As our collective obsession with nostalgic style plays itself out, yet another trend from the past seems to be making its way back into the zeitgeist. That’s right- the era of the mid-aughts Tumblr girl is ready for its resurgence.
Immediately proceeding the “Indie Sleaze” style code of the early 2010s, we went from adopting bright colored framed Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunnies, ripped graphic band tees, and metallic leggings to a darker, more streamlined alternative aesthetic. Crossing over with grunge, and the scene subculture, the Tumblr girl was a little less literal or theatrical, evoking a more muted form of next generation emo.
Expressing all of our moody broody teen angst through deep memes, melancholy poetry, and Lana Del Rey lyrics, Tumblr became the metaphorical port in a storm as young millennials and gen z flocked to the internet. Back when Hot Topic was a sanctuary, and online dashboards were awash with black and white photos of girls with ripped fishnet stockings and Dr. Martens, gifs of Megan Fox lighting her tongue on fire in the cult classic Jennifer’s Body, and plenty of eyeliner inspiration from the Skins character Effy Stonem, the badass e-girl had her moment in the sun.
As we enter a new year, popular aesthetics and fashion archetypes are bound to shift, and as the pervading fascination with all things Y2K endures, it only makes sense that this would be the next logical step in the fashion cycle. With stars like Olivia Rodrigo, Euphoria‘s Barbie Ferreira and Florence Pugh opting for the throwback aesthetic, Kourtney Kardashian’s rocker wife style continues to evolve, leaving the Tumblr generation anxiously awaiting e-girl fashion’s full return.
In the meantime, GRAZIA has compiled a bit of a Tumblr girl starter kit to get ahead of the nostalgic trend.
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