It’s no secret that Gen Z has turned against the club. And while there are positives to prioritizing your mental health rather than binge drinking in dark rooms with sticky carpets every weekend, not all millennial traditions should be allowed to die out alongside their debauched ways. Take the going-out top, for example.
Sparkly, strappy, shimmery–the going-out top comes in many different guises. My favorite was always Keira Knightley’s German clubbing look in the 2002 film Bend It Like Beckham, but, as with certain lines from the film (“Jess, I’m Irish.”), I wasn’t sure it had stood the test of time.
Enter: Hailey Bieber. Introducing the throwback trifecta of sparkles, strappy heels, and denim to the anti-clubbing cohort, Bieber’s 29th birthday look was basically jeans and a nice top done right. Arguably the queen of clean girl minimalism, the Rhode mogul has been more associated with athleisure sets than Y2K throwbacks in recent years, but it seems the spirit of the aughts comes for us all eventually (a couple of plays of Alice Deejay’s “Better Off Alone (Club Mix)” is enough to transport anyone back to 2006).
Bieber’s Instagram post was another one to add to the birthday celebration moodboard—a more achievable, pared-back experience than her BFF Kendall Jenner’s 30th birthday trip to Mustique earlier this month, or Kylie Jenner’s arts and crafts extravaganza at the Calabasas compound earlier this year. Whether you’re leaning into “all eyes on me” birthday mode or are one of those “no fuss this year, please!” people, the going-out top will be a perfect choice for the occasion.