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50 Times People Who Went Through The ‘Blunder Years’ Phase Posted These Absolutely Hilarious Pics
Ah, to be a teenager again. We didn’t know what the fudge we were doing back then when it came to our clothes and our hairstyles. We were constantly moody, anxious, and looking for our ‘real selves’ (some of us never stopped searching). We were given a blank cheque to be as edgy and ‘unique’ as we liked… but our fashion sense really does come back to haunt us sometimes!
People are posting the funniest photos from people’s awkward childhoods on the aptly named ‘Blunder Years’ subreddit. The online group proves that we all go through some major ups and downs, twists, and loop-de-loops when it comes to our fashion identities. Sometimes, it really is just a phase, but the photos are here to stay. Remember to upvote your fave pictures as you’re scrolling down. Share these with your friends to get a giggle out of them. Oh, and you can find Bored Panda’s earlier posts about the hilariously brilliant r/blunderyears community right over here, as well as here.
We wanted to learn more about why teenagers want to be independent and stand out from the crowd, how not to be overwhelmed by peer pressure to follow trends, and how to stop being embarrassed by our old photos, so we reached out to the friendly and talented Lenore Skenazy. She is the president of Let Grow, the nonprofit promoting childhood independence, and the founder of the Free-Range Kids movement and she went in-depth with Bored Panda about all of our blunder years. Read on!
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Somehow Removed The Period Of Time That I Would Draw Glasses And A Smiley Face On My Face Every Day From My Memory
RELATED:
#2
Age 8 Or 9, Cosplaying As Marie Antoinette. I’m A Guy
#3
My Mom Calls This Photo A Family Heirloom Lol. 16 Yrs Ago, Me (F 13) And My BF (M 13) At The Olive Garden
#4
I Think I Was The Youngest Loan Shark In History
#5
Here I Am At Six Years Old, Going On 40, Looking Like I'm Ready To Do Your Taxes
#6
My Parents Kindly Supported My Peak Edgelord Phase
#7
This Is How I Showed To To University. I Wanted To Make A Statement. Apparently That Statement Was Cross The Street With Your Kids When I Come Walking Down The Sidewalks Oh Muggles...
#8
Anytime My Wife Sees This She Burst Out Laughing... I Thought I Looked Cool
#9
Me At 11-12 Trying To Look Too Cool For The Pirates Ride At Disneyland While Simultaneously Dressing Specifically For It
#10
I Call This Look “Christian Granny Goth” And It Was Pretty Bold For A 12 Year Old In 1995
#11
In 1987 I Permed My Mullet To Look More Like Patrick Swayze. I Ended Up Looking Like A Lesbian Biker
#12
Me And Friends Before A Disturbed Concert In 2006. We're So Cool Posing In Front Of Mom And The Van
#13
On The Left Is My Son Callum At 8 Years Old On Halloween. He Is Dressing As Eminem. On The Right Is Me At 8 Years Old. I Dressed As Steve Urkel. I Stand By My Choice
#14
Whilst Taking A Passport Photo I Was Told To 'Open My Eyes And Smile More'...
#15
Those Who Cannot Remember The Past Are Condemned To Repeat It
#16
Prom 2009, I Was A Sophmore In High School And I Took School Dances A Litte Too Seriously. Also I Didn't Have A Date
#17
Me, Circa 1991. My Mom Let Me Get The Laser Background. I Am So Proud Of This Pic!
#18
I Was Like 9 And I Got A Little Obsessed With The Hippie Aesthetic
#19
When You Go For The Kurt Cobain But End Up Getting Called “Mmm Bop”
#20
I Don't Even Know What Happened In 6th Grade
#21
My Dad Found My 2011 High School Id Card In His Closet Today
#22
Good Ol' Facebook Reminding Me Of How Cringey I Was In Highschool. Hot Pink Fishnets Stuffed With Grass
#23
Playing In An Irish Folk Band 2002, At 15 Or 16 For The Queen's Golden Jubilee Celebrations In The Local Rec Of My Hometown. I Went On To Say "God Save The Queen And Her Fascist Regime" Down The Mic. The Violinists Parents Went Mental At Me
#24
Tbh, I Am Not Even Ashamed Of 2001 Me. I Miss Her
#25
I Wasn’t Very Popular At Catholic Youth Group
#26
I Liked Turtles Before It Was Cool
#27
At 16 I Was A Seasonal Employee At Hot Topic. I Got 3 Hours A Week And Spent More With My 20% Discount Than I Made
#28
Halloween 1998 When I Thought Dressing As A Giant Milkbone Would Make Dogs Like Me
#29
98 vs. 2020 I’m Still 100% Skateboarder
#30
I Lived Nowhere Near Cows Or A Farm
#31
My Best Friend Wanted Me To Show Off This Beaut To This Subreddit, Dated 15 Years Back. Our College Dayz.. To Answer Your Question, Yes She Had An Assortment Of Bob Marley Posters In Her Dorm Room And Yes Her Parents Gave Her A Full Ride To Pursue An Art Degree
#32
13-14 Year Old Me During My "Eminem Phase". That's A Hairbrush Hanging From My Lamp And All Of My Pictures From That Time Are Made Black And Grey With Gimp. Good Times
#33
My Friends Daughter Found Me In Our Junior High Year Book. And They Laughed, And Laughed...
Dynein 5 years ago
Nah, this is super tame. Yes the fashion is dated, and you tried a bit too hard to emulate adult styles while still partly dressing like a child- but that's pretty normal; and you apparently avoided the embarrassing phase of trying to be so different and clearly BETTER than dull average people. Moreover, your style actually suited you! Not everyone can claim that for their teenage self. But the makeup and hair go well together and well with your face - honestly you look kinda cute.
#34
1972 Calm Down Ladies, A Fine Woman Married This 20 Years Later
#35
My Mom And I On Christmas... Around 2010
#36
My Kindergardern School Pic. My Mom Asked Why I Didn't Smile I Said " I Was Embarrassed To." 5 Y/O Logic
Ryan Deschanel 5 years ago
And nobody ever saw his mother again... which is totally justified.
#37
My Sister And I Had These Shirts Custom Made In Middle School. Yes We Also Used To Cut Our Own Hair
#38
This Was Me At 16... I’m A Dude
#40
In Case You Couldn’t Tell, I Was Really Cool In High School
#41
Had A Blonde Mohawk, Cut The Rest Of My Hair, But Still Wanted Bangs. Behold
#42
First Day Of 5th Grade, Looking Like I Walked Out Of A Limited Too Catalog
#43
15 Years Ago We Called Our Senior Photos, "Senior Sweeties". I Only Had 75 Of These Bad Boys Printed And I Thought They Were Lost Forever After I Handed Them Out Like Trading Cards. But One Of My Friends Sent Me This Picture The Other Day. This May Be The Last Smgulz Senior Sweeite In The Wild...
#44
My Boyfriend Rawring Hard In The 8th Grade
#45
I Know A Lot Of Us Went Through A Goth Phase. Here’s A Few Of My Goth/Jrock Phase In Highschool, Was 1 Of 3 Goth Kids At My School, Circa 2005-2007
#46
My Actual Senior Photo, Yes That Is A Real Sword I Worked For A Year To Buy
#47
Me (On The Left) With A Friend And My Manager From Hot Topic At The Mall In 2009 Lmao
#48
Highschool, 2011. Why Yes, I Did Own A $15 Butterfly Knife. How Did You Guess?
#49
The Year Is 2006, My Dad Found This Fly Ass Shirt At Walmart And I'm Ready To Get Down At The Middle School Dance
#50
This Picture Haunts Me Every Year On This Date. Got My Drivers License Though (2009 vs. 2019)
#51
I Asked My Mom To Take A Picture Of Me With All My Pokemon. (2000)
#52
Back From 2007, We Are Now Married With A 2 Month Old Daughter
#53
I Present To You My First Grade School Picture Complete With Lazy Eye And Granny Glasses. The Beginning Of My Awkward Years
#54
Me Off To School In The Early 80s. My Mother Cut My Hair. I Thought It Looked “Smarter” To Pull Your Pants Up High
#55
Found My Ninth Grade School Photo And It Turns Out I'd Repressed Ever Having That Haircut
#56
It’s Not A Phase Mom! Narrator: It Was Indeed, A Phase. Sometime Around 2006
#57
This Was My First Profile Picture On Myspace In 2008
#58
I Was Straight Drippin
#59
I Wore Vampire Teeth Every Day Year Round (17)
#60
My Mom Was A Middle Aged Secretary At Age 7
#61
Me, Looking Like A Second Grade Spinster
#62
Me In The Late 80's... So Edgy
#63
Man I Was Weird
#64
Tractor Punk Goth In Germany 1990 Edition
#65
I... Oh Boy. I've Thought About This Picture Ever Since I Joined The Sub And Today It Came Up On My Facebook Memories
#66
Are You There God? It's Me, Mullet
#67
That Time Mom Let Me Dress Myself On Thanksgiving
#68
My Now Husband And Me Circa 2004, A Year Or Two Before We Would Meet
#69
2010 When My Boyfriend Broke Up With Me On Xmas For My Friend Lmao I Was 13
#70
My Middle School Held A “Dress Badly” Day. While The Blunder Was Intentional, I Got The Date Wrong. 2006
#71
Tamagotchis: The Fashion Statement Piece You Never Knew You Needed
#72
When You Want To Hoola And Bazinga At The Same Time. Me At 15 (2013)
#73
2004 And If I Had To Do It All Over Again I Would. No Regrets
#74
Looking Bad In A Playground Before A Motley Crue Concert, 2007
#75
It Just Kept Getting Worse. I'm 14 Here
#76
"It's Not A Phase Mom, We Will Be Juggalettes For Life" 2006 Edition
#77
July, 2005 - My Okcupid Profile Picture Really Captured My Intellectual Ability To Think Critically
#78
Me At The Twilight Gift Shop
#79
I Worked As A Dancing Fish Outside Of An Aquarium Store For A Little Bit As A Teenager. I Thought It Was The Coolest Job Ever
#80
My Mom Made A Creative Decision For The Nude Shade Of My Tights
#81
A Christmas Blunder From When I Insisted We Bring Our Cat To The “Dogs-Only” Holiday Photo Session At Our Vet Because I Felt They Were Being Discriminatory Against Felines. Shout Out To Santa’s Blank, Dead Eyed Stare
#82
Felt Cute Did Not Delete Ever
#83
My 15th Birthday Party Was Old Hollywood Themed
#84
Every Year My Mom Would Photoshop My Valentines Cards For Me To Hand Out In School. (Circa 2003)
#85
I Wore A Tuxedo T-Shirt And A Flat Billed Hat To My Senior Prom. Yikes
#86
This Was A Classic Look For Me In 98
#87
My Best Friend And I (Right) In 2004 Having A Photo Op After Shooting Our First Back Street Boys Music Video. We’re Both Girls
#88
In 1990, I Was A 17 Yr Old Kid From Omaha Nebraska That Wanted Nothing More Than To Be A Socal Surfer Dude. Kowabunga Dude
#89
My Senior Picture As I Thought "I'm Not Spending Money On This Give Me A Camera" 2015
#90
At 15, I Thought If I Shaved My Eyebrows Off It Would Be Easier To Make Them Symmetrical. For This Heinous Act, I Am Sorry
#91
I’m In The Orange Hat Flipping Everyone Off
#92
My Family Photo -1990. The Transition From 80s To 90s Was Interesting. I’m The One In The Back, Age 10
#93
At My School This Tan Line Was A Status Symbol
#94
I Was 14 And Had Behavioral Issues After My Dad Passed, My Mom Tried To Solve Them By Taking Me On A Tour Of The Castles Used In The Harry Potter Movies. I Refused To Look At The Camera B/C I Thought It Was Cool To Have A Distant Stare. Bonus Pooka Shell Necklace
#95
Really Captures My 16 Year Old Self- Trying To Be Wistful And Lovely But Ending Up A 10/10 Awkward
#96
Apparently I Was Such A Huge Fan Of The Movie The Crow, That I Decided To Do My First Cosplay. I Was 6 Years Old
#97
Thought I Looked Like Some 70ties Folksinger
#98
My 2003 High School Senior Picture!
#99
Me, Age 14/15, Leaving A Catholic Convention Looking Like I'm About To Join The Amish Army
#101
My Wife’s Grade 3 Picture. Back When The Toni Perm Was In Fashion. Just Before The Picture Was Taken She Added The Hair Clip Because She Thought It Made Her Look Pretty
#102
I Really Thought I Was Doing Something With This Look For My Year 7 Disco
#103
Edward Cullen And Hannah Montana For Spirit Day ‘09
#105
Grade 8 School Photo. 2006. Age 13. I Got A Mohawk Like A Week After This Was Taken. I Wanted To Fit In So Badly, I Failed Horribly Lol
#106
I Was Going To Explain This Photo, But I Think I'll Just Let It Open To Interpretation
#107
2005 - Year 12 Formal. Ill-Fitting Suit, Terrible Square Shoes, Wallace And Gromit Tie And Smug Af Look On My Face
#109
We Invented Drip Back In 03’
Julia Atkinson 5 years ago
It took me several seconds to realize that the girl on the left didn't have weird caterpillar eyebrows
#110
Ahh, The Magic Of Middle School
#112
The Absolute Trainwreck™ (2008, 17 Years Young)
#113
The Difference A Decade Can Make
#114
Bieber Hair, Double Hollister Shirt, Always Some Kind Of Leather Necklace. Circa 2010
Shay Gosnell 5 years ago
ya know this weirdly looks like every single guy at my high school lmao
#115
Surprisingly, My High School Crush Was Not Impressed By My Hair And Makeup Skills (Update Pic At The End)
#116
Best Man At 15, Too Nervous To Give A Speech But At Least I Had A Skinny Bow Tie With Matching Cummerbund
#117
I'm Surprised I Wasn't Bullied For Looking Like This During Middle School
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What do you think ?
NMN 5 years ago
And careful when following trends, the results can appear here in a decade or so. So just be yourself, not a trend, not a statement, just you
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Teucer T 5 years ago
ROFL... NO... I'm not showing photos of me as a tern... I'll just say 1980 and leave it at that
Salty Old Woman 5 years ago
Some of the pics are funny/bad, but most have nothing wrong with them. Some of them have things like crossed eyes or headgear (mentioned in the captions), which is just making fun of yourself for a medical issue, and I'm not sure how I feel about that.
NMN 5 years ago
And careful when following trends, the results can appear here in a decade or so. So just be yourself, not a trend, not a statement, just you
Load More Replies... Teucer T 5 years ago
ROFL... NO... I'm not showing photos of me as a tern... I'll just say 1980 and leave it at that
Salty Old Woman 5 years ago
Some of the pics are funny/bad, but most have nothing wrong with them. Some of them have things like crossed eyes or headgear (mentioned in the captions), which is just making fun of yourself for a medical issue, and I'm not sure how I feel about that.
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