A Nostalgic Look Back at the 90s: The Good, the Bad, and the Cringey
If you want to support independent women’s media, becoming a subscriber can give you access to exclusive content, including podcasts, articles, videos, and our exercise app, MOVE. As we look back on the 90s, it’s clear that this decade has made a strong comeback in recent years, especially among Gen Z. From the fashion trends to the music, the 90s have been reimagined through a romanticised lens. However, as someone who lived through this era, there are certain aspects of the 90s that deserve a second glance.
The 90s Revival: A Double-Edged Sword
The 90s have become a cultural touchstone for many, with Gen Z embracing the fashion and aesthetics of the time. Baggy drawstring pants, boob tubes, and the iconic Carolin Bessette-Kennedy minimalism have all made a comeback. Yet, as a woman in her 40s, I feel compelled to share some less glamorous memories from this period.
10 Cringey ‘Crimes’ of the 90s
1. The Great Over Tweeze (Non-Existent Eyebrows)
Drew Barrymore goals. Starting in the middle of your eyeball, thinner the better. Image @drewbarrymore
In the 90s, eyebrows were not just a style choice—they were a statement. Drew Barrymore was the queen of the over-plucked eyebrow club, and we were her loyal subjects. The goal was to have eyebrows that looked like they were drawn on with a single stroke of an eyeliner pencil. Unfortunately, this trend had long-term consequences, with many women now relying on brow growth serums and pencils to make up for the damage done in 1997.
Annaliese (me) early noughties recovery mode and now: the front never properly grew back. Lots of tint and brow pencil required… Image: Supplied.
2. The Impulse Deodorant “Fog”
Spice up your life and overload your senses… Image: Impulse Fragrances.
In every girls’ locker room across the country, the air was filled with the scent of Impulse Body Spray. It wasn’t just a fragrance; it was a weapon. These sprays were used as a substitute for actual showering after PE class, resulting in a suffocating, floral-chemical fog that lingered for hours.
3. The Hypercolor Betrayal
My friend Lou living the Hypercolor dream/nightmare. Image: Supplied.
Hypercolor shirts were a phenomenon in the 90s, using thermochromic pigments that changed color with temperature. While the idea was intriguing, the reality was less appealing. In humid classrooms, these shirts would develop glowing neon patches under the armpits, making them more of a biohazard map than a fashion statement.
4. The Anti-Skip and Portable Discman Lie
ICYMI this is a Discman, a portable machine to play CDs (music). Image: Canva.
Portable CD players promised ’10-second anti-skip protection,’ but in reality, even a slight breeze or a step while walking could cause your music to stutter. To actually listen to a CD on the move, you had to carry the device like a hot bowl of soup, making it a high-maintenance experience.
5. The “Rachel” Haircut Aftermath
Instagram (the haircut on Rachel) vs Reality (me circa 1998 before a school dance). Image: Warner Bros TV/Supplied.
The Rachel haircut, popularized by Jennifer Aniston, was a high-maintenance nightmare. Unless you had a professional stylist following you 24/7, you just looked like you had a very shaggy, unmanageable helmet. It required professional styling skills and more product than a small pharmacy.
6. The Recorder: A Collective Auditory Assault
RIP the recorder. Image: Canva.
The recorder was a mandatory rite of passage in schools, but it was a disaster for everyone involved. It was loud, gross, and practically impossible to clean. After ten minutes of practice, the bottom of the instrument would inevitably start dripping moisture onto your sheet music or lap.
7. Sun-In, Lemons, and the Great Orange Awakening
“The best thing to happen to highlights since sunshine.” Image: Facebook: I love the 90s fanpage.
The 90s were obsessed with ‘natural highlights,’ but for teenagers with no money, Sun-In was the solution. This spray-on chemical cocktail promised sun-kissed hair but delivered a neon-orange hue with the texture of dried apricot. If you didn’t want to buy Sun-In, you turned to lemons, resulting in a sticky, citrus-soaked disaster.
8. The “Fat-Free” Delusion
Light, fat free and toxic (for your body image). Image: Click Americana
The 90s convinced us that if food had a “99% Fat-Free” sticker, it was basically a superfood. We filled our trolleys with rubbery, fat-free cheese slices and giant tubs of “diet” fruit yoghurt that were secretly 40 per cent sugar. This diet culture was not great for our body image.
9. Suburban Grunge
This was the ideal aesthetic: Kurt Cobain ‘Derelicte Chic’. Image: IG @about.a.son
In 1992, looking like you hadn’t seen a bar of soap in a week became the height of chic. We weren’t out there fighting the system; we were loitering in Westfield food courts wearing ‘designer’ flannel shirts tied around our waists and jeans so aggressively ripped and distressed they were practically structural hazards.
10. When the World Wide Web Was an Exercise in Patience
Life before we had Wi-Fi (and peace). Image: Canva.
Before high-speed Wi-Fi, going online was a planned event that required a level of patience modern humans simply no longer possess. We had a ‘family computer’ stationed in a dedicated room, and connecting meant enduring a series of high-pitched digital screams, static, and grinding noises.
Final Thoughts
While the 90s may look like a dream through a Lo-Fi filter, with Friends reruns, butterfly clips, and effortlessly cool slip dresses, some things are better left as a blurry memory in a dusty photo album. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a brow appointment to attend to try and fix what I did to myself in 1997.
