This trend has spread recently, with pants flourishing above ankles and pooling about different shoes. We're talking about the flares, which GQ talks about. But why is this happening? You could blame it on a number of reasons. First of all, there's a universal retro nostalgia wherever you look. Then, you have designers showing them in their collections such as Gucci, Dior, and Louis Vuitton. And ultimately, there is an influence from Offset, a fashion icon member of the Migos. He has been wearing the style for quite some time now. Come to think of it, he has been ahead of the trend on multiple pants-related types.
Going to their fifth wedding anniversary dinner, Cardi complimented her husband wearing white leather trousers and a color-blocked corduroy letterman jacket. She also said that the white leather pants are the main focus of the outfit. But while Offset was wearing flares, this trend wasn't very popular yet and people still preferred skinny jeans. Difficult pants like flares have become a genuine trend in 2022, backed by Harry Styles who wore some retro Gucci, and Travis Scott wearing baggy-flared Dior pants. And that's not all. Leather pants are making a strong comeback. Enough with skinny jeans. Trends continue to improve and evolve, and who knows what comes next?
A little bit of history
According to Wikipedia, in the early 19th century, there wasn't a standardized uniform in the U.S. Navy but some sailors embraced a style of wide trousers ending in bell-shaped cuffs: the flares. In 1813, one of the first recorded descriptions of this type of pants says that sailors were wearing "glazed canvas hats with stiff brims, decked with streamers of ribbon, blue jackets buttoned loosely over waistcoats, and blue trousers with bell bottoms." - source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell-bottoms
What's more, the British Royal Navy has constantly been a leader in nautical fashion. However, bell-bottoms did not become part of the standard uniform until the mid-19th century: very wide-legged pants.