Dealing with fashion trends
Dressing accordingly while avoiding NPC status
The topic of current fashion trends is an iffy subject for me. To be honest with you, covering these trends, especially ones that originate from tiktok/reels, brings me absolutely no joy.
The recent overexposure of information online has played a pivotal role in my feelings towards them. Before social media I used magazines and forums to discover these said trends—I wouldn’t even call it that, because it didn’t feel like we were using that term as often as we do now. It was a much slower process that gave me time to form my own opinions on fashion. We’ve sadly traded these online mediums for fast paced algorithms that are actively working towards downgrading the quality of culture.
By the time you discover one trend, another one is already gearing up to take over. And if you’re not on top of the cycle, then it’s easy to get lost and feel like you don’t know what’s in or out of style. But at the same time, we shouldn’t be bound by this cycle anyway, because real style is happening in the real world and not on our phones.
It also doesn’t help that more and more brands are leaning into trends instead of trying something new. It’s totally understandable though. It’s difficult to take a chance on a totally new idea that might not work right now. I mean, at the end of the day fashion is business, money is on the line and in this current economic climate, everyone needs to use that money very strategically to keep the lights on.
Not every brand is like this though of course. There are lots of great players in the game that are continuing to push the needle with forward thinking designs.
There are a few current trends that I can’t be bothered seeing anymore. Flip-Flops is definitely one of them. A regular item that people have been wearing to the beach and vacations since time is now the main topic of discussion on every fashion page imaginable.
Every creator and writer is covering them. Every runway show this year had flip-flops. Performative Males everywhere are running ramped on the streets with their toes out and a matcha in hand. Everywhere I look, it’s all I see.
There’s nothing wrong with them. I just think it’s funny how we got to the point where flip-flops are the thing that everyone is going crazy for right now online.
The question is, should you not wear them because they are trendy? No, that’s not the answer. They are flip-flops, I mean, what are we even talking about here. It’s a beach staple that we’ve been rocking since time. However, I do think that their recent popularity is a sign of a much more serious issue.
To me it signals that we are so down horrendous when it comes to finding new clothes to discuss online. We’re just throwing anything at the wall to see what sticks, and that constant battle for newness is leading us to dark places. Things are evolving and happening so fast that we don’t even have a chance to live in these items to figure out if we actually like them or not.
The content creator machine is hurting and it’s causing creators to scramble. I’m not saying everyone is doing this, but I’m seeing a lot of overlap of the same styles and trends being covered, and it’s only getting worse.
The thin midsole shoe is another trend that I’ve personally had enough of. The natural progression from the Adidas Samba hype has evolved into everyone creating their own version of this style, and because of this, we now lack variety.
How can we dress differently if every brand is making the same thing? I mean, if you actually want a real answer then I’d say thrifting is probably the best way to find something different. But that’s a whole other conversation that we’ll save for later.
The question rises again though, should you wear these shoes if they are everywhere? I mean, realistically if you actually want a pair because you like them, then you should do it. Ultimately, you need ask yourself if you’re buying an item purely because it’s trendy or is it because you actually really like it? It could be both, but just be careful here because that’s how you end up falling into trends without even realizing.
If you must partake in the trend cycle then there is a way you can do it more tastefully. Identify a trend and then work backwards to find the original items that were used for the inspiration. This technique will yield much swaggier results that will be a fraction of the price on ebay. It does require some digging to find these references, but there are more than enough resources to make that happen quickly.
I think one of the worst things the algorithm has done is create what I like to call the “NPC style”—that’s Non-Playable Character for my non-gamers. It’s a style dictated almost entirely by whatever the algorithm decides is trendy. It floods everyone’s feed with the same content, telling people what to wear, and thus creating an army of swagless individuals who might seem stylish at first, but lack that personal touch that makes that style truly their own.