When the romper (or playsuit, or onesie, or whatever else you want to call it) started to make a comeback last year, my friends and I scoffed. Oversexed American Apparel models showed off velor strappy shorts-and-tank-top hybrids, and I thought to myself: dear God, this can not be happening.

Rompers are for the fashion weirdos, like Chloe Sevigny, but I feared they might start popping up on the general public as well. “You are not five years old”, I thought to myself. “You do not need a one-piece playsuit”.

Well, a year came and went, and now Spring is here and once again the romper is prevalent in stores such as Urban Outfitters and Brooklyn Industries. I popped into my favorite thrift store a few weekends ago with my best friend, and tucked in among the racks of dresses, I spied it: a red velor American Apparel romper. “I’m going to try this on, just to see how ridiculous it looks” I said, adding it to my pile of finds.

I tried it on and emerged from the dressing room, expecting my friend to burst into laughter. She didn’t.

“It’s…kind of cute, actually”. I had a look in the mirror. The shorts portion was way too short, but generally the concept made sense–it was like a dress, but without the awkward flashing risk. I imagined myself romping through fields, sun shining down on me and my onesie.

WHAT AM I DOING?! I stopped myself. YOU ARE NOT GOING TO BUY A ROMPER.

But buy a romper I did, consoling myself with the price ($8–I love my local thrift store!), and pretending I bought it as a kind of joke, like “look at how silly this is!”

A few days later, my best friend confided in me. “Sarah”, she said sheepishly, “I kind of want a romper”. Still, we couldn’t really get beyond the idea that rompers were silly–it’s like we wanted them for amusement value rather than actual functionality. We went to Urban Outfitters and tried on the same romper, laughing at ourselves in the mirror. But in our respective dressing rooms, we both thought the same thing: this is actually kind of cute.

She recently bought a sleeveless romper at Brooklyn Industries, and I’m actually considering buying one that can be worn outside my apartment (my red velor one is kind of like wearing hot pants…I wouldn’t even wear it to check the mail). Summer gets hot, and I get lazy–the romper is the perfect solution. You can stay cool without the fear of any Marylin Monroe undies-exposing moments, and there is no coordinating necessary: just put it on and go.

If you can get over the inherent silliness of it, I urge you to go buy a romper this season. And if you see two carefree girls romping around Prospect Park in Brooklyn this Summer, you’ll know who they are.