Back in January, Timothée Chalamet stepped out in New York City wearing a serious throwback piece: An Alexander McQueen skull scarf. Having reached its peak in the late 2000s during the indie sleaze movement, that edgy skull-print scarf was worn by all the It girls at the time—from Lindsay Lohan to Mary-Kate Olsen—and is now considered a designer relic of the past. Outdated, even. But as Chalamet’s revival of it proves, who says something has to be out-of-style? When styled right, even the most forgotten fashion pieces can still feel fresh.
The fashion moment got us thinking: Being trendy is seriously overrated, anyways. Sure, updated silhouettes and brand-new pieces can inject your wardrobe with a sense of newness—but shouldn’t our wardrobes be more personal and authentic? If you love that McQueen scarf from a decade ago, you should be able to wear it in 2025—it’s your life! Inspired by this approach to dressing, Vogue did a staff poll, to see which outdated pieces our editors are still wearing with pride. What made the cut? Everything from Ugg boots (Y2K, baby) to skinny jeans. Love them or loathe them, that is not the point: The point is, we all have our fashion obsessions that we will never retire, even if they fall out of style. And guess what: Embrace it.
Below, 9 Vogue editors weigh in on the outdated fashions they still love.
Crocs
If you love me at my Simone Rocha x Croc bejeweled collab, you also need to love me when I’m walking the dog in my ugly-classic low-heeled Crocs that are stained with paint and dirt. Granted, these were never necessarily in style, but that means they’re also never out of it! — Emma Specter, culture writer
Common Projects sneakers
On my feet, still: Common Projects’s Bball sneakers in white. In my head, still: the formative years of f-ed up white sneakers that was the Brit-grunge Corinne Day era of the ’90s. I know quite a few people have moved on from white sneakers, but give up my Common Projects? Never. — Mark Holgate, global network lead & US fashion news director
Alexander McQueen skull scarves
I have clung onto my Alexander McQueen skull scarf since first buying it back in 2011. (I bought it as a gift to myself, after seeing the McQueen exhibition “Savage Beauty” at the Met.) I have always thought the scarf adds a perfect grungy-cool feel to any basic outfit. Plus, seeing Timothée Chalamet recently revive it on the red carpet? It’s officially back, baby! — Christian Allaire, senior fashion & style writer
Skinny jeans
My sartorial guilty pleasure is somewhat controversial: I recently unearthed a pair of skinny jeans. You read that right—category is Hedi Slimane’s Dior Homme circa 2004! Except that I’ll never be as thin (or tall!) as those models. It all happened because a designer friend who is known for his denim challenged me to give them a try. I have been predicting the return of skinnies for a year now, and I think it’ll happen this fall. Much of it has to do with the terrifying swinging of the fashion pendulum back to everything thin in the age of Ozempic—but alas! I decided to not let this get to me and find out if I can have fun with skinny jeans like I used to a decade or so ago. The verdict is: Not no. I wore a pair with an oversized blazer and this Janet Jackson Rhythm Nation-era leather hat. The look was an amalgamation of fashion eras and styles that, to my dismay, worked. I don’t think I’ll return to skinnies on a regular basis—they’re simply too hard to take off! But my takeaway is: Never say never. — José Criales-Unzueta, fashion news editor
Proenza Schouler PS1 bags
I have always loved the Proenza PS1 bag. I could never afford them when they were official It-bags, though I have vivid memories of going to the Opening Ceremony store on Howard and sighing while looking at the display in tiny room in the second floor: They had them in every color and every material, and it was like heaven. For their spring 2013 collection, which I think is my all-time favorite Proenza collection, they did these super cool collages with photographic prints. They said it was influenced by Tumblr, and as a certified girl at night on the internet, I totally got it. That season, they did a PS1 in the people-print leather, and I became completely obsessed. I always looked for it on eBay and the RealReal—it popped up once, during the pandemic, but I guess I was being sensible and thought “why would I buy a bag during the pandemic?” The day that I opened the app and saw that it had been sold I was instantly filled with a deep regret: how could I have let it go? And so for the past 3 or 4 years I had been crawling the internet, sure that if I ever came across the bag again, I would not let it get away from me. Finally in November of last year, another one popped up on TheRealReal. I sent a link to my husband: “Here’s something you could get me for Christmas.” He’d already bought me a present, but he got it for me anyway. I’ve been carrying it every day since—it just fits everything! It’s funny because during fashion week, everyone saw it and asked the same question “Is the PS1 back?” I can’t tell you if the PS1 is “back” or not, all I know is that I’ve wanted this PS1 for a long-ass time and it’s finally mine. It’s not a guilty pleasure, it’s just a pleasure-pleasure. — Laia-Garcia Furtado, senior fashion news editor
Low-rise jeans
The low-rise movement made me realize that a lower-slung silhouette is actually a suitable proportion for my body. I often encountered puzzling moments when getting dressed and wondering why things weren’t adding up with my shirts and jackets and high-rise pants the way I had imagined them in my head. How could they be this hard to style? Having figured out why, I now love the way a pair sits low around my hips versus up past my belly button, giving a bigger canvas for whatever I’m wearing on top to exist. There’s nothing better than when the bottom of my sweaters brush the top of a pair of low-waist tailored trousers perfectly, or not having to stuff almost half my button-down shirt into high-rise pants. Trends be damned, I’ll be sticking to lower rises for more elongating, flattering fits. — Madeline Fass, senior market editor
Ugg boots
I made it almost 30 years before I was gifted a pair of Uggs. The moment I slid my typically platform shoe-d feet into the shearling shoes (these were a pair of Minis) was a revelation—oh my god, I understood the hype. Uggs are somehow both warm in the wintertime and cool in the summertime. They are so comfortable that it does feel like you’re walking on a comfy cloud. I could spend the entire day running errands, dinner, whatever in them. Anytime I switch out of my Uggs into a pair of hard shoes, my feet definitely feel a little sad about it—I won’t deprive myself any longer! — Margaux Anbouba, senior beauty and wellness editor
3.1 Phillip Lim Pashli bags
I recently resurrected my 3.1 Phillip Lim Pashli, and it’s just as great of a work bag now as it was when I bought it nearly a decade ago. I remember debating the $350 purchase at a sample sale with my sister and sister-in-law, and them telling me that I had to get it—that it was fab and I’d keep it forever. They were right. — Leah Faye Cooper, digital style director
Canada Goose puffers
You can pry my Canada Goose knee-length puffer jacket from my warm, dead fingers. Yes, warm—because that’s exactly what they will be! That coat has gotten me through four years of Boston winters and eight years of New York ones. I refuse to give it up even though I look like a sleeping bag with feet. — Elise Taylor, senior lifestyle writer
