9 Basic Things to Leave Behind in 2017

We need basics in our closets and kitchens — we just don't want them in our social circles. To be basic is to be predictable and unremarkable. At best, basic is boring, and it's high time we take a break from it. Actually, let's be blunt: We're breaking up with basic in the New Year.

This doesn't mean 2017 will be free of Ugg boots, yoga pants, or pumpkin spice lattes — keep calm and carry on with those 2008 clichés as you please. We're bidding adieu to what's basic now — beginning with these 9 things. 

Whether you're nearly naked at home or all dolled up at the club, this type of pic has simply run its course. If you're that thirsty for likes in the loo, go ahead and post a Snapchat confessional from inside the stall.

Although this trend was all the rage in 2016, let's leave the rainbow tresses to Effie Trinket in the new year.

Once upon a time these could be considered slightly clever, but overuse and misappropriation have turned them into trying-too-hard textual blunders. So #unlessyoureChrissyTeigen or a legitimate social media superstar, please leave the trending topics to the professionals.

These reached peak popularity with mainstream celebs circa 2013, but we still see diamond dentures every now and again. It takes a specific type of person to rock a rhinestone retainer, and if you have to ask, you're probably not that person.

This was Miley Cyrus' thing a few years ago and has since lost its luster a bit. As Princess Elsa would say, let it GO.

Good friends and girl power are one thing, but can we cool it with the clique-bait?

If it's for a themed occasion, fine, but painting painstakingly intricate designs on for everyday life just seems a little…extra.

"Think before you ink" is a motto we should all live by. If that butterfly on your lower back actually has significance, then by all means, go for it. But if you're etching a teeny heart on your hip bone just for the shock factor of saying you got a tattoo, you might want to reconsider.

Because, really, what does basic even mean? It's a vague, catchall insult that's used to describe anything or anyone that's slightly irksome. We've overused basic to the point where its meaning—original and evolved—has been lost completely.

James Calls Lala a Basic Bitch

Remember when James Kennedy called Lala Kent a "basic bitch" on Vanderpump Rules? He was just upset when Lala, who was actually the mature one in this particular sitch, listened to Kristen rather than blindly trusting him. However, James' insult packed no punch: For one thing, Lala knows "for damn sure I'm not basic," and for another, it was empty. 

The point, basically, is that basic is no longer a bon mot. If you're going to be condescending, be clever and be specific. Not everything that falls outside your specific MO can be classified as basic — that's why we have our words, people.

If you've been using basic as a synonym for boring, know that there's still some value in having a so-called basic bitch at your table: She might not flip it, dance on it, or drink you under it, but she might be able to tell you who did for the reunion episode.