Bubble skirts: Fab or Fug?

Alright, I'll admit it. I can't STAND bubble skirts. I think they look sloppy and unfinished, and I think they make normal people who wear them-- we're not counting supermodels here, ladies-- look like a mix between a dowdy, drab prep schooler and a little girl in her grandmother's idea of Easter finery.



See the above pictures, courtesy of bluefly.com, and let me hear what you have to say. Pictured from left to right: a hideously green bubble dress that screams "80's Prom" in the worst way, even though Vera Wang is a talented designer; a cotton BCBGMaxAzria bubble skirt with black embroidered embellishments that might be bearable with a turtleneck and pointy slingbacks; and what looks to me like an unfinished nun's habit from Robert Rodriguez.

What is the appeal? Why are we still seeing them from runway to sidewalk? I'm hoping this trend is dying; I really am. I know, you say, "they've been around for decades!" and that's fine. If done right, they're not that terrible to look at. But hopefully, with Spring '08's new, more sleek styles, we're done with this trend and can bury it in the trend graveyard until it resurfaces again in a decade or two.

So what do you think about bubble skirts? Fab or Fug?

This has been The Redneck Fashionista, coming to you from the land where Jeff Foxworthy is king.