There is an abundance of ways to express yourself today, especially with the rise of information sharing on social media. As such, many trendsetters, especially in the United States, have created several aesthetics that help them feel comfortable in presenting themselves to others based on what they’re wearing.
If you’re looking for some inspiration as to what aesthetics suit you the best, read through this article by SpoutFire as it goes through some of the most popular aesthetics that took the internet and world by storm during the 2010s and 2020s.
Cottage core aesthetics
Cottagecore is the welcome antithesis to the hustle and bustle of city life. When thinking about cottage core, it’s helpful to put yourself in a peaceful state where you can imagine yourself being in a field of wild grass next to a wooden cottage.
If this evokes a sense of peace and calm for you, then cottagecore might be an aesthetic you want to try.
Cottagecore is characterised by the use of flowy clothes that have a semi-vibrant to pastel colour palette. Much of the patterns used on the clothes and accessories will also be based on nature, simple living, and of living from the land. As such, expect to see a lot of floral patterns and gingham matched with flowy fabrics and a gentleness to the whole outfit.
Light Academia aesthetics
If you’re wondering why you’ve seen more people dressed like they’re going to visit a museum or like they’re going back to school, there’s a good chance they’re probably wearing light academia aesthetics.
This aesthetic actually is focused on having a clean-looking style, a warmer toned palette, and is more light-hearted when compared to its counterpart which is called the dark academia.
Much of the colour palette and tones used for light academia revolve around Earth-tones associated with autumn. This means using shades of brown, cream, green, and off-white. In addition, this aesthetic doesn’t show much skin and actually prefers to make use of vests, coats, and cardigans.
Y2K aesthetic
The Y2K aesthetic is reminiscent of the 2000s when lots of kitschy, colourful, and playful fashion styles were the norm. Some of the most popular styling strategies for this aesthetic include lots of layering of clothes for a more conservative styling and emphasising the midriff, shoulders, and thighs for a more confident style. Other popular clothing items were monochrome tracksuits and clothes with heart and butterfly prints.
Most of the colours and tones used for this sort of aesthetic are vibrant pinks, greens, blues, and purples and some cases of pastels. The same colour rules are also applied to the accessories as many would have oversized glasses, beaded bracelets and belts, and to use hats with striking patterns.
Normcore aesthetics
From the word ‘norm’ you might expect that this has something to do with conventional ways of styling your clothes and presenting your aesthetic. In a way, you’d be right! Normcore is a type of aesthetic that focuses on the basics of an outfit or simply dressing without the need to feel ‘extra’ or to ‘show up and show out’.
For this aesthetic, the basics of clothes are all you need. For example, a simple white tea, black slacks, some loafers and understated jewelry is all that you’d need to go on a day out or simply to a casual work meeting. No matter the occasion, there’s always a time to go for normcore aesthetics.
Get those creative juices flowing with the help of SpoutFire
Aesthetics in the United States show us which styles we gravitate towards and help us present ourselves to the world. It’s also brought various people together in the name of following the aesthetic, taking pictures with cameras while wearing the clothes, innovating it, and evolving it to make something completely different. That’s the beauty that happens when aesthetics and fashion are combined.
Looking for more creative inspiration for your next project? Look through some of the articles that SpoutFire has to fuel those creative juices.