My Embarrassing Childhood Fashion Explorations Weren’t Pointless, And Yours Aren’t Either

The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at West Chester chapter.

When you were a child, did you ever have that phase where you hated pink? Like, literally resented wearing anything pink and fluffy? If you were anything like me, you probably forced your parents to paint your bedroom walls an ugly teal (or in my case, a bright, nauseating shade of green). Trips to Justice became trips to Hot Topic or Abercrombie – anything “girly” was uncool and gross. 

Then, did something randomly change? All of a sudden, you slowly but surely began to embrace the “girly” stuff you once shied away from? This strange experience happened to me right around when middle school ended, where I had this epiphany that pink wasn’t so bad after all– in fact, it was all I wanted to wear. I think my dad begrudgingly repainted my room about four times throughout my childhood to match my vibe. 

In the age of fast-fashion and quickly passing microtrends, I find that we often look back at our past selves and cringe at what we once wore. Even the hot pink corset top and flare pants I wore literally last year makes me cringe now. We’re burning through so many trends at such an alarming rate that we rarely feel satisfied with what we have. TikTok is there to remind us that there’s always something better, and we literally cannot keep up. Meanwhile, our closets are full of decent items that we gave up on.

Thinking back to my experience growing out of pink, then growing back into it years later, I realized something: my embarrassing fashion explorations as a child weren’t fruitless. There actually are some things that I wore that – I can’t believe I’m saying this – I would actually wear again. In fact, I’ve even incorporated some of these things into my current wardrobe without even realizing. My younger self may have mixed metals, worn low-top black converse with quarter length leggings (ew), and straightened one long bang across her entire forehead, but she didn’t have it all wrong. 

This little epiphany made me revisit some of my weird childhood fashion phases and evaluate some of the things that actually stuck:

dad hats.

In seventh grade, I had a weird phase where I dressed like somebody’s uncle. I’m talking a band shirt, bomber jacket, and a baseball hat just to go to school. I’ll be so real with you: it did not look good at all, which caused me to shy away from ever wearing a hat for a long time. 

Then, randomly, something changed. I think my frontal lobe grew a little bit more because all of a sudden, I began to look at the baseball hats collecting dust on my wall a little differently. I could actually make these look cute if I tried.

Like most relationships do, my relationship with Dad Hats healed gradually through a series of trial and error. From only wearing baseball hats out of necessity on the beach when my scalp was literally peeling, I slowly began to pair them with a pair of mom jeans and a basic top for school. With a pair of gold hoops and a full beat of makeup, I realized I created a versatile look that I could see myself doing again and again. I became uncle-chic, and I owe it all to that seventh-grade phase of mine in which I still pray is fully wiped from the internet. Couldn’t have done it without you though, girl. 

cheetah print (sorry)

In 2020, I joined the herd of people wearing nauseating pastel colors and flowers, painted my closet door to make it cow-print, and bought a cheetah-print mini skirt. Unlike my other phases, I literally cannot condone any purchase I made during this time of isolation – except for one. 

Cheetah print, they will never make me hate you. Some call it tacky, but I call it timeless. Coming back from my second year of college, I did the one thing that we all dread: the great hometown closet raid of ‘24. I threw out bags on bags of items ranging from purple jeans, retro-print green tops, and knit tank tops, pillaging myself of any reminder of my pink-haired 2020 self. Alas, my cheetah print articles of clothing were the only things safe from the Green Drop donation bin a couple minutes from my house. 

This may be controversial, but cheetah print is still cute. A cheetah print tank with a black mini skirt and boots is a perfect outfit for a party, paired with a leather jacket and some curlers. A big fluffy cheetah print jacket with some big stompy boots can elevate any black mini dress. It’s fun, it’s classic, and it’s perfect for winter. Cheetah is NOT DEAD. Sorry ‘bout it.

Monochrome

Long before I was sucked into the realm of Hot Topic and combat boots, I was my mother’s dress-up doll. I was in full Justice drip, donning pink monochromatic fits with matching scrunchies and converse. I was so well-dressed in second grade that it was honestly eerie. 

Then, the clouds rolled in overhead and everyone began to perceive monochrome fits as too much. You were weird if you wore pink on pink. After 2020, many people (me included) became a little nauseated by the thought of pairing pastel pink jeans with a hot pink sweater. Quarantine had left many of us bored, and many of our eclectic fashion experiments fizzled out. My purple crochet set moved from a special spot in my closet to the donation bin pretty quickly. While I’ve worn some regrettable monochrome fits in the past, I’m here to say that monochrome outfits can absolutely still be cute, trendy, and dare I say simple. Monochrome hoodie sets are a prime example, as they provide a comfortable yet elevated look. We as a collective no longer fear monochrome as being “too much”; we couldn’t have gotten to where we are today without our little phase in 2020. 

dig through your childhood closet and find some hidden gems.

As we begin to near Thanksgiving break, I encourage you to end your toxic relationship with your childhood closet and find some closure. Like any toxic relationship, there is always something good that can be taken away from it – you just have to look. I guarantee that you will find something salvageable from your past that likely will not fall apart after three uses. And if you don’t, you can always stop by your local donation bin and make your trash someone else’s treasure.