The zig zag parting is zig zagging across generational divides

A few weeks ago people of generation Z on TikTok decided that side partings were “old”, a judgement which caused millennials to, hilariously, lose their minds. Rather than remembering that teens have always thought anyone a few years ahead of them old, and have never thought anyone older than them remotely cool, many reacted in absolute outrage, taking it as a deeply personal grievance against their very character and moral fibre. Think-pieces were written. Diss videos were recorded. Crises were had. But it doesn’t need to be this way. Let’s forget generational divides and compromise. There is a middle ground where no one wins. It’s name is the zig zag parting and it's here to unite us. 

Zig zag partings were very popular in the 90s and early 2000s when the hairstyle was seen on the heads of Buffy characters and stars like Mandy Moore. Bridging the gap between the grunge 90s and icy noughties, it was both an alternative and wholesome look, a way for girls to show they were a little bit edgy without actually being edgy. “Why be straight and boring when you can be totally original?” reads a hair advice column in Sabrina’s Secrets magazine from the time. “With just a brush and a comb, you can create a zigzag parting just like mine – and give yourself a funky new hairstyle, too!”

More recently, the look has been picked up by the likes of Bella Hadid and BLACKPINK’s Jennie. With millennial nostalgia coming into full force and other early 90s hairstyles making a comeback (yes, I mean chunky highlights) it’s the perfect time for a zigzag parting revival. It’ll make millennials happy and it’s something different and new for gen Z. We’ve rounded up some of the best zig zag parting looks from then until now. See below.