The Death and Fashion of Microtrends • Greylock Glass

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2020s fashion was exciting to say the least. The Covid-19 era has set the scene for short-lived trend cycles in the rise of online fashion, where social media apps have enjoyed an abundance of beauty, sparking multiple fashion trends and revivals.

The BBC It is predicted that by 2020, the average American will throw away 37 pounds of clothing each year. In the same year, e-commerce sales increased by 43%. I can imagine that a significant portion of those sales came from international fast fashion centers. In the UK, popular high street store TopShop has been bought by online giant ASOS, while other department stores struggle with consumers’ fast, cheap and on-trend fashions.

Dressed in catwalks and oversized blazers, this model plays off two distinct trends that have been replicated in fast fashion outlets. Photo courtesy: Pexels

Emerging styles include Y2K, a fashion revival between ~1997-2005, and Cottagecore, an aesthetic movement that values ​​nature, simple pleasures, and rustic living. These patterns made themselves at home on TikTok, an app at the turn of the decade at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. However, due to its quick, concise and accessible content, the niche trends have become increasingly prevalent, with many users finding themselves scrolling through video after video. This is a phenomenon that critics today describe as ‘microtrends’.

What are Microtrends?

The adage ‘a flame that burns twice as hard will burn half as much’ is particularly well suited when describing microthreads. A microtrend is a clothing style or item that explodes in popularity, which becomes old news a month later. Think high school seniors, but those kids are design objects, and high school is an online social media clique. Fun, huh?

The reason I mention Y2K and Cottagecore is because they are responsible for having two unique items under their umbrella. House of Sun’s ‘Hockey Dress’, a late ’90s-inspired knit midi dress, and independent designer Lyrica Matoshi’s ‘Strawberry Dress’, a bright pink dress patterned with strawberries, were two examples of pieces that went viral. Teasing after several mixes from fast fashion brands.

Other minor trends include patchwork jeans, sweater jackets, psychedelic print and those ‘cottagecore’ dresses made of the flimsiest polyester imaginable. Puffed sleeves resemble deflated balloons. Instead of a figure that suits the individual, the bodice does not give any structure to the universal ‘appearance’ of a bodice. But, after all, how fast fashion has to work.

The revival of the bucket hat suggests a 2020s nostalgia for the late 90s and early noughties. Photo courtesy: Pexels.

Again, I don’t want to focus primarily on what has already been said about microtrends. Yes, microthreads are scary. They are terrible for fashion, terrible for the environment. They reflect a concentrated market and uncertain consumerism.

Alas, the next big thing is his death. The fire must eventually be extinguished.

A lot of talk about ‘sustainability’ (whether it’s a buzzword or a buzzword, we can’t deny the impact it’s having on the current market) has been rehashed and overdone. Since we’ve been out of our homes for a while after the lockdown and quarantine period, it’s easy to find out what people are doing and what they’re thinking. Underneath this online conversation, new ideas are sprouting. My observation is that people are less attentive what You’re shopping, and more. why.

Fashion solving

Fashion democracy is upon us soon. I can’t help but wonder if, like the last hysterical hysteria of history, like the turn of the century, the same ideology will manifest itself in fashion—at least in modern history—in fashion cycles. Trends will always exist, but can they exist as a ‘dissolved’ trend market, with their popularity based on consumers’ personal preferences, rather than seasonal runways or reactions to what came before them?

Think pick-n-mix collection of styles brought into our lives by the integration of the internet. Are internet subcultures splitting the current ‘ideal’ into multiple ideas that exist simultaneously? In the year In the 1960s, the big fashion houses had an influence on current trends, rather than ‘rocking London’, which lends itself to street fashion. Now, the cultural revolution may bring about another mix-up in fashion, this time with the Internet, rather than the high streets, as the cause.

Young people fit in luxury, modern, minimal. Alternatively, maximalism is also popular, showing a loose set of ideals, often conflicting and down to individual choice. Photo courtesy: Pexels.

I’ve collected a few notes about cultural sentiment from 2020. Fashion is ‘dissolving’ for the following reasons.

  • Disappointment in the fashion industry, especially among young consumers.
  • Disdain for microtrends and broken fashion cycles among critical online critique spaces.
  • Frustration with the cheap and flimsy fabrics commonly used in fast fashion; Willingness to invest in quality over quantity; treating clothes as furniture; Buying clothes that last.
  • In many countries, the rising cost of living means that disposable income is limited. Fashion clothes are a secondary concern compared to essentials.
  • Gender neutrality in clothing. Male icons like Harry Styles and Lil Nas X wore the dress; Compared to the democratization of fashion in the 60s and 70s when women started wearing pants. In the year The 2020s and the 1970s are similar in terms of the fashion trends that emerged/changing trends and trends that emerged from the mainstream.
  • Internet subcultures, aesthetics and nostalgia through the ages.
  • The dynamic change in the nature of subcultures by moving from social groups to online communities. Surface-level knowledge of multiple subcultures surpasses the previous model of a single entrenched need.
  • less stigma around second-hand clothing; Increase sales of charity and thrift stores.
  • DIY and handmade clothes are experiencing a resurgence – TikTok ‘thrift-flips’, crochet revival, etc.
  • Saturation of the internet beauty market. The current idea is broken down into several ideas. It may be on trend to don a polished, Y2K-inspired, Pinterest look. However, an alternative or indie look that conveys a different idea is also emerging. Maximalism and minimalism are both ‘in’.
  • An example of ‘Jean-democracy’ as a fragmented fashion. We seem to be moving on from high-waisted ‘mom jeans’ to low-waisted flares – and yet, people are still loyal to the old, as well as slim, straight-leg and ripped dresses. All kinds of jeans coexist now, some more fashionable than others, but comfort and individual taste keep old styles from going out of fashion from thrift stores and people’s closets.
Flared jeans are one of the top contenders in the ‘Jean Democracy’ of the ’60s, late ’70s, and returning Nouveau revivals. Photo courtesy: Pexels.

Why the death of microtrends is a good thing.

Microtrends affect the environment and overseas communities. As textiles generate 92 million tons of waste each year, it is no wonder that people underestimate these trends, which create sudden excitement about the risk of breakage on our planet. Bangladesh, a center for the production of beachwear, has been hit hard by sweatshop fires that have killed hundreds. Many offshore communities also suffer from petrochemicals entering their water supplies as a result of factory waste, destroying local ecosystems. Everything is connected by one big, factory-covered thread, and it’s not pretty like store windows make it out to be.

Among South Asian communities, sweatshops are particularly responsible for the exploitation of minors and vulnerable families. Photo by zakkattak, via Flickr.com(CC BY-NC-ND 2.0).

It leaves a strange taste in my mouth when I hear more talk about microtrends disrupting fashion cycles than discussions about their global impact on people and the environment. But I hope that the more we become aware of our consumer habits, the less we can give this planet a break.

Those who are aware of the discussions about the fashion industry may consider me too optimistic in predicting that microtrends will emerge soon. And I understand. It’s hard to believe in the idea that people are going to spend less on fast fashion. But, in a consumer-driven economy, I think some of the choices stemming from some ideas can leave a dent in what was once a snowball industry. I’m not saying we shove those SHEIN and Pretty Little Thing into the locker and whatnot, but I’m not against boring these brands.

Children smiling and posing for the camera; Owners of unique looking items that are distinguished by themselves, as well as a part of the dress. Photo by Olia Danilevich, via pexels.com

Continue to learn to love clothes without overconsumption. In the year The 2020s saw the rise of layers, statement pieces, thongs and capsule wardrobes to experience pieces that are eye-catching yet comfortable at the same time. Investing in fashion, such as furniture, dressing for oneself and dressing uniquely, invests in fashion as an afterthought – it undermines the joy that comes from researching new trends and shopping trips, but brings a refreshingly timeless and individual spin to our outlook. No doubt. clothing.

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