13 Regrettable Style Trends From 13 Years Ago

Image via Complex Original

Now, there's nothing wrong with trucker hats, but we're talking about the brief moment when they replaced the T-shirt as the de facto spot to make a statement. Von Dutch had its moment in the spotlight, and then the trucker hat became the surefire signifier of what we now know as the "proto-hipster douchebag." Affected trucker hats were all about irony and sarcasm, and while there's nothing wrong with either, both things are better expressed in conversation and in writing (ahem) than emblazoned on quirky accessories.

These tips should stay on ice indefinitely. Seriously? These were cool?! They represent everything wrong with the boy band era—blatant artificiality enforced by a desire to seem "young" or "cool" informed by market research and focus groups as opposed to actually going out and looking at what kids are doing. Ugh.

It might have taken a while for the sneaker/dress shoe hybrid to be perfected, but when companies first attempted it circa 2000... they were really, really gross. Instead of the best of both worlds, it drew upon the worst. We're talking cross-trainer inspired soles and silhouettes, combined with unsightly square toes. 

Livestrong bands were the dudebro signifier that you were down for a cause but also didn't mind getting swoll at the gym. Well... we all know what happened to Lance Armstrong. It's pretty accurate to say any meaning these had went out the window with his credibility. Besides, Livestrong plastic knockoff bracelets were just as gross, even if they provided the design inspiration for Nike's FuelBand.

John Mayer didn't always wear head-to-toe Visvim, you know. Before his current Wild West Bounty Hunter meets Neil Young-inspired look, he dressed like your average preppy frat bro who would croon "Wonderwall" while strumming away on his acoustic guitar. We wouldn't be surprised if he wore layered popped collar polo shirts over baggy distressed jeans and brown flip-flops.

For a long, long, long time, many men were straight-up convinced that "boot cut is the only jean that looks good on me." Because you know, the Levi's 501 isn't the most classic and perfect denim silhouette ever. The flared legs on these monstrosities aren't as flared as the pairs you'd fine in the '70s, but definitely don't hold a candle to the slim, straight cuts preferred today. We're glad guys finally caught on.

Nigo and BAPE led the charge on this loud, basically impractical trend. In what situation would you ever need your hoodie to zip all the way up? And even when you do—it's not like you can see through the fully-zipped hoodie! And don't even let us get started on the crazy all over prints, from clouds and rainbows to more "street" patterns like guns, pagers, and half-smoked blunts, it was a weird era for streetwear.

Look, fedoras are the worst hats ever. Wearing one with a waistcoat and a V-neck shirt is the ultimate uniform of a douchebag from the year 2000. He probably has a tribal-style tattoo and puka shell necklace to complete the look. It makes us nauseous just thinking about it.

No one man should show all that chest hair. Saturday Night Live perfectly showed why these are so gross in this memorable skit.

The footwear game embraced super-bright patent leather sneakers for a time. Classic colorways quickly found themselves overtaken by neon and loud, shiny interpretations of timeless kicks. Remember how A Bathing Ape's Bapestas took the trend and proliferated it on the Internet? Now, bright kicks still pop up (case in point: the "Lemon Twist" Janoskis) every now and then, but thankfully, subtle sneakers are more prevalent.

Wearing a hoodie under a blazer was the ancestor of this whole "high/low" aesthetic dudes are embracing now... but it was also the go-to look of crackhead Tyrone Biggums. To make matters worse, companies started making blazers with a hoodie layer that zipped in and out. That effectively made people realize how ridiculous it looked.

Before the denimhead, "premium denim" was characterized by brands like Antik Denim and 7 For All Mankind, jeans that definitely weren't selvage, and distinguished themselves with the ornate embrodiery on the back pockets. This trend stuck around in menswear for a few years (and some rappers still embrace it, like 2 Chainz), before guys gravitated towards raw denim that eschewed logos and branding in favor of quality and craftsmanship.

The most messed-up thing about the "metrosexual" was that it wasn't about dressing well or developing style as much as it was "straight guys" being just "gay enough." How messed up is that? It drew on exisiting stereotypes and tension between dudes who thought liking good clothes and grooming themselves was far from masculine—and on the flipside, placed the onus on gay guys to be self-proclaimed experts on all things style, interior decorating, and "living well." The world isn't like that at all, and we hope this dumb trend never comes back.