You’ve Heard Of The Bubble Skirt — Now Meet The Bubble Short

Some fashion forecasters spend their entire careers tracking the movement of hemlines up and down the legs of fashionable women around the world. At this point, there’s no consensus to be had on if mini or maxi is in right now, but we can say with confidence that the bubble hem is not going anywhere. If anything, it’s gaining more power — and showing up on shorts.

The bubble short, also known as bloomers (and not diapers, thank you very much), is seeing a resurgence thanks to a few key designers. The short-shorts style was all over the Chloé Spring/Summer 2025 runway — one of the most influential houses du jour making bohemian happen for everyone from Charli XCX and Dua Lipa — were effective in muted colors like dusty grey and fuzzy peach. They’ve also been on the mood-board of many an influencer and stylish girlie thanks to designers like Charlie Beads, who’ve made bloomers their whole thing, leaning into the pajamas-everywhere ethos that inspired the style to take off.

Now, however, we’re seeing them more often, and also in a longer, Victorian-woman style. Colleen Allen is a New York-based designer and quickly becoming a celeb go-to for simple yet historically inspired garments that don’t feel as if they’ve been sitting in a wooden bin for centuries. Her fresh take on the bloomer is knee-length and feels of the milkmaid-lite moment, and will pair as effortlessly with a white blouse as they will with a baby ringer T-shirt and loads of gold jewelry.

Consider these the ultimate “comfy yet slightly dressed up” option. They’re a step up from your Soffe shorts thrown on to go down the street and grab an Electrolit after a heady Saturday night. But don’t be afraid to wear them in more formal settings like Emma Chamberlain did with all-black accessories, or PinkPantheress, whose Anglomania-indebted style surrounding her EP sees her in tartans and, yes, British soldier-style pantaloons. Call it period dressing, call them pajamas, just don’t be alarmed when you see more and more of them hitting the streets and trickling down to fashion retailers everywhere.