This Y2K trend is popping back around.
Popcorn tops, the questionable shrunken, but ultra-stretchy clothing from the early aughts, are back in style amid a revival of other polarizing trends from the 2000s, like low-rise jeans and micro miniskirts.
Also called a bubble top or scrunchie shirt, popcorn shirts — a fad once considered a must-have for millennials shopping at the mall — are made from drastically puckered fabric that never wrinkles.
At first glance, the tops appear to be sized for a toddler and can be balled up into a fist, but they’re actually stretchy enough to expand to fit adults.
Celebs such as Katy Perry and Dua Lipa have seemingly embraced the popcorn top trend and it’s trickled its way onto social media, too. Videos of people seeing popcorn shirts for the first time and trying them on have a combined 10.1 billion views on TikTok with mixed reviews of the look.
New York commercial and personal fashion stylist Liz Teich told The Post that she noticed a popcorn shirt in the closet of one of her Gen Z clients.
“It looks unlike anything else,” the creator of the New York Stylist said. “It’s obviously a distinct style.”
Teich credited its popularity to the fact that the popcorn pieces are easier to wear since one size fits most, are very comfortable and also makes a look interesting. Plus, they’re affordable, like Zara’s $30 wrinkled relief crop top.
“It’s something that works on almost everybody, so I think that’s why it’s become popular again,” she noted. “The reason for the comeback could be that they’re fairly inclusive and one size fits most. They also look expensive because of the details but they’re made out of polyester so they’re easy to replicate cheaply.”
Millennials, though, are largely divided between reminiscing about items they wore in their youth and cringing, while Gen Z is simply shocked by how much the fabric can stretch.
Stylist Mh’ya Mclean, 24, went viral last week when she posted a TikTok trying on her popcorn purchase.
The English fashionista stunned viewers when she showed off the shriveled shirt — about as big as its tags — in a size medium. She also compares the piece to her hand and a candle to reiterate how tiny the top is.
“I was definitely shocked, I didn’t expect it to come looking as it did,” the stylist told NeedToKnow.
“I did find the humor in it as I knew it would stretch, but I had no clue how much.”
TikTok viewers also found the wrinkled-up shirt comical. “I thought this was a jumper for a dog,” one viewer commented.
“I ordered that for my hamster, I think they messed up our packages,” joked someone else.
But Mclean’s 8.8 million viewers were astounded when she revealed its stretching capabilities and were even more shocked at a follow-up video of her strutting down the street in the look.
“There is no way this is the same thing,” @orinushh replied in shock.
But those who have been around the block with their Walkmans knew what to expect.
“I’m shocked by the amount of people who don’t know these shirts have been around for 30 years,” @mariahkalei commented.
Bubble blouses were popularized in the 2000s as part of the bright and fun fashion in shows such as “Lizzie McGuire” and sold at popular retailer Limited Too. But now, the notoriously stretchy shirt has bubbled back into the zeitgeist on runways and the backs of celebs, too.
Vogue predicted the shirt’s comeback in late 2021 when the fun fabric was spotted as part of Spring 2022 collections at fashion week from adventurous labels including Marine Serre and Chet Lo.
“I saw them being sold in CVS once, so it’s wild to see it on the runways and trickle down to mainstream again,” Teich told The Post.
Average shoppers and style aficionados on TikTok are clamoring for the $30 top at Zara, but popcorn shirts can range from $4 on eBay to $800 by French designer Marine Serre.
The style has been picked up by fashionable A-list celebrities, including Katy Perry, who posed for Instagram in a shocking cobalt blue popcorn dress.
Dua Lipa also modeled a periwinkle ensemble, including a matching cropped halter, cutout skirt and fingerless gloves.
Even Machine Gun Kelly took the trend for a run with a long sleeve pink and blue popcorn shirt for the premiere of his Hulu documentary “Life in Pink.”
But not everyone is bubbling with excitement for this trend.
“While the Y2K look is a fun one, it certainly isn’t a top choice for a wide variety of consumers — it can often feel a bit too young or lend itself better to more casual dressing opportunities,” New York fashion consultant and trend forecaster Kendall Becker told The Post.
Popcorn tops are just one trend embraced by TikTok-obsessed Gen Z as they rediscover previous decades’ trends — many of which have been pushed to the back of Millennials’ closets.
“People are always going to love what was once loved in the past,” wardrobe stylist and costumer Alia Simone, who worked on “Coming to America 2” and is Eddie Murphy’s personal shopper, told The Post.
“Even though some styles from our past give us the ‘ick,’ it’s amazing to see how trends always come back around — it’s honestly always just a matter of time.”
