Aesthetics are having a moment like never before. With the rise of TikTok and Gen Z internet culture has also come a shift in the way people express themselves and their interests. Microtrends, or short-lived viral trends, reign supreme, and many of them naturally divide into certain categories of popular fashion, accessories, and decor known as aesthetics.
The 2023 Barbie movie is one major pop culture example of a viral aesthetic (Barbiecore), but there are dozens of others to explore. Each one has its own unique characteristics, a busy hashtag on TikTok, and thousands of devotees across Pinterest and other social media. From coastal grandma to plazacore, here are 16 trending fashion aesthetics that should be on your radar.
1. Barbiecore
Inspired by nostalgia and Mattel’s Barbie dolls, Barbiecore is an aesthetic defined by all things stylish, pink, and pretty. The aesthetic has existed on TikTok for at least the past five years but has surged in popularity thanks to Greta Gerwig’s 2023 Barbie movie. Barbiecore fashion takes inspiration from the ’90s and early ’00s, including things like miniskirts, velvet tracksuits, bright makeup, and knee-high boots. And, since it’s inspired by Barbie, we can’t forget the accessories. Throw on some heart-shaped glasses, hair clips, and a tiny purse, and you’re all set.
2. Coastal grandmother
If you want examples of coastal grandmothers, think Diane Keaton, Ina Garten, or Oprah Winfrey. Their understated, breezy aesthetic screams “ready to relax with a book and a cocktail at my beach house.” The term coastal grandmother was coined by TikTok user Lex Nicola in January 2022. Sometimes shortened to coastal grandma, this aesthetic includes nautical patterns, sun hats, pottery, scented candles, and light, flowy clothing. As Glamour magazine noted in 2022, “Coastal grandmother heralds a new kind of hot girl summer—with fresh produce, strong cocktails, and light linens.”
3. Baddie
The baddie aesthetic was born in the photo grids of Instagram. Inspired by the Kardashian-Jenner family and popularized by beauty influencers, this aesthetic is all about looking stylish by modern beauty standards. This includes wearing high-end fashions and practicing the latest hair and makeup trends. Within the baddie aesthetic, there are also subgenres. For example, you can be a vintage baddie, a luxury baddie, or even a drug store baddie, which is someone who achieves high fashion looks with cheaper, or drug store, products.
4. Clean girl
The clean girl aesthetic is marked by elegance and beauty that appears minimalist and effortless, even if it isn’t. This encompasses trends like wearing makeup looks that give the appearance of not wearing makeup, choosing muted clothing, and styling hair in chic buns or braided updos. The hashtag #cleangirl is used to delineate this aesthetic on TikTok. Some have criticized the clean girl aesthetic for promoting unrealistic beauty standards and appropriating certain elements from women of color.
5. Coquette
The coquette aesthetic originated on Tumblr in the 2010s, although the term coquette (“a woman who flirts lightheartedly with men”) dates back to the 1600s. Previously referred to as Lolita-core, a name borrowed from the controversial 1955 novel Lolita, it was criticized in the past for sexualizing young women and promoting unrealistic beauty standards. Now, Gen Z is helping to evolve the aesthetic into a more empowering celebration of femininity. The coquette aesthetic in 2023 is hyperfeminine, youthful, and idyllic. It channels fashions from multiple decades, including miniskirts, knitted stockings, lots of lace, and vintage accessories. According to Nylon, modern coquette is “keen on clarifying and reinventing the aesthetic by embracing one’s femininity instead of hyper-focusing on and sexualizing innocence.”
6. Soft girl
Sometimes shortened to softie, the soft girl aesthetic combines elements of three different aesthetics: VSCO girls, kidcore, and e-girls and e-boys. It’s about looking cutesy, comfy, and even a little preppy. The 2010s-era aesthetic has exploded on TikTok in the past few years, with creators rocking pastel colors, butterfly clips, floral and heart patterns, and even fluffy scrunchies. There are elements of nostalgia to the aesthetic, so it heavily borrows from ’90s and ’00s fashion. Soft boys dress in a similar style and are said to be unafraid to show off their artistic, sensitive sides.
7. Kuromicore
Kuromicore is an aesthetic based on the Japanese character Kuromi, a small, cartoonish white rabbit dressed in devil attire. The character has been around since 2005, while the aesthetic has been growing in popularity since the 2010s. Kuromicore encompasses dark colors, skull prints, devil tails, pleated skirts, and piercings. It’s a cross between more goth and emo styles with lots of feminine touches. Character plushies are also a staple of Kuromicore, given that it’s inspired by a beloved Sanrio character.
8. Vanilla girl
Vanilla girl is similar to clean girl in that it’s centered on minimalism, or at least the appearance of minimalism. The quintessential vanilla girl wears beige or cream-colored clothing and simple hairstyles and has a fresh face that looks free of makeup. As Buzzfeed notes, this aesthetic is mostly used by white, blonde women. There are even videos offering special instructions on how dark-haired women can attempt to fit in as vanilla girls. For this reason, it’s been criticized as problematic and racist. To combat the problems with the vanilla girl aesthetic, one TikTok creator, Aiyana Ishmael, said she intends to start a “chocolate girl” aesthetic.
9. Lo-fi
Inspired by the ’90s music scene, the lo-fi aesthetic includes muted colors, warm lighting, and elements of nostalgia. Lo-fi stands for low fidelity, a trend in music that uses lower quality sound to make things sound more aged. Similarly, the lo-fi aesthetic incorporates vintage elements, like fashions and accessories from the ’80s and ’90s, as well as faded colors and warm tones, like you might see in an old photograph. Thrifted and upcycled clothes are definitely welcome here.
10. Maximalism
While aesthetics like clean girl focus on minimalism, there’s a growing number of young TikTokers who are diving into maximalism. This aesthetic is marked by bold, vibrant colors, overaccessorizing, mixing patterns and styles, and celebrating your unique self in whatever way feels right. There’s no single way to participate in maximalism. Instead, it’s about following your own tastes and interests, like creator Aliyah Bah—whose maximalist take on style is so popular that it’s been dubbed Aliyahcore.
11. Sad girl aesthetic
Sad girl, or sad people, is an aesthetic that originated on Tumblr in the 2010s. It’s characterized by, well, exactly what it sounds like: sadness. This includes dark clothing, depressing imagery, runny eye makeup from crying, and elements of grunge or Gothic fashion. Sad girl’s return in the 2020s has been met with backlash by those who say the aesthetic promotes and glorifies poor mental health. Others defend it as an important means of expressing emotions and the darker sides of life.
12. Twee
If you’ve ever streamed old episodes of New Girl, you’re already familiar with the twee aesthetic, as exemplified by actress Zooey Deschanel’s in-show wardrobe. This aesthetic became popular on Tumblr in the early 2000s and combines vintage and feminine styles. Twee fashion is heavily influenced by the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s and includes colorful tights, statement collars, loafers, and full skirts. Formerly, people who participated in the twee aesthetic might have been called hipsters, though that term isn’t as popular today.
13. Academia
What would a college professor in a TV show wear? That’s the core of the academia aesthetic. It centers on learning, knowledge, and fashions and accessories that make one appear scholarly. There are several branches of this aesthetic, from romantic academia that encompasses whimsical details like dried florals and suspenders, to pastel academia, which uses lighter colors and more childlike elements like headbands and pastel cardigans. The academia look overall includes blazers, glasses, tweed, trousers and pleated skirts, and other traditional markers of teachers and students. Inspiration from literature, poetry, and art is always welcome.
14. Plazacore
Plazacore is an ode to the fashions of wealthy Upper East Siders. The main inspiration for this aesthetic might be unexpected: it’s Eloise, the beloved book series created by author Kay Thompson, which features a sassy little girl who lives in Manhattan’s Plaza Hotel. It’s also exemplified by Gossip Girl’s Blair Waldorf. To understand plazacore, think: high-end, luxury, preppy. The aesthetic is represented by Peter Pan collars, headbands, pearl necklaces, tweed, and gingham. It’s anything you might wear if you were dressing up as a wealthy socialite.
15. Whimsigothic
What do you get when you mix nature, surrealism, and witchcraft? The whimsigoth aesthetic. This aesthetic could easily fit into a Tim Burton movie. It incorporates elements of Gothic and Bohemian fashion combined with the spooky, witchy vibes you can find in the cult classic Hocus Pocus. This includes dark clothing, dramatic makeup and jewelry, stars and twinkle lights, and lots of black. While still thriving, this is one of the older aesthetics. It’s existed since the 1980s, though it didn’t have a name yet. The term whimsigoth was coined by Evan Collins, the co-founder of the Consumer Aesthetics Research Institute, in 2022.
16. Weird girl
For those who can’t settle on just one aesthetic, weird girl might be the key. This aesthetic is actually a hybrid of multiple aesthetics, combining ’90s bucket hats and graphic tees with ’70s knitwear and the track pants and accessories of the early ’00s. Essentially, anything goes. The whole point of the aesthetic is style that’s over the top. It was inspired by Harajuku street style, a fashion subculture named for the Harajuku district in Japan. Some have taken offense to the word weird being used to describe this aesthetic. You might just call it eccentric, fun, and unique.
Take the quiz
Think you embody the quizcore aesthetic? Test your TikTok style smarts by taking our Gen Z fashion aesthetics quiz.
