Last weekend I met a friend while waiting in line at a club; we glued on 90's chokers. I'm not someone who typically waits in line outside a club - not because I'm a clubber who doesn't line up, but because I'm an introvert who bypasses clubs for a less flashy light environment. But there I was, wearing enough eye makeup to induce conjunctivitis and make the synthetic leather catch fire if the person next to me lit up a cigarette.
A girl walked past me (she was a club member who had bypassed the line) and pointed at my neck, then hers, making a cryptic gesture similar to a thumbs up. We all wear chokers, a '90s punk trend that slowly became a mainstream accessory in 2015. We had just enough time to discover she was wearing a metal chain style from Forever21 before she jumped off the velvet rope for me. . I told her that my necklace was Claire's, but we didn't have enough time for me to really engage in the passionate discussion about chokers that had been going on in my head for the past year.
I revisited the choker for the first time since 1998, the year before my night at the club. I know this because both nights were to celebrate the same friend's birthday, and last year, in that "3pm on Saturday and I don't know what to wear to a party in four hours" moment, I took the multiplication Take the subway to the city block where Zara, Urban Outfitters and H&M are located. I hurried through each store like I was a contestant on The Look for Less , except Elisabeth Hasselbeck popped up behind the racks to check on my progress. When I got home an hour later, I went through my belongings: I had an off-the-shoulder dress that was actually a shirt, a pair of faux leather pants, and a beaded necklace. It took me a long time to realize that the beaded necklace was actually a headband and trying to return it was futile as it was final sale.
ASOS '90s tattoo choker necklace, $7, asos.com
I didn’t want a headband, I wanted a necklace, and that’s how I fell in love with my first choker. I wore the headband around my neck, but it was too loose to be a necklace, so I cut it off and tied it in the back. It was tight, but not strangulating, so I rolled on it overnight. Since then, I’ve bought tons of headbands in all kinds of prints and fabrics, from leopard print and calfskin to woven mesh and gold beads. What’s the reason I keep coming back for more? Give it a run for your money, baby. Most of my purchases are Anthropologie headbands on sale for under $20, but I occasionally steal $10. If that's not cheap jewelry, I don't know what is.
The choker I wore that night wasn't a headband, but a classic mid-'90s style from the Spice Girls movie : a stretchy tattoo. I paid $7 for it and I thought it was a bargain until a second ago I saw something similar on eBay for $2. Like most of my fashion inspirations, I first saw street trends. More specifically, I was coming home from get off work and nearly tripped over two nine-year-old girls running down the street. I was too obsessed with their stretching tattoos to be lifeless. I confirmed with a teacher friend that yes , stretch tattoos are making a huge comeback in elementary schools. That's all I needed to know, so I went to the only place guaranteed to have it in stock: Claire's.
It was during my first foray into Claire's in the past 10 years that I purchased the third and most addictive choker style: the glitter tattoo. For the uninitiated, glitter tattoos are the best thing since sliced bread. They are jewelry-inspired temporary tattoos that often come in black and metallic colors. I'm not a pioneer in the world of glitter tattoos - Beyoncé wore them on a yacht, Vanessa Hudgens and Alessandra Ambrosio wore them in Cochrane This tattoo was also worn at the Coachella music festival. They are an alternative to permanent tattoos and an informal way to look like you're wearing tribal jewelry. They look cool, especially when worn on the upper arm. I'm partial to a glitter tattoo in the form of a necklace, though be warned it will require some heavy-duty scrubbing to come off.
If you needed further confirmation from the fashion world that chokers are a jewelry trend worth trying, look no further than the Dior Spring 2015 ready-to-wear show. In addition, Kate Moss is also a big fan of this choker. If that's not a draw, I don't know what is.
Photos: tigermarket83, e.xen, charliepriestleyxoxo/Instagram; ASOS; NeonRoseFashion, Vogue Magazine/Twitter
