The Haute Seat: 90s Faux-Pas

Christopher Lynn| Staff Writer 

All 90s and late-80s babies have reminisced on how great the 90s were, from the music, television, movies and most importantly, the fashion. All of these items blended together perfectly to create a cohesive look. The trends shown on television and movies were all the same. Maybe this was because most actors were rappers, or vice versa, but nonetheless, the fashion was consistently great. Well, for the most part.

Because of his role as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, when thinking about great 90s fashion, Will Smith is usually the first person who comes to mind.  I must admit, that at first glance Smith appears to be a good candidate, but when you really look at his 90s style, it is painfully obvious that he  had some real hit or miss moments. His collection of Jordans and snapbacks make him a poster-child for good 90s fashions, but those colorful prints on the other hand, don’t.

We all know the Fire Red and Metallic Jordan Vs that Smith had were at the time fire, and still today considered classic and iconic, but even they couldn’t rectify the Zubaz Pants trend that he so willingly embraced.

For those unfamiliar with Zubaz, they are tapered pants, similar to “ Hammer Pants,” with the outer part of the leg longer than the inner part. With an elastic waistband which allowed for greater flexibility and movement, Zubaz were almost always bright, flashy and just downright gaudy. The pants were originally created in a zebra print, but later began to be sold in almost any print imaginable. With the already eclectic style of his neon shirts and hats, Will Smith wearing Zubaz  pants often made him look like a Kaleidoscope Pauper instead of a Fresh Prince.

Not to be outshadowed by the men, the women of the 90s also held down their respective fashions. Along with The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Living Single was a great staple show in the 90s. Another rapper turned actor, Queen Latifah, was noted for her fashion. While Afrocentric clothing was a major hit with the Queen, chunky heels unfortunately were not. Chunky heels of the 90s were like the platforms of the 70, need I say more as to why they were a style faux-pas? Chunky heels were on everything: strapped shoes, pumps, boots, sneakers. There was no escaping them. With anything you wanted to wear, there was a chunky heel for that occasion. Not to say these shoes were limited to Living Single, but if I were to see a “prospect” wear these shoes, I’d be sure to leave them living single.