Was 2020 The Death Of Althleisure?
By: xxx Published: d/m/Y
If someone told us pre-pandemic that we’d one day be sick and tired of everything cozy and too comfortable, would you believe me? It’s like when you were a child and just wanted to be a grown-up and all adults you spoke to about this said stay young for as long as you can, all adults do is pay bills and try to squeeze stuff into your schedule even though it’s already full. Was it just me? OK.
I could not help but wonder… Will 2020 be the death of athleisure?
Fashion is too good at playing the opposite game. For years and years it was all about skinny jeans and two seasons later, everyone is suddenly wearing ’mom jeans’ (but it was really when the dad jeans entered that the skinny jeans go buried for good). This tells us that in the opinion of fashion when the cup has runneth over, the glass is not only half full, it’s a full-on flood.
I first got to know athleisure via the Danes. Sneakers with fancy dresses were all you needed to make people raise eyebrows. Like, how could one destroy a cute dress like that with dressed-down kicks?
It was outrageous. Let’s just say it escalated quickly from there. Yoga pants became the new jeans and biker shorts turned into a religion. Kim Kardashian (or her stylist depending on how you see it) and her sister proved to the world that baggy sweatpants and hoodies can be just as dressed-up as a tailored suit.
This was until lycra trousers and co-ord grey sweat sets became our only option in the morning. Sure, at first it was all fun and games. Now, almost 11 months later, the honeymoon is over. I miss seeing people in clothes that aren’t melange. I miss seeing people making an effort for each other and for themselves. I miss giving people compliments not based on how comfy their outfit looks.
As we entered lockdown part two and three in large parts of the world, I have noticed an absence of positive posts on social media about how dreamy it is to wear sweatpants 7 days a week. And even though leisurewear is peaking in sales as fuck right now, I just have to ask –are people buying it out of joy or because they wore out their last co-ord sweat set this spring?
I loved wearing yoga pants with long faux furs and one summer two years ago I actually did swear on biker shorts but now I am tired. I am tired of acting like I am dressing up a sweatsuit to make everyday life glamorous. Can sweatpants and hoodie just be allowed to be sweatpants and hoodies? Not fashionable sets you need in every color with every logo visible on.
So, will I quit wearing sweatshirts and track pants? I doubt it. But I am quitting dressing it up.
Khaki green sweat set by Pangaia (1 product sold=3 trees planted, protected or restored which means this set helped 6 trees how cool is that) and heeled loafers by ATP Atelier.