12 Hairstyles From the 1990s Everyone Regrets

Here's a nostalgic look at the hair trends of the 1990s that once ruled the decade but now make everyone cringe.

Alyana Aguja
November 14, 2025
5 min read

12 Hairstyles From the 1990s Everyone Regrets — Tamara Bellis from Unsplash

The 1990s were a wild time for fashion and beauty, and hairstyles were no exception. From the bowl cut to frosted tips, every trend reflected the decade’s bold experimentation and pop culture excess. Though some have seen ironic revivals, most of these styles remind us that what once seemed cool doesn’t always age well.

1. 1. The Bowl Cut

Every ‘90s kid remembers this one, usually inflicted upon them by a parent with a kitchen scissor and misplaced confidence. The bowl cut was exactly what it sounded like — a blunt, even cut that made your head look like it was wearing a helmet. It was simple, symmetrical, and, unfortunately, universally unflattering.

2. 2. Frosted Tips

There was a time when dipping the ends of your hair in bleach seemed cool, thanks to boy bands like *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys. The look featured spiky, gelled hair with bright blond tips contrasting darker roots. It screamed “Y2K cool,” but in hindsight, it looks more like a hair mishap. What made it worse was the crispy, crunchy texture from gallons of hair gel keeping those spikes upright.

3. 3. Crimped Hair

Crimping irons were a must-have for every teenage girl who wanted to add texture and volume. The result was a zigzag pattern that looked halfway between a lion’s mane and static electricity. Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera wore it proudly, turning the look into a pop culture staple. However, when the trend faded, many realized it made their hair look more fried than fabulous.

4. 4. The Rachel

Inspired by Jennifer Aniston’s Friends character, “The Rachel” was the haircut that launched a thousand salon requests. It featured layered, face-framing strands with heavy blowout volume that was high-maintenance and impossible to replicate at home. While it looked great on Aniston, it didn’t suit everyone’s hair type.

5. 5. Spiky Hair

For guys in the ‘90s, the higher the spikes, the cooler you were. This look relied heavily on hair gel that could double as industrial glue. Celebrities like Mark McGrath and early 2000s boy bands pushed the look into overdrive. Sadly, the stiff, unnatural spikes aged terribly, making photos from that era a painful reminder of how far men’s grooming has come.

6. 6. Butterfly Clips Overload

Every girl had a drawer full of colorful butterfly clips, and the more you piled on, the better. They were meant to hold back tiny sections of hair in symmetrical patterns that looked cute at first glance. However, too many clips made their head look like a craft project gone wrong. Even though they’ve made a slight comeback today, the ‘90s version was chaotic and over-accessorized.

7. 7. The Mullet

The infamous “business in the front, party in the back” haircut somehow persisted well into the 1990s. Worn by everyone from Billy Ray Cyrus to amateur athletes, it was equal parts rebellious and ridiculous. The look tried to blend professionalism with edge but failed spectacularly. It became one of the most mocked hairstyles in history and a symbol of questionable taste.

8. 8. Chunky Highlights

Forget the soft balayage of today — chunky highlights were thick, bold stripes of color. Often bleached blonde or copper, these harsh streaks stood out against darker hair in the worst way. Christina Aguilera and Kelly Clarkson were major influences for this trend. Over time, people realized that subtlety was key to hair color, and the chunky phase mercifully died out.

9. 9. The Zigzag Part

Nothing said “I read Teen Beat magazine” like a zigzag part in your hair. It was quirky, fun, and seemed creative — until everyone had one. The jagged parting was done with a fine-tooth comb and looked like a maze on your scalp. What started as edgy quickly became overdone and awkward, especially when paired with heavy glitter gel.

10. 10. Cornrows on Non-Black Celebrities

In the late 1990s, several white pop stars and actors experimented with cornrows, mistaking cultural appropriation for style. Stars like Justin Timberlake and Gwen Stefani sported them, often without understanding their cultural roots. The look was met with fascination at first but later drew deserved criticism. Looking back, it’s a reminder of how trends can cross lines that shouldn’t be crossed.

11. 11. The Mushroom Cut

Similar to the bowl cut but with a more rounded silhouette, the mushroom cut was the bane of many boys’ existence. It ballooned around the head and sat flat at the top, creating a shape that defied logic and gravity. The look tried to seem futuristic but ended up cartoonish instead. Whether you were in a boy band or just in a school photo, it’s one style everyone wished had stayed in the ‘90s.

12. 12. Flat-Ironed Stick-Straight Hair

For teenage girls, perfectly straight hair was the ultimate goal, no matter how much heat damage it caused. The obsession with ultra-flat strands meant spending hours with an iron, sometimes literally a clothing iron, before flat irons were popular. The look was sleek but lifeless, making hair appear brittle and dull. What was once considered effortlessly cool now looks painfully overdone.