A look into viral aesthetics and items sweeping the internet

You wouldn’t find “clean girl” in Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary, nor anything about a “coastal grandma” or “mob wife” aesthetic. “Stanley” is no more than a name, and blueberries and milk are foods, not nail colors.  

On apps like Instagram and TikTok, however, all of these phrases, items and aesthetics point to thousands of people who have found community in these words. Niche subgroups grow into full-blown cultures on the apps, spanning from “clean girl” to “coquette.” There is no shortage of videos for every one of these subcultures, and the top ones have gained tens of thousands of likes. 

These phrases and subsequent cultures closely reflect standard trend cycles. TikTok’s popularity, span and ability to make something viral in minutes, however, move this cycle even faster, creating microtrends. 

Microtrends are when something, like an aesthetic or fashion item, experiences an intense surge of popularity very quickly but loses it soon after. These aesthetics are often short-lived and can happen all at once. 

Rather than trends evolving over the years, like the shift from skinny to wide-leg jeans, these groups form simultaneously. Fashion trends used to have distinct shifts on whether they were “on trend” or not, but now these phases are blurred together, according to a Business of Home article.

One five-minute scroll could take someone through five different aesthetics that are now “in.” This phenomenon is novel and was boosted by the 180% rise in TikTok usage among 15-to-25-year-old users over the pandemic. 

Before the rise, trend cycles and fashion operated within the 20-year cycle, according to A Magazine. This refers to styles resurfacing every 20 years. For example, a modern version of Y2K fashions resurfaced in 2022, according to an article on CNN. They were one among many trends to see popularity around this time, according to The Cut.

Stanley Cups in particular are an example of an older product cycling back. The brand started 110 years ago and was most popular with older men who worked outdoors, not young people. 

That was until 2017, when a group of women —- Linley Hutchinson, Ashlee LeSueur and Taylor Cannon —- used their online shopping blog, “The Buy Guide,” to share their love for the Stanley 40-ounce Adventure Quencher. 

The group loved the cups, but because of Stanley’s lack of popularity at the time, found them hard to find. Their solution was to buy 5,000 cups wholesale to sell on “The Buy Guide,” which led to a surge in popularity for Stanley outside of their initial target audience. 

Now, over 10 million cups have been sold, and plenty of videos on TikTok point to the variety of colors and styles available. The content varies from sharing Stanley Cup accessories people can buy to other “dupe” brands with similar products.  

Trend cycles have since sped up the 20-year cycle as people are exposed to dozens of easy-to-get products daily. A Stanley Cup or “cottage-core” aesthetic becomes attractive because of a low barrier to entry and fast track to relatability, according to Drops of Ink. 

With fast fashion sites like Zara, Shein and H&M growing annually at a rate of 15.6%, hopping on a trend and becoming a part of these communities becomes more and more affordable. These websites are typically less expensive because the clothes are mass-produced. Buy one cup or a few pieces of clothing, and you’ve become part of a group with thousands of people.   

DePaul graduate student Sarah Pascarella said she is guilty of spending a lot of time on TikTok, and she finds it hard to keep up with every single trend she sees. 

“I really like … ones that maybe help you, like, for example, for school, they have, like, study tips. Those are cool,” Pascarella said. “Or maybe like trying new meals. I love that type of stuff. Maybe fashion as well.” 

Microtrends and revolving aesthetics have shown to be most popular with Generation Z, according to ASB Zeitung. This is no surprise as 60% of TikTok users are Gen Z. Considering also that Gen Z consists of young adults, it is not surprising that they would be inclined to test out new aesthetics and search for what niche they best fit in. 

The adolescent years up until a person’s early 20s have always been known as a time of self-discovery and exploration. Because young people today have such a large social media presence, this exploration is largely done online.

Additionally, young people have lost spaces that previously generated community for past generations. In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General said America was facing an epidemic of loneliness. The pandemic and the decade prior led people to spend less time together, and this is especially high with Gen Z. 

Over the last decade, people ages 15-24 saw a 70% decline in interacting with one another in person. This drop in social interactions correlates with a rise in online community building. 

In these areas, people discover their relatability with one another through sharing products they both like or pointing out an aesthetic common ground. These shared interests bring people together in ways the decline in third places has pushed people apart.

A third place refers to somewhere outside of home and work where people can go to build relationships with their community. Rather than finding community through third places like parks, malls and libraries, the internet has become a third place. 

DePaul junior Ana Butze says she has found a strong community from many of these aesthetics. She compares it to an imaginary world but says it is less about being picture-perfect and more about the fun and comfort it brings. 

“I feel like it has a lot of female encouragement, encouraging other women to show off sides of them that they weren’t always comfortable with,” Butze said. “Especially with the bows and certain fashion trends, it encourages people that everyone could do that and that everyone deserves to.”

While these microtrends and internet subgroups may help build community, they can have the reverse effect on the Earth. Trends that focus on consumerism, like buying the newest trending outfit from a fast-fashion site, lead us to extract more resources than can be replenished naturally. 

DePaul Department of Environmental Science and Studies faculty member Barbara Willard said our current society has caused an overall increase in consumption practices per person each year. This increased consumption spans from smaller goods to larger things like housing and transportation.

“A culture of consumption, which is what we are, is one that requires continuous consumption but also has a sort of competitive element to it. It’s the keeping up with the Joneses, or not even really your next-door neighbor, but keeping up with what you see on media, which is almost, uh, you know, it’s a losing game,” Willard said. 

The ultra-fast trend cycle creates a revolving door of buying items and putting them to the side when the next trend arises. Eighty-five percent of the clothes bought by Americans are sent to landfills, according to a Biomed Central article. According to the JED Foundation, this issue is compounded when you factor in social media’s innate competitiveness and a human desire to not only have what everyone has but have more than someone else.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, urban consumer expenditures per capita rose 9% from 2021-22. Many of these trends require something to be bought, which feeds into a culture of overconsumption, because all of these trends gain traction and exist simultaneously. Even something typically reusable like a water bottle becomes a factor of hyperconsumerism when there is a competition of who can have the most colors and newest Stanley models. 

Willard says the Earth can not keep up with this level of consumption.

“It’s just a matter of time before, you know, systems break down. There’s something called the planetary boundaries. There’s, there’s nine of them. According to the most recent report, six of them have been surpassed. In other words, we have gone beyond what Earth can really, you know, sustain life,” Willard said

These nine planetary boundaries are the processes that allow the Earth to develop, stay stable and support life. Crossing one of these boundaries, like climate change, does not indicate immediate harm to people or the planet, but rather the Earth is operating outside of a line it can safely handle.

Though it can be fun to keep up with the trends and connect with others online, it may be time to collectively pick one movement and stick with it for a while. The constant consumption in an ever-revolving trend cycle hurts the Earth and our pockets, and it leaves people continually unsatisfied and looking for the next new thing.

Header by Mei Harter