Kim Kardashian Rocked A Bikini At The Beach, But Her Look Was More About Bringing Back The Y2K Belly Chain Trend (2024)

Fans hoping that Kim Kardashian and her sisters would treat us to another summer of sizzling black bikini looks haven’t been disappointed, with Kylie Jenner kicking the trend off early and Khloé Kardashian following suit. Of course Kim Kardashian has been peaco*cking in her own XS swimwear, but her latest post appears to be less about the bikini and more about her belly chain. I mean, who doesn’t love the reappearance of a good Y2K trend?

In one of her latest Instagram posts, Kim Kardashian cropped her head and legs out of the photo, showing off just her outfit (and supremely sculpted body), as she was practically busting out of her tortilla chip-sized top. Prominently featured in the pic are two silver chains around her waist, with miniature cross charms resting atop the reality star’s stomach. Check out the look:

The belly chain trend has come to be associated with early 2000s fashion, gaining popularity when celebrities and Millennial civilians alike adorned the jewelry around their waists in order to draw attention to their small figures and toned abs. Kim Kardashian certainly gets the job done here, and while her outfits do often accentuate her snatched waist, seeing the dainty chain rest casually on her hips really drives her point home.

If this black bikini-and-belly chain look seems familiar to you, don’t worry, it’s probably not a flashback to your fashion choices of decades past. This combination appears to be the same look Kim Kardashian sported back in April when she called herself a “cake boss” and had sister Khloé dying over the “thirsty caption.” While the previous pics may have been celebrating the cake, this one seems to draw more attention to the accessories.

Belly chains started to come back into the forefront last year, with celebrities like Lori Harvey sporting one with her side cutout dress at the Revolve Festival. Kim Kardashian, as well, made sure she included a waist chain to complement her cobalt blue crop top at a benefit last May.

As things tend to go in the fashion world, trends that were popular in previous eras eventually come back around, and we’ve definitely seen some of the aughts' fashion tendencies creeping back in over the past couple of years. Megan Fox proved in 2022 that maybe Gen Z was too quick to reject the side-part, and more recently we’ve been seeing another somewhat divisive trend get some play.

Both Gigi Hadid and Kaia Gerber have been photographed recently sporting dresses over pants. Remember when that was a thing? Pants with dresses or skirts requires quite a bit more clothing than the similarly controversial pants-free movement, and it seems to be counteractive to what the belly chain aims to accomplish by hiding the figure more than flaunting it.

Fashion doesn’t always make sense, but if you’re following Kim Kardashian’s advice, it doesn’t have to, as long as it makes you feel comfortable in your own skin. If you want to see more of the SKIMS boss in her own skin, The Kardashians Season 5 can be streamed from anywhere. New episodes are available each Thursday with a Hulu subscription, and be sure to see what other shows are premiering soon with our 2024 TV schedule.