Worst Minnesota Fashion Trends of the '00s

by *hoodrat*

​Fashion trends emerging from the runways of NYC and the streets of L.A. take their sweet time before landing in the Midwest. In the Twin Cities, a few people get on the bandwagon early when trendy fashion pieces plucked out of the pages of magazines are brought into local boutiques and department stores. They are coveted for a few months and then pushed aside to make way for the next big thing.

However, for the average Minnesotan outside any "scene", trends have a much different lifecycle. Most of us are taught never to waste anything: There are poor people in other countries who would be lucky to have gaucho pants! These last-season looks take on a groundswell of local support and wear out their welcome. The '00s will be over in a few short weeks, but these trends will always remind us of the most regrettable fashion moments Minnesotans embraced during the decade.

​Trend: Low-rise jeans
Spotted: From Albert Lea to Duluth

When did flaunting your muffin top become a good thing? At some point during the decade, jeans migrated from belly buttons to butt cracks. Suddenly, it became the norm to see a stranger's thong hanging out while shopping for books at Barnes and Noble. If anything, this trend was the one that tossed good old-fashioned modesty out the window. The silver lining is that low-rise jeans provided the opportunity for ladies to proudly display lower back tattoos. Without this trend, who knows if the term "tramp stamp" would have taken off. Then we'd all be short a few chuckles.

​Trend: Knock-off designer bags
Spotted: Outer-ring suburbs

We've all heard the horror stories about knock-off designer bags made by little children in sweatshops, but that didn't stop people from donning Guggi bags or Prado wallets. On the contrary, in some regions of the state, if you carry a real Louis Vuitton bag it's considered frivolous. Why would you drop thousands of dollars on a purse when the kiosk at the mall has something that looks identical? That was a hard argument to win and therefore this trend ran wild. Today, designers are cracking down on replicated goods and the hey day of finding a good knock-off is over. Word to the wise: if you haven't done so already, it's time to do away with the Coacher bag and downsize. Everyone knows.

​Trend: Over-designed men's shirts
Spotted: Downtown Minneapolis, Block E

Ed Hardy started something he couldn't finish and now we are all left to suffer -- and badly. One of the worst trends in the last few years has been tattoo-style t-shirts. This trend didn't stay solo for long; it spread the wealth and jumped onto trucker hats, jeans, jackets and the worst of all: dress shirts. Typically, a men's dress shirt should be crisp and low-key but some people felt that it needed spicing up and added embellished dragons that snake around sleeves, sides and shoulders, visually hissing at passersby. Guys, let's start fresh this next decade, shall we?