Let's talk social media's 'aesthetic' obsession.

From Cottagecore to dark academia, what does social media's obsession with creating aesthetics say about us? And why is it such a problem?

Let's talk social media's obsession with aesthetic subcultures - How they’re encouraging hyperconsumerist behavior while muddying the way we shape our identities and why it’s important for our financial health to decenter material subcultures in the first place. Social media affects our money and our identities, so let's discuss!

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Time Stamps:
00:00 aesthetic subcultures
01:28 case study: VSCO Girl
02:56 shared visual languages
04:13 aesthetics vs identity
05:03 shortcutting personality?
06:29 subculture disposibility
07:20 decentering materialism
08:29 my mustache aesthetic phase
09:13 lifestyle inflation
12:18 keeping up with the jones'
13:00 final thoughts



Keywords for some sweet, sweet metadata:
Personal finance, money management, aesthetic subculture, making money, income, social media, instagram, pinterest, tiktok, overconsumption, consumerism, consumption, identity, video essays

[yeeyeeyeeye]

I will forever be angry at how grunge - a subculture that was purely anti-capitalist and anti-consumerist at its core, with a strong sense of "I don't care how dirty or poor I look to societal standards, I will wear these clothes until they fall apart because I like them and it's efficient" - became mainstream and swallowed up by big designer brands to the point that it is barely recognizable and it doesn't even have the same values anymore.

[therobotdevil]

I feel like the most unique, authentic thing you can do is decorate your life with the things that you enjoy, regardless of whether there's aesthetic cohesion involved.

[FlipTheBard]

Nowadays anything and anyone can become an aesthetic.

We don't have identities anymore, we have "aesthetics".

[TheBrokeCyberWanderer]

Vsco girl- Scrunchies, Oversized t-shirt, birkenstocks... that aesthetic is 1990s summer camp.

[toomuchdata]

I loved that you threw in the Harley Davidson dudes as an example of this, because we all tend to think of this as something only silly young girls are susceptible to.

[corabiz]

“True expression comes from the act of creating, not consuming.” Wow, this was so profound! Instant sub for that thought, and it may change my life!

[guerralg]

Im 60 years old, and I like to watch these videos because they are a window to the younger generations. This is not a put down, but it's really no wonder that this young generation is on anxiety meds! Listening to all this made me feel like taking a Xanax!!! This sort of consumerism has existed for years. Especially after WW2, but with the advent of social media, it seems to have turned into an uncontrollable monster! When I was a teen, I got into punk rock, and I made my own stuff with the clothes I had and stuff from the thrift store. Back then, there was a ton of early 60s shoes, clothes, and costume jewelry at the junk stores, and I went Mod. Then Rockabilly with 50s stuff. All my friends did the same, because the regular stores didn't carry the stuff we wanted, except for a store in Hollywood called posuer. We used our creativity and what little money we had to show our "individuality." Then, as the street style became popular, we began to see these looks in stores, and that was it for me. It was now being mass-produced! Well I grew up and wore the career clothes that I liked and suited my personality, and not the Brooks Brothers IBM look that was popular at the time, and now as a mature woman I feel that I have earned the right to wear what I want regardless of it's in style or if it makes me look like an old lady! I say this because I see so many articles and videos on the internet and YouTube for older women about what they/we should be wearing to look Trendy, young, and Hip. Well, that's fine, but I have no intention to live my sunset years worrying if I am looking young, hip, and trendy. I say wear what you want and stop being controlled by the fashion stazi police! Limit your social media, and go outside and live!!!

[chiarac]

When people say "just let people be happy!" I hate it, like, I am not criticizing this because I want people to be unhappy, I'm criticizing it because I see a problem.

[megmcguigan]

A lot of younger people right now want to fit into a box instead of just being themselves.The endless clothing 'hauls' are crass, especially when people are going hungry and don't have the money to pay their bills. The age of the influencer is coming to an end because the economy is in freefall..

[lettersbeads]

I like how "having an aesthetic" just equals "owning specific products from certain brands"

[blankbenefit]

Romantisizing your life is nothing bad. I have a big garden that I love taking care of. It is just a hobby that I take care of when I get back from work and on weekends. Cottagcore misses the core point of what is the most important while having a farm: ginormus amount of work. Fashion is fashion. You won't put cute dress while doing weed removal. If all my chores are done, then I'll put on a cute outfit and just look at the fruit of my work. That beeing said: I don't belive it's a reality of those people.

[andromeday]

A couple years ago, I was so worried about the fact that I couldn’t be full “grunge” or “cottagecore” because I both love rock music and play classical instruments. Now I’m so happy that I didn’t give up my interests to make myself a consumerised version of myself, and I’ve realized that when I learn something unexpected about my friends it’s so cool and makes them that much more interesting because their personalities don’t fit into boxes.

[CountinCrayolas]

I believe this is a reflection of our natural tribalism and desire to be a part of a group. With social media, we are now able to be more significantly influenced by brands and other sub cultures than the past.

[mjuxgrw]

As a 17 year old girl watching this video I can heavily agree especially with the trend cycles and money part. I used to have a job and each time I got payed I would spend it on cloths I THOUGHT we cute at the time because they were in trend and it kind of fit into my personal style, but then months later or even weeks I found myself never actually wearing it and then later throwing it out. And it is not like I can get any of that money back either. So I guess you can say I’m crusted by it. Not to mention that a huge reason as to why I fed into trends is because I never really had an aesthetic I just kind of bought what I liked, but then soon ppl started to say I was wierd or I was not aesthetic enough and it just messed with my head a lot mentally. Conformity is toxcicity but accepted.

[niamhsheridan]

Personally, I wouldn't look towards the vsco girl aesthetic to the beginning of this phenomenon. I was a teenager in the early 2010s and the main thing I can point towards is Tumblr fashion blogs, dividing consumers based on their interests. There was, in particular, the "Tumblr grunge" which fused fashion with personal ideology and mental health. This contrasted the hyper feminine pastel summer trends of the time, and for me really started the identity politics of online fashion. But even at that, this can be tracked back to the beginning of online teen culture, with emo and scene, and then before that, the growth of gothic scenes in the 80s and 90s. Aesthetics we're born from real life subculture, which has always existed, but never has been connected so strongly with fast fashion or false online identities.

[biggbeefer]

I'm happy that it seems like people are waking up to how hyper-consumerism & materialism is really hurting us. The speed at which trends come and go in the internet era is dangerous if it's causing you to spend money. Our generation needs to learn to express ourselves from within more

[larkfly]

You're gonna make it big, girl. You have all the components for success: interesting topics, eloquency and good and dynamic editing. Keep it up.

[Gothicgarlic]

Aesthetics and 'cores' are another extension of capitalism and are part of consumption for consumption sake. Capitalism can only function if we continue to consume so, of course, reasons keep coming up to get people to consume.

[victorgrecca]

When we realize that this "emptiness", that this "hole" that exists within us, will not be filled by things, approvals or belonging, we can begin to see life with different eyes... :3

[rebekkaroe]

"True expression comes from the act of creating, not consuming" 💯I love what you said here - it's so true. We don't need to consume in order to show our personality or identity but obviously brands want to sell us a different story.