Emerging core aesthetics have the reigns when it comes to fashion these days. With the rise of TikTok, traditional fashion rules have fallen to the wayside. From runways to editor’s top picks, you can see the influence of how these emerging cores are redefining traditional fashion. What once started out as E-girls and Y2K enthusiasts, has broken into subgenres such as Dark Academia and Goblincore. These core-driven trends have developed as a result of personal interests like obsessions with a new book, TV show, or music genre.

As big as Tik Tok’s influence has been on all of this, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen this amongst consumers. When Tumblr and Pinterest were at the forefront, we saw the same reaction to the flower power movement and galaxy print everything. With TikTok being an even bigger platform, could these aesthetics die out too quickly and reshape the future of fashion as we know it?

The fast fashion industry has sped up the trend cycle. They say everything in fashion is cyclical but this is the fastest and most destructive we’ve ever seen fashion. Instead of trends coming and going every 20 years or so (like the 90s does 70s or 70s does 20s), trends are in a hypercycle. We’re seeing trends like bandage dresses coming back from the 2010s. And these trends are quickly picked up and put back down as quickly as SHEIN can create and ship a cheap copy.

Many believe this fashion hypercycle does not allow for the creative development of one’s personal style. Why research and develop your own style when you can copy and paste an aesthetic into your wardrobe? Others believe the exploration of niches allows fashionistas to experiment and find what works for them. Fashion is a science after all. What’s your take? How have aesthetics negatively and positively impacted the industry?

This article was written by Kayla Braithwaite and adapted by Felicia Kebreau.

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