Scrunchies: Then and Now

The last thing the Internet needs is another throwback to 90′s memorabilia, but it was on a trip down powered-by-Buzzfeed memory lane that I stumbled across a photo of Cressida Bonas rocking a scrunchie so imperfectly perfect that it propelled me to bid the majority of my black elastic hairbands adieu.

The image left me on a wild goose chase, hunting down scrunchies and their muses. After about 60 sublime minutes of Pinterest-scouring, I had to metaphorically slap myself across the face and ask the question: what is it about the scrunchie that heats the loins as it does?

For close to two years, the fashion industry has been teasing the return of the scrunchie. After Cara Delevingne and Suki Waterhouse modeled for the label My Crazy Scrunchie, Vivienne Westwood commissioned the brand to design a few looks for her Spring/Summer runway show. And the Instagram account, #scrunchiesofinstagram, whose bio reads, “SCRUNCHTASTIC! Championing the return of the scrunchie, one scrunchie at a time” has close to 2,000 followers. Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Lisa Kudrow and, of course, Michelle Tanner, are just a few of the enigmas who have graced the account’s page.

There is sentimentality attached to the hair tie. When I reach for my fabric-covered elastic friend, I do so not only with the intention of tying half of my hair into a Samurai bun, but also in commemoration of all of my preteen friends who’ve paved the scrunchie path. Would I really be inclined to listen to Clarissa try and explain it all had she not been so effortlessly sporting her side pony/half bun galore? Probably not. And what about Napoleon Dynamite’s Deb?

Would the Bell have been Saved if not for Lisa, Kelly, and Jessie’s repeat offenses?

Let it be known, Olsen twins. We know where your hair has been.

No doubt scrunchies are on the brink of peaking again, but is this just another case of irony trumping earnest intention? Or are we on our way out of a minimalist renaissance, reaching for the protective, slightly experimental, and wholly playful bands of 80s lore?