Y2K Disney Channel Layering is officially back

A sort of “everything but the kitchen sink” approach to dressing beloved by Disney Channel costume designers. Y2K Layers seemed to have no limit on the number of accessories or clothing items a girl could wear. Back then, I was only too happy to throw on several polo collar shirts, a bolero shrug, a ruffled miniskirt, flared jeans, a wide ring belt, huge statement jewelry, and a matching skinny scarf before skipping out the door to school. The sheer amount of material I had piled on my body should have exhausted me, but youthful exuberance carried me through, along with the joy of looking just like Ashley Tisdale and Miley Cyrus. Given my current obsession with ’90s minimalism, it’s hard to believe that I, or anyone else, ever wore so many layers—and yet here we are, with street style stars once again experimenting with unexpected combinations.

As a Millennial, this trend might be too close to home for me to overcome middle school memories and try dresses over pants again. But another fashion phrase that I’ve found to be true is “Never say never.” I once vowed to never wear low-rise jeans again, and yet I currently have three pairs of low-rise pants that I wear fairly regularly . In case I pluck up the courage to revisit the Y2K-era trend, I’ve put together a list of three style rules that might just be the saving grace in avoiding the pitfalls of our original layering experiments.