Dressing the Part: What Fashion Trends Say About our Politics
By Debra Murray
As conservatism is on the rise in the United States, style is also shifting to reflect America’s changing political views.
An annual poll on values and beliefs conducted in May by Gallup found that 38% of Americans identify as “conservative” or “very conservative” on social issues, compared to 29% of respondents who identified as “liberal” or “very liberal.” Unfortunately, Gen Z is also becoming more conservative.
Image Sourced through Pinterest
From milkmaid dress and sourdough starters to Nara Smith’s make-it-from-scratch mentality, the internet has seen a rise in trad wife content. These women are usually some type of stay-at-home mom who also creates content, sharing their life and their “traditional” values of being a homemaker.
While the content itself may not be directly harmful, it has led to a surge of posts from young women sharing their dreams of being fully financially supported by their partner rather than being able to live independently.
Cowboy boots, Carhartt jackets, and American flag sweaters have been a growing trend for the last few years. We see in a more Lana Del Rey-esque way with people on TikTok pairing their cowboy boots with red gingham patterns and bows, and of course, a fresh Coca-Cola.
With Coachella kicking off festival season, bohemian fashion in a 2025 way will be found on everyone’s festival Pinterest boards and TikTok For You page; however, bohemian fashion is more representative than seeing your favorite artist in the desert.
Image Sourced through Pinterest
Bohemian fashion became popular in the 1960s as a rebellion against mainstream fashion, embracing a free-spirited and eclectic style.
In a 1992 Vogue article titled “Hippie Heaven” by Eve Babitz, she writes: “The sixties were a dance that began because everyone was so sick of the uptight fifties, they just went hog-wild, and then wilder and wilder.” She then describes her red rayon dress or bell-bottoms she wore, sitting at a bar on Sunset Strip, waiting for Jim Morrison.
I think the most important takeaway from her writing on bohemian fashion is this: “After the eighties, if you begin wearing long fringe, suede hip-hugger bell- bottoms, and boots, you're no longer some "material girl," but someone intent on more important, higher, spiritual things—the rain forest, jobs with heart, recycling. Of course, we know that the minute you throw away a long-treasured costume because it'll never come back, it comes back.” Sometimes the most rebellious thing is to wear something when no one else is.
In the current economy, the U.S. is also heading towards a recession. A March CNBC Fed Survey put the probability of recession at 36%, up from 23% in January, and is likely to continue to grow with ever-changing news of Trump’s tariffs.
However, in fashion, the signs have been there. In 2024, the “office siren” or “corporate baddie” aesthetic was all over anyone’s FYP. Kitten heels paired with a mini skirt and glasses were all the inspiration for the “office siren” aesthetic. Although creators have shared some more office-appropriate ideas for those who want to channel the aesthetic in a more office-friendly way. While some of these outfits wouldn’t be HR approved and were put together by people who haven’t stepped foot into an office environment, it still lends to the bigger picture that more people are participating in the job hunt. U.S. employers added roughly 177,000 jobs in April, more than expected. The unemployment rate remained unchanged from last month at 4.2%, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Despite these seemingly new jobs available in the U.S., there is constant talk of recent college graduates being unable to find work. Additionally, law schools are receiving a historic number of applications, over 20% higher than last year, according to Axois.
Another consistent signal of rescission is the move to lower maintenance hair colors or the transition to natural hair colors. On TikTok, people have been dyeing their hair “Old Money Blonde” or “Teddy Bear Brown” rather than the “Cowboy Copper” that was trending the year before.
Image Sourced through Pinterest
Beyond fashion and hair, the rise of #skinnytok is to show how society is yet again enforcing beauty standards for women, specifically to be thin and small. #Skinnytok is also being criticized for encouraging disordered eating by sharing ways to lose weight, encouraging tracking calories, drinking bone broth, and more.
In a study published in the journal Plos One, two groups of women watched seven to eight minutes of TikToks. One group watched pro-anorexia “wellness” videos and the other group watched videos of nature. Afterwards, the two groups were then asked to fill out the surveys on body image and beauty standards again.
The study found that pro-anorexia content “significantly decreased” the first group’s body image satisfaction and increased their internalisation of beauty standards.
Researchers said: "Our findings indicate that female-identifying TikTok users may experience psychological harm even when explicit pro-anorexia content is not sought out and even when their TikTok use is time-limited in nature."
Regardless, the biggest rebellion is finding a reflection of who you are, separate from trends and societal pressure to be something else.
