10/11/24
Opinion
Old money style, Jane Birkin bag charms, clean girls, indie sleaze revival, tomato girl core? Does anyone actually wear what they want to anymore, or has social media completely killed off any sense of genuine authenticity.
If you’ve been online in the past few years you’ll have seen the microtrend supercomputer that is TikTok. I know what you’re thinking, it’s just another trend nobody’s actually committing to cottage-core full time. But with the insane rate and quantity of new microtrends surfacing, it can be hard to know where an online niche ends and personal style begins. I mean think about it, when was the last time you saw somebody who has a true personal style? Something that makes them unique, a signature item of clothing they’ve been wearing for years, or a particularly wacky makeup look that’s their to go to.
We are living through a personal style drought, style is the newest, hottest commodification. Rather than curating fashion taste over years, taking inspiration from your own life; music, art, culture, we’re buying a personality, it’s premade to go, just add water! Take for example this obsession over Hermes Birkin bags, it’s the ultimate symbol of wealth to some, but people get slammed for not using their Birkins the way ‘Jane Birkin would have’. So this trend of accessorising bags with pre-made bag charms has surfaced. But people aren’t using charms they have collected over the years from travel or gifts, they’re brand new, straight-out-of-the-plastic bag charms. A premade, bought, curated, display of personality.
The ‘eclectic grandpa’ aesthetic is another great example of unoriginality. The trend surfaced at the beginning of 2024, to achieve the look think chunky knits, patterned trousers and accessories (clashing preferable), brown loafers and oversized glasses. Or literally think of your grandpa. Again this idea of an off the shelf, bought personal style attempts to make up for a lack of any original style.
Social media and fast fashion appear to be the culprit, we’re cycling through fashion trends at a rate so fast we can’t even keep up. One of my favourite TikTok creators Elliot Duprey described the secret to being truly fashionable in a statement, “To understand fashion and to have a distinct and believable personal style, you must live a life in your clothes”.
His video describes that to develop a distinguishable personal style you must let your clothes experience the things you love, they must develop wear and tear, be functional for your everyday activities and grow around you as an individual. “The character inherent with these clothes is a reflection of our lives, and it tells people outwardly, silently, things about us”. This whole argument for developing a personal style might sound completely stupid to some, but I think the influence of social media has had a silent impact on the whole fashion community. Even fashion influencers who might think they’re out of reach of mass trends, for instance do obsessive Rick Owens collectors have a personal style? Is copying and collecting a specific designer’s ready-to-wear really any better than following a micro trend? I suppose it all comes down to longevity, kudos to you if you’ve been loyal to the McBling aesthetic for the past 10 years. It’s about dedication to what works for you and actually living in your clothes. But I personally can’t help but think, how can you fit your entire life into one aesthetic?
In the long run, microtrends can’t replicate authenticity. If we let go of the pressure to constantly hop on every minor trend, maybe we’ll find that individuality is the goal we should be reaching for. And as the saying goes, money can’t buy taste (but it can fuel microtrends).
Well-written and insightful! This perfectly captures the irony of chasing individuality through trends. True style isn’t bought or curated—it’s lived in. The most authentic looks come from wearing what fits your life, not a prepackaged aesthetic.
Extremely interesting, very well written
Very insightful article! I can’t wait to here more!