Not The Gauchos

No, no, noooooooooooooooooo! It can’t be true!

I have just breezed through MSN’s preview of upcoming fall fashions and to my horror I have witnessed the impending return of the gaucho pants! These half-pants, half-skirts should be in the fashion hall of shame, not back on the runways. Gawd. One of the best blink-and-you’ll-miss-it, low-key exchanges in one of my favourite chick flicks, Never Been Kissed, involves a throw-away little conversation between Josie (Drew Barrymore) and her brother Robert (David Arquette). Robert asks the nerdy Josie, “What is that you’re wearing?” And she responds, “They’re gaucho pants. I got them on sale.”

That’s the sinister little secret behind gaucho pants, or culottes. They hang on a rack forever, until they’re finally marked down and then some poor budget conscious soul scoops them up and … well, frankly, looks ridiculous for the rest of the season. I’m old enough to have seen several fashion trends come around a second time, but this is one I thought had been eradicated from stores for good. Beware. Gauchos and culottes are coming for you.