13 'Lizzie McGuire' Looks You Copied As A Pre-Teen

Any Millennial who once kept their television permanently glued on the Disney Channel probably hoped to embody the beloved Lizzie McGuire. True, she had the mother-load of pesky little brothers and the brattiest of bratty arch nemeses, but those snazzy Lizzie McGuire outfits were enough to make most of us envious; and enough to make most of us get our copy-cat hats on.

Lizzie was no stranger to crimped hair with accent braids, colorful bandanas, or embellished jeans. And she was hands-down the queen of over-accessorizing. Looking back, I have to question whether Hilary Duff was sometimes styled in the dark. There’s just no way any sane human could put together some of her highly-mismatched ensembles. What blows my mind, however, is the fact that I was all too eager to take a few sartorial notes from her getups. They were truly the epitome of early 2000s fashion, no matter how cringe-worthy they might seem now.

I'm not gonna lie here: I wasn’t one of the chosen ones who could actually pull off Lizzie’s aesthetic. That didn’t stop me from being inspired by her wardrobe, though. As popular as the show was, I know I wasn’t alone. Some of Duff's outfits were just too good to ignore, which is why many of us walked the school halls in knock-offs of these 13 Lizzie McGuire outfits.

1. Colorful Camo Anything

We know Duff's character was a sucker for camo (guess that made her a shoo-in for that Cadet Kelly role). Lizzie did it all: Colored camo, camo accessories, camo pants, you name it. That's what made her pseudo military fashion so easy to imitate.

It didn't matter how we tried to replicate the look, because our inner Lizzie's reminded us that there was no form of camo that was too bright or too blingy. Bonus points were awarded if you even coordinated your colored hair streaks with your camo á la Lizzie herself.

2. Matching Bandana & Faux Leather Jacket

Second to camo, Lizzie was known for her headwear. Her bandana-jacket coordination was way too spot-on for our struggling pre-teen selves to replicate perfectly, but we tried nonetheless. All we had to do was add a bandana to our ensembles and we were instantly Lizzie-ified. Unfortunately, most schools weren't as lenient as Lizzie's when it came to head gear. I was never actually allowed to rock a bandana inside the building.

3. Denim Jacket, Fringe Belt, & Colored Pants

Everything about this outfit was on-point, from the cut-off rockstar tee to the fringe belt to the embellished denim jacket. Sure, you weren't going to get away with an exposed midriff in school, but the rest of Lizzie's outfit was totally doable. I proudly rocked my my fringe Limited Too belt around my waist in all of its Lizzie McGuire-inspired glory.

4. Grungy Tie-Dye

Then there was the time Lizzie went all grunge on us. Being the loyal followers that we were, we made the change, too. Lizzie traded in her neon tie-dye tees for a much darker version to match her attitude.

Recreating her twisted, messy up-do was a breeze, considering we were obsessed with these kinds of hairstyles at the time. This was probably one of our best Lizzie looks yet — even if we didn't have the clip-on nose jewelry to make the outfit more authentic.

5. The "Best Dressed" Outfit

All hail the most memorable episode in Lizzie McGuire fashion history. I will never forget those $100 Style Shack jeans Lizzie was obsessed with in the "Best Dressed" episode of Season 2. Her outfit was definitely worthy of a yearbook superlative, and if there was any outfit to replicate, it was this one.

Choker? Check! Embellished jeans? Check! Crimped Hair? Check! If I have any advice for my younger self who wanted to recreate this look, it would be to throw on that fringe belt again, because why not have your outfit fully loaded with everything early 2000s?

6. The Backup "Best Dressed" Ensemble

Two minutes later in the same episode (remember that Lizzie's Style Shack pants were ruined with red slushie), Duff changed into the Bargain Basement jeans her mom bought. To say that this was hands down my fave Lizzie McGuire ensemble would be an understatement.

I never owned studded jeans quite like these, but I had a black denim pair with a lace-like embellishment going down both legs in similar fashion. I honestly wore the color off of those pants.

7. Feather Boa Jacket & Matching Flower

OK, maybe this wasn't a look we wanted to wear to school. However, we loved every minute of screen time the getup got. It was the first time we saw Lizzie super diva-ified. And can we talk about that feather boa trim and matching hairpiece? We felt like royalty when we played copy-cat with this look, even if we never left our bedrooms.

8. Graphic Tee With Matching Pants

The comic strip raglan tee Lizzie wore on her first day as an eighth grader was definitely a crowd-pleaser. This super matchy-matchy ensemble was pretty easy to recreate for school, given that she wasn't covered in head-to-toe accessories for once.

This outfit was so good that a "sevey" (that's Kate Sanders' slang for seventh grader) hopped on the dress-like-Lizzie-Mcguire bandwagon faster than we did. Through this look, Lizzie taught us that it's the little details that separate us from the outfit imitators. Notice how she added a safety pin to her collar slit, unlike this sevey.

9. Faded Denim & Ruffled Blouse

Ruffle sleeves and über faded jeans? This was an edgy but feminine combo that we could support. Lizzie rocked jeans faded on both sides in more than one episode, and made us want a pair, too. Of course, we knew to add a choker as the finishing touch.

10. Denim Skirt & Bell Sleeves

Many of us admired Lizzie's love for printed tops and flowing sleeves. I kid you not, I had a top almost identical to the one she sported here. I'm pretty sure it came from Limited Too, as did all things that were perfect for recreating Lizzie's coveted style. When she wore short denim skirts like this one, I got major Britney Spears vibes from her as well.

11. Embellished Button-Down

While I'm on the subject of short denim skirts, let's talk about the outfit Lizzie sported when she and Miranda shot a dance video with Gordo. This was Lizzie on a way more mature level: One encompassing a jeweled button-down with a denim skirt and black, heeled, knee-high boots. Looking back, it does seem a bit rodeo-ish, but that didn't stop us from going out and looking for an embellished top at the time.

12. Turtleneck & Plaid Skirt

Minus the kilt neededto complete this Scottish look that Lizzie wore in honor of a cultural school event, this outfit had young Millennial fashion written all over it. I can practically smell the Clueless vibes. With a plaid skirt already hanging in many a closet, we were well equipped to duplicate the outfit without any additional clothes-shopping needed.

13. Peasant Top & Jeans

Now that I look back on it, this final Lizzie look had Summer Roberts and Marissa Cooper written all over it. Although it was a pretty simple ensemble for the accessory-adorned, neon-loving Lizzie McGuire, it was perfect. I think we all had a couple of peasant tops in our school wardrobe rotations. Let's thank Lizzie for that.

You likely won't catch many folks trying to replicate Lizzie McGuire's super outdated style today. In retrospect, early 2000s fashion was embarrassing and borderline torture. But thanks to Lizzie's influence, many of us were some pretty fashion-forward kids for the times. Even if we have come to regret emulating her aesthetic now.

Images: Disney Channel Original Series (13)