Why Y2K street style for plus-size bodies is a layered trend

With social media and popular culture playing a large part in perpetuating unrealistic body ideals, plus-sized individuals tend to get excluded from the fashion discourse

In a year marked with niche ‘trendcores’ whose popularity oscillates every month, Y2K fashion has emerged as an undeniable winner in 2022. Spurred by nostalgic appeal and a predictable trend cycle, baby tees, platform heels, crocheted garments, and mini skirts of the early 2000s are populating runways, red carpets and Instagram feeds once again.

While the sentimentality attached to these trends makes it an almost childlike, heart-warming connection, the return of Y2K fashion can be considered restrictive and fat-phobic, harking back to the regressive beauty standards of the time. In November last year, the New York Post published a story claiming that ‘heroin chic’ body types were back, referring to characteristically pale, skinny bodies that were glamourised in the early 2000s. An amalgamation of celebrity trends and media culture at the time meant that a lot of plus-sized, and even mid-sized, women were excluded from the fashion discourse that held thinness above all else, fostering growing body image issues.

“There are several factors that can affect one’s body image and related clinical conditions such as being bullied, societal expectations, social media and genetics. Media discourse definitely plays a significant role,” says  Anisha Jain, lead psychologist at Mindtemple. “Looking at ‘perfect’ skin, hair and sizes on social networking apps, magazines or OTT platforms can largely affect one’s social confidence.” And while media discourse is seen to be more inclusive today, in reality, not much seems to have changed in 2023.

Plus-size model and body-positivity influencer Neelakshi’s Instagram is proof of her experimental personal style, but she still feels trepidation when it comes to Y2K fashion, “There are so many Y2K trends that I feel were a horror even back in the early 2000s. I’m not generally afraid of trying something new, but with certain trends like low-waist jeans–because of my personal preference and with the worry of what people would say–I wouldn’t try them again.”

Influencer Prableen Kaur Bhomrah’s content is heavily underscored by messages of body positivity in 2023, something she herself would’ve shied away from while growing up, “I would avoid wearing anything that showed my skin because people called me fat and chubby.”

Is it fashion or is she skinny?

For plus-size women, adopting more experimental, skin-tight, or short fashion trends is usually accompanied by unwarranted comments on how those styles would suit them better if they just lost some weight. “If a size 6 or size 8 woman is wearing something, she looks amazing [in it] but if I wear the same thing, I’m told to cover myself up or layer it with something that gives me more modesty,” says Neelakshi.

This dichotomy still permeates popular culture. Take, for example, Selena Gomez being shamed for the slightest weight gain or Lizzo being criticised for wearing an outfit formula usually celebrated on a smaller frame. And women aren’t the only targets. Singer Sam Smith recently faced harsh criticism for sporting revealing outfits in their new music video. The outfits were bold and raunchy, and also the kind usually praised on someone skinnier, like Harry Styles. “Many of my clients share their feelings of inferiority, inadequacy, shame, fear of judgement and rejection, and their desire for the perfect body as projected in the media,” says Jain. “ Women worry about having ‘aunty-type bodies’ while men strive for muscular ones. They find it difficult to escape from the information overload.”

While celebrity culture and runways continue to exclude and, of late, tokenise bigger sizes, another aspect of fashion that has a glaring lack of representation is street-style photos. The uber cool caught-in-the-moment pictures showcasing personal styles during fashion weeks play a large role in catapulting trends to the forefront. But with a lack of larger bodies setting these trends, it’s difficult to normalise any bodies behind size 12 as fashionable.

“Whether it's fashion weeks or day-to-day video features, they don’t include plus-sized people,” says Neelakshi. “Even in the West, I don’t see much of a change. Plus-sized individuals aren’t seen as tastemakers or the ones setting a trend. We are instead seen as the followers because our body size is considered limiting. If I were to be spotted, it wouldn’t be in a piece someone has designed. It would be in something I've customised, and that would never be put on the front page.”

Shifting Narratives 

Plus-size creators on social media are, however, embracing their experimental style even at the risk of judgement. Recently, an article in Teen Vogue featuring a writer testing how plus-size friendly Bella Hadid’s style was, went viral, with people celebrating how inclusive Y2K-inspired street style could truly be. “There have been times where people tell me not to wear something because according to them, it’s not suitable to my body type,” says Bhomrah. “However, recently, for an award function I wore a bodycon dress and many people complimented me for breaking the stereotype and wearing what I wanted to.”

There’s also the fact that brands and designers are focussing on the plus-size segment and expanding the options available. Lavanya Aneja, founder of Lea Clothing Co, a brand offering trendy styles in sizes from XS to 5XL, believes that it’s important to listen and adapt your designs for a wide audience. “I think it's such an underserved segment that is often ignored but they're consumers with some serious buying power. A lot of brands just replicate European styles that are meant to flatter European bodies which are usually taller or not necessarily as curvy. I don’t think that works. We take a lot of feedback from our customers. A lot of our plus-size customers said they wanted sleeves because they felt conscious of their arms. Now almost all of our dresses and tops have the option of adding sleeves. A lot of people asked for longer line corset tops, so we introduced different lengths. In terms of what designers and brands can do, talk to your customers. Listen to the kind of problems they're facing and apply those to the design process.”

Aneja believes that including plus-sized bodies in campaigns and look-books is vital. “We feature a lot of plus-sized models in our campaigns and look-books and there have been some very harsh and nasty comments on social media,” she says. “While we usually defend our models, our customers hop into the conversation and start defending our choices, too. By starting that conversation, I think we were able to reach a lot more people and offer an alternative perspective that really rang true, especially with our plus-sized customers who have often said to us that they didn’t think they could wear a particular style until they saw it on someone that looked like them.”

While Y2K fashion may have a complicated relationship with fat-phobia and media culture has played a large part in perpetuating unrealistic body ideals, it is important to focus on perceptions. The crop tops and micro-minis aren’t inherently fat-phobic. “I think, over time, people have stopped narrowing down a certain trend to a certain body type,” says Bhomrah. “Whether it’s street style or something fancy, people of different body types have been open and accepted to wearing them. If it’s something you like and you’re comfortable in it, then you should definitely wear it and own it.” 

Y2K fashion, above all else, was an era of boldly accepting your personal style with trends like dresses over jeans, the skinniest scarves, and innumerable layers throwing fashion rules out the window. Then it only stands to reason that the acceptance must extend to include body types across the spectrum. So go ahead and wear the tiny low-waist skirt, and if you find yourself struggling to cope with the body image issues that accompany the Y2K style discourse, Jain suggests the following tips:

- A lot of time could be spent thinking about appearance, so it’s best to keep your mind occupied in constructive activities daily.

- Make a complete list of all the compliments you have received about your current appearance and read it daily.

- Surround yourself with people who are encouraging, appreciative and supportive of you in general and of your appearance.

- Catch your negative thinking patterns.

- Do a temporary social media detox. 

- Unfollow fashion accounts that trigger you. 

- Intentionally change the content that pops up on your page by searching for more positive information.

- Body Dysmorphic Disorder is a clinical problem and the person suffering from it must seek professional help to help relieve the anxiety and pervasive body image issues.

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