Is Comfort The New Normal?

Since COVID-19 hit everyone by surprise, the notion of getting ready for work seemed to disappear. As the many unexpected months of quarantine went on, comfy clothes, slippers, and even a matching sweatsuit seemed to be the best possible outfit of choice. 

As months went on, my family and I began to get tired of the same old thing and wanted a reason to get back into our favorite pair of jeans. I have always been the type of person to pick comfort over nice clothes, so if I wanted to get back into casual yet stylish clothes, something must be going wrong. 

Back on campus with classes starting to become less remote and more in person, the question arises, “Is comfort the new normal?” As we head into finals week, outfit choices for presentations are beginning to cross my mind. For my first presentation, I went with my favorite denim, a nice casual top, and of course gold jewelry. As I looked around my classroom, I noticed that other students presenting, mostly girls had the same monochrome outfit set. Whether it be light green, blue, or yellow, their sweatsuit was their comfy statement piece. Many girls paired their fit with tons of gold jewelry, to dress up the fact that they were wearing sweatpants, and of course white platform shoes. Noticing that this was a new trend that most girls were doing, I decided to ask my roommates what they think. 

They all agreed that since COVID-19 hit, dress for the everyday lifestyle has gotten more and more casual. This is very good news for me as I love a comfy look, but how comfortable is too comfortable? I love a good dress-up day every once and a while. As a young adult entering the workforce finding the balance between comfortable, yet professional clothes will be a challenge that I’m looking forward to. This has me thinking… will the COVID-19 fashion trends ever go away or will we be stuck in this slump for the long haul? 

• Comfort
• covid
• fashion
• sweatpants