Gen Z has cancelled leggings — here’s what they say to wear instead

Sorry Millennials, Gen Z has decided that skin-tight black leggings are just another outdated item in your closet and need to be replaced with something far cooler.

First, Gen Z came for our skinny jeans.

Now they’re here for our leggings, too?

Open the dresser drawer of any Millennial woman and you’re almost sure to find a black bundle of the soft and stretchy, all-purpose pants substitute — call them the unofficial uniform of those born between 1981 and 1996, particularly during their teenage years.

Paired with anything from a going-out top and chunky jewellery for dinner or a hoodie to run to the store — and, of course, Uggs — leggings were whatever you wanted them to be.

Now, they’re cancelled.

As reported by the New York Post, Gen Z style gurus have once again ganged up on the rest of the world, decreeing those roll-on thigh-huggers just one more “cheugy” (or, outdated) thing from the Victoria’s Secret sale at the shopping centre, waiting to be turfed from your closet.

Gen Z has cancelled leggings — here’s what they say to wear instead. Picture: Supplied

Fortunately, ageing fashionistas, our benevolent dictators have something new, all picked out, that they’re sure we’re going to love — yoga pants.

Well, that’s what Millennials called them, anyway.

To Gen Z, they’re “flared leggings.”

Millennial TikToker Hannah Brown, who calls herself a “hot girl anthropologist,” has repeatedly gone viral sourcing style advice from the “hot girls of TikTok,” an unofficial collection of young beauties who’ve helped make the sometimes controversial app Gen Z’s favourite social media site.

Gen Z has chosen and renamed a similar Millennial style to replace leggings: yoga pants, known to Gen Z as “flared leggings.” Picture: nardineataera

Last week, Brown posted a video showing herself leaving her house to run errands in Air Force Jordan lows, black leggings, a chunky knit sweater, and a tote bag asking “What are we wearing to run errands?”

The top response she got from Gen Z? We’re not wearing leggings anymore.

Instead, the couture-conscious commenters called for everyone to make the switch to yoga pants, or flared leggings.

Gen Zers can be seen typically styling the tight but comfortable bottoms with platform UGGs or Birkenstocks, a crew neck sweater, and delicate gold jewellery for the “holy combo”.

Leggings were the unofficial uniform of those born between 1981 and 1996. Picture: Supplied

But much like tight leggings, flared leggings can also be dressed up and styled to match nearly any occasion — that way, anyone can look good and feel good.

The biggest difference between the yoga pants of yore and today’s flared leggings is that Gen Z prefers to wear them in solid colours with a thin waistband, compared to Millennials, who purchased the pants in bright eccentric prints or in black with a thick waistband folded over with a pop of colour.

And yoga pants aren’t the only thing Gen Zers are remaking in their image.

They’ve been busy reviving a multitude of what they’re referring to as “Y2K trends,” some of which Millennials are actually excited about — slip dresses, popcorn shirts, and flip phones — and some not so much — micro miniskirts, over-plucked brows, and low-rise jeans.

Meanwhile, Gen Z’s tastemaking days could soon begin winding down, with the oldest Gen Alphas now hitting their high school years.

As one of the soon-to-be-older generations already noted, “We’re gonna be made fun of so bad.”

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission.