasizing the craftsmanship, durability, and history behind these garments. But why pursue older, distressed clothing over newer, unused clothing?
To get insight into the allures of this unique fashion subculture, vintage archivist Igarashi shared his full vintage outfit with us.
Nico Igarashi’s vintage outfit.
Photo by Andy Han ‘26
“I have on a 90s single-stitch t-shirt, a 70s golden-tag Russell [Athletics] hoodie, 60s original 107 military fatigue pants, and Wales Bonner Adidas Sambas,” detailed Igarashi.
“I like to wear vintage because it’s already broken in,” said Igarashi. Additionally, Igarashi commented that the “patina you get from older clothes just looks and feels a lot better.”
Due to the aged nature of vintage clothing, they tend to have distressing, such as rips, fraying, and a subtle fading of color that creates a nice, aged gradient on the fabric. While many prefer distressed clothing, it’s extremely difficult to replicate the same, authentic distressing created by everyday wear that vintage clothing can offer.
For Igarashi, clothes are a means of expression rather than a means of consumerism. Vintage clothing aligns with his values regarding fashion, as according to him, “vintage clothes are made with “more intention and care.”
Since fast-fashion brands cannot replicate the vintage look, the trend of vintage clothing can help curb the prevalence of consumerism and simultaneously promote sustainability through reuse. Overall, vintage clothing is an economically and environmentally viable trend while still being fashionable.
#6: Selvedge Denim
A pair of faded selvedge denim. Courtesy of Tour de Nimes
As we head into 2025, selvedge denim emerges as a promising trend, although it’s yet to reach peak popularity. But what makes something “selvedge?”
Simply put, selvedge refers to a self-finishing piece of fabric, meaning the edge of the fabric won’t fray or unravel. This makes selvedge denim extremely durable, as the weave of the fabric is tightly woven. For denim jeans, the key identifier of denim is usually a decorative white-red strip woven into the selvedge edge of the jeans, its purpose being to signal the high-quality construction of the fabric.
As the demand for denim soared after World War II, companies switched to more modern, faster weaving looms that sacrificed efficiency for quality. Japanese craftsmen purchased the obsolete shuttle looms Americans didn’t want anymore and began to perfect the craft of selvedge denim.
Although these machines were slower, produced less denim, and took a lot of energy to repair and maintain, they nevertheless yielded high-quality denim impervious to fraying.
Through social media, traditional selvedge denim has been revived in popularity, exposing the craft to a younger audience previously unaware. As a selvedge enthusiast, Igarashi shared his experience owning a pair of selvedge denim.
For Igarashi, durability, longevity, and personalization are the key factors that motivate him to wear selvedge. When asked about how he found out about the trend, Igarashi said that he “was inspired by Instagram fashion influencers.”
Due to the high-quality construction techniques combined with durable materials, Igarashi claims that even one single pair of selvedge denim “will last you a lifetime.” Additionally, Igarashi notes that due to the raw, untreated state of most selvedge jeans, they will fit depending on how you wear them. Raw denim is stiff at first but slowly becomes softer and forms to the wearer as they break in.
As some areas experience more friction, such as the back of the knees and upper thighs, the denim will fade into a lighter color as the white fibers at the core of the yarn are exposed, since dye usually sits at the surface of the fibers rather than penetrating it fully.
Many selvedge enthusiasts seek these personalized features, creating terms such as “honeycombs” and “whiskering” to describe specific fades that are coveted within the community. Some hardcore selvedge enthusiasts even avoid washing their jeans for several months to achieve more pronounced fades.
Honeycomb fades. Courtesy of Heddels
Whisker fades. Courtesy of Heddels
Igarashi concluded that the trend of selvedge denim is a “testament of moving away from fast fashion and overconsumption” while expressing individuality through a visual medium. Values practiced in the production and consumption of selvedge denim, such as patience, craftsmanship, tradition, and sustainability, stand in stark contrast to the values of fast fashion, offering perhaps an escape to its mindless consumerism.
The many trends of 2024 indicate a potential cultural shift. As we return to trends of the past, like vintage, Y2K, and selvedge, we reflect upon the quality lacking in modern fashion and the trends usurped by fast-fashion corporations. Hopefully, with the burnout of the trend cycle, we can restart, move slower, waste less, and become more conscious of our consumption.