Capris are officially back in fashion ... and women are divided
A controversial fashion trend has re-emerged and your response to it is likely to expose your age.
Prepare your ankles because capri pants are making a fashion comeback, and no one is safe.
If you want to confirm a generational divide between Gen Z and Millennial women, ask what they think of capri pants.
The capri is a slim-fitting pair of pants that ends at the knee or mid-calf. Basically, they are anything that is longer than a pair of shorts, but not as long as trousers, and in the last decade they’ve been viewed as a fairly daggy item of clothing.
If you’re a trendy Gen Zer, the pants are a funky essential wardrobe item for 2024, and if you’re an exhausted Millennial, they’re an unwelcome blast from the past – a grisly reminder of our pedal pusher days.
Capri pants are the fashion equivalent of running into your ex in the street and asking to date him again. You might have looked cute together in 2007, but in 2024, the relationship feels far less appropriate and more like a cry for help.
The pants have officially made a loud return and this isn’t just a niche online trend.
Supermodel sisters Gigi and Bella Hadid have been photographed wearing them, they’ve been popping up on runways since New York Fashion Week last year, and now they’re all over The Iconic, Cotton On, Country Road and other popular fashion websites.
The trend is now making a fierce comeback online with Gen Z influencers sharing they are into the not-too-short, not-too-long bottoms, and Millennial women are collectively mortified.
New Zealand influencer Riley Hemson, 27, who has more than 300,000 followers on TikTok, broke the news to her fans and tried to convince them the pants are back by wearing a pair of capri tights.
“They are actually just an item you put on, and you feel cool,” she explained.
Millennial women old enough to remember earlier waves of capri fashion weren’t even remotely convinced.
“No!” one commented.
“I just can’t get among the knee-length tights,” another confessed.
“No! They remind me of all the over 65 ladies that wear them with floral shirts with bling,” one shared.
Another argued that their calves weren’t ready for the trend to return, and someone else said it was a “hard” no.
There’s plenty of chatter from Millennial women online declaring they won’t be caught dead wearing the tight-fitting pants in 2024.
Alas, it doesn’t seem to matter how much they rally against the trend, because Generation Z isn’t backing down.
TikTok has suddenly become filled with young women raving about them, sharing tips on styling capri pants and declaring them “gorgeous”.
Some creative fashionistas are even getting the scissors out and showing people at home how to turn regular pants into capri pants.
We’ve seen this war before when Gen Z firmly made baggy jeans cool, and while Millennials might have held onto their skinny jeans at first, there’s no pretending that oversized jeans aren’t now what everyone is wearing.
Generation Z believes capri pants are cool; therefore, we will likely all be wearing them by the end of 2024.
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