Before we begin - may I suggest putting on Cinema - Skrillex remix to really get us in the proper headspace?
Once upon a time, many moons and listens to Avicii’s Wake Up Me ago, I experienced a style conundrum, an identity crisis. A preppy, punk pickle, if you will. You see, circa 2012-2014 I was an unrecognizable person. I touched on this slightly in one of my past pieces - wanting to fit in with the preppy aesthetic of the sorority I had newly joined, while still fantasizing about the “edgy girl” I had planned on becoming in college.
Before we go further, let’s first explore what the lay man’s “style” during this time was…
I’m not sure if the style of this time period has been giving an official name yet, as we have with the “indie sleaze/twee” movement of 2008-2011. If we haven’t, may I suggest that it includes “preppy” in the name? Because it certainly played a large role these years. I hate to add to the indie sleaze/vibe shift/whatever discourse, as it’s been beaten to death. But I WOULD like to put it on the table that it’s possible that 2012-2014 trends could one day make a comeback. And hopefully it’s when I’m six feet under.
In chronological order - 1.) Required business casual for a sorority event, a flex 2.) Interning in New York City for a summer 3.) A Tobi skater skirt that I wore to death 4.) A Lilly Pulitzer dress that was too short on me
Back to my style quandary. In order to illustrate this better, I’ll refer to two major style bloggers of the time - Rachel Lynch and Sarah Vickers. One ran a blog titled ihateblonde, the other one named Classy Girls Wear Pearls (another muse during this time was Rosie Londoner, but that’s a deep dive for another day). Both of these blogs are still in existence*.
*Let’s do a quick sidebar - In the ever-changing landscape that is social media/blogging/content creating, both of these ladies managed to continue their online presence (presences?). And for that, I tip my hat to them. Viva la style blog!
Rachel was - and still is - an edgy New Yorker, donning over-sized sunglasses, knee-high stockings and colorful fur jackets. She was the festival-going, city-dwelling, bleach-blonde, what-I-perceived-to-be-punk side of myself that I desperately wanted to unleash.
We find the polar opposite in Sarah Vickers, a New England argyle-wearing prepster who runs a successful clothing business alongside alongside her fellow influencer husband Kiel James Patrick. I hate to admit just how obsessed I was with this couple, but I hung onto every one of their Instagram posts.
How could I look effortlessly put together, yet like a carefree bon vivant at the same time?
I think this question encapsulates how it felt to be in your early 20s around this time. We were beginning to learn how to create an online presence (the blogs were popping off, Instagram was the new, shiny toy), while at the same time applying to internships.
All this to say, I was in style - and personal identity - limbo. And I remained in limbo, with my personal style to show for it.
Chevron prints reigned supreme and Stella & Dot necklaces adorned my neck. I carried a Lilly Pulitzer tumbler with my sorority’s print on it. Half of my clothing at the time had anchors on it. Weekends were spent in high-low dresses, bandage skirts and Jeffrey Campbell Lita shoes. Hunter Harris, one of my favorite writers, captured the spirit of this era perfectly in her piece titled Put This Dress In The Smithsonian.And this 2013 Guest of a Guestarticle will transport you back in time immediately.
While the trends mentioned above lasted a year+, trends now last, what, a millisecond (we’ll save the fast fashion discussion for another day)? Early 2000s style came back, was beaten to death, and went back into the coffin. How long will it take until the same happens with indie/twee style revival, before it’s even really begun?
It’s near impossible to consider what trend from 2012-2014 could eventually resurrect itself. Other eras had at least some element of cool. What could possibly come back?
NOT THE TOBI SKATER SKIRT. God these were some TIMES, loved this so much