Our Generation’s obsession with “aesthetics”
Every week, a new trend pops up on our social media and we are bombarded with multiple people following that trend, like the rise of the trends of having blonde highlights or ballet flats. Then suddenly, the next week it’s gone and a new one has taken its place. Today, we will discuss the rise of aesthetics, stemming from subcultures, and modern problems.
The rise of subcultures and aesthetics
The traditional definition of subculture is an ethnic, regional, economic, or social group exhibiting characteristics or patterns of behaviour sufficient to distinguish it from others within an embracing society. In fashion subculture may arise from a shared interest in styles, ideas, and art revolution such as 70s punk fashion, 90s emo fashion, etc. People like to have a sense of belonging which leads them to identify as belonging to a certain group. This leads to the surgence of “aesthetics” on social media, especially TikTok. It was during the Covid period that the “cottagecore aesthetic” rose to fame. It is more than just a style, it is a lifestyle. Not restricted to cloth headbands, corset tops and long white dresses, it consisted also of hobbies associated with a cottage life, like baking, laundry and farming. Understandably, this was a longing for nature and freedom, the opposite of our fast-paced modern world. It was a form of escapism.
The quick trend cycle
This social division could be positive as it brings together a like-minded community. However, this is not the case when the trends or “aesthetics” are taken too far. Now, we are bombarded with trends everywhere announcing the latest styles from “blueberry milk nails” to “latte makeup”. The trend cycle shows how a trend dies down after people feel it is oversaturated and no longer unique. With social media, this trend cycle has escalated more quickly than modern times. In the past, fashion houses would create those trends, it would be shown on runaways then slowly spread to the public through TVs, media publication, magazines etc. Now, a brand just has to send packages out to influencers or public figures and it will flood our feed for a whole week straight then die down. Take for example, the green house of sunny dress popularised by Kendall Jenner.
Overconsumption rising from (micro) trends
This leads to overconsumption due to our natural feeling of missing out. With the social media algorithm, it pushes what is trending which perpetuates the quick trend cycle. That’s why it is so easy to get tired of a trend after feeling like the whole world is wearing a certain piece when it is actually just a small bubble that we are in. Additionally, the fixation from trends to micro-trend might have worsened the situation. Trends in fashion are when a certain characteristic is made popular which can then be applied to a person’s individual style. For example, the platform shoe trend can be either represented in Harajuku fashion with bright, playfully patterned platform pumps, to the Emo style with their chain, Demonia platform boots. Micro-trends tend to be a certain item, like the midi denim A-line skirt. Whether it is a micro-trend or general trend, it will increase the textile waste in landfills. When there is a trend or aesthetic, people will buy items from that in order to fit into the defined version of that aesthetic. When it is no longer ‘in trend’, they throw it out or donate it to thrift stores. Recently, people have reported that they’ve already started seeing Abbie merchandise clothing in thrift stores.
Loss of originality and style
The problem of lost originality and personal style may arise. In between the pressure of fitting into society by wearing what is deemed ‘fashionable’ by online fashion culture and the fear of missing out, we may blindly just wear what is ‘trending’ rather than finding our own personal style. This results in a caricature of a trend or aesthetic rather than a style that is personally curated, and one that we feel the most comfortable and confident in. The problem also lies in fashion gurus online who dictate what is deemed as ‘fashionable’ and what is ‘out of style’. This could cause insecurity to stem from awareness that they are being publicly scrutinised for whatever they wear. Instead of wearing what we like, we may be put off the idea because it is something others would deem ‘old fashioned’.
‘Outfit repeating’
Another issue that stem from trends is the toxic culture of outfit repeating. You may have heard that certain people have fears of wearing the same outfit twice. There was even a moment on social media where influencers showed how to style a certain piece in different ways to overcome stereotypes that outfit repeating was bad. On average, people wear a piece 7 times before throwing it out. There is a stigma around outfit repeating and that women who do it are unfashionable and not up to date with fashion when in reality those who are able to wear the same piece refashioned in different ways are truly knowledgable and experimental in style. This high turnover rate is partly due to sexism where women have maintain a conventionally attractive fashion style and partly due to consumerism where brands feed us the concept that we constantly need new clothes and there are constant new trends.
The bottom line
The creation of aesthetics and subcultures can make us feel welcomed when we deviate from the norm of society as we join a community with the same interests as us. It’s also fun to try new styles. and experiment with different pieces. However, when it comes to fashion, we do not need to feel pressured to dress to fit a certain ‘aesthetic’ or follow trends that we feel do not align with our personal tastes. It is as simple as wearing whatever we like without caring about what other people think because at the end of the day, it’s about how we feel.
