1990s

The  1990s  was a decade that saw the invention and growth of the web, dominated by independent websites, as well as nascent silos like Geocities, with a particular brightly colored aesthetic that would come to define the era like under construction graphics, dancing animals, site counters, ornate backgrounds, and guest books.

Why
Aesthetics from the 1990s, especially on websites, are a popular form of nostalgia that harken back to when the web was much quirkier, weirder, and more diverse, across a plethora of independent sites exploring a new medium without strict rules or expectations.

IndieWeb Examples

 * archived the version of his website that was online from 1999-2003 at http://2003.aaronparecki.com

https://astrid.tech/banner-88x31.gif
 * has a funky 90s-style 88x31 banner of her site.
 * has found some sites she developed in the 1990s preserved on the Internet Archive:
 * Curtain Up! Community Theater
 * Riverside High School Junior Classical League/Latin Club
 * personal site on Geocities
 * Kimberly's Piggy Page on Angelfire
 * undefined started his personal site tantek.com in the 1990s.

Other Examples

 * Good blog/news stream design example: https://web.archive.org/web/19970220031619/http://www.mmcorp.com/mmcsite/news/news.html

Silo Examples

 * Angelfire was established in 1996 and is still running least some of its original services (allowing for updates), while supporting links to user profiles

Articles

 * 2020-06-18 Max Böck: The Return of the 90s Web
 * 2020-12-03 10 Things That Used to Be on Every Website That You Totally Forgot About

Tools

 * icons for a 1990s "silk" vibe: http://www.famfamfam.com/lab/icons/silk/