We might have learned how to dress ourselves from our mothers, but we learned how to style ourselves from TV. And, if you were a product of the '00s, you probably considered Lizzie McGuire an icon and have Hilary Duff to blame for one too many photos of yourself with crimped hair, camo tank tops, and triangle hair kerchiefs. Sure, it might be hard to believe that a pretty, blonde girl with more cool clothes than the entire inventory at Limited Too was the class dork, but so it was in Disney's world. The popular girls didn't get on that twisty bun thing until at least 2003 when McGuire fell in love with Paolo in Rome.
Quirky, colorful, and haphazardly awesome, Lizzie McGuire's style, and Duff's similarly ebullient off-duty wardrobe, inspired us to treat our clothes and accessories like art supplies. But, Duff recently stepped out to the opening night of The Elephant Man on Broadway wearing something that'd make Gordo do a double-take. With a camel coat, white blouse, black pencil skirt, and black pumps, the outfit is altogether chic, elegant, and sophisticated. Which is to say, not what our dreams are made of.
Don't take this the wrong way — Duff looks great. The ensemble is on-trend, super flattering, and powerful in the way that powder-blue camis would never be. It's naive to think that any 27-year-old would stick to the same wardrobe moves she was pulling 15 years ago, but seeing this star without at least one hair pom pom or peace-sign choker feels perverse. We guess that we've had fair warning all along that this was going to happen; "Goodbye, Lizzie McGuire. Hello, fabulous!" was incredibly prescient?