The clean girl is out, and I couldn’t be happier.
Though the slick hair, minimal makeup, chunky gold jewelry, and simple outfits that first appeared on TikTok and Pinterest initially seemed to be another silly microtrend, the clean girl aesthetic has continued taking up space in the fashion and beauty world.
Much like every other trend, the clean girl aesthetic has overstayed its welcome, and it’s time we make room for something better. Fortunately, I’m here to tell all the not-so-clean girls that this aesthetic is out for 2024, and being authentic is in.
The clean girl aesthetic sucks for a lot of reasons.
The clean girl aesthetic reminds me of the Brandy Melville aesthetic—a weird, exclusive, white-washed look, mystifyingly worshipped by everyone, myself included. The clean girl aesthetic carries the same superiority complex: if you don’t abide by the trend, you’re considered dirty.
The way the aesthetic is portrayed and adopted online inadvertently perpetuates Eurocentric ideals. The clean girl aesthetic—which is predominantly represented by white influencers and celebrities on social media—excludes racialized women who don’t fit Western beauty ideals shaped by Eurocentricity.
Many clean girl TikTokers love taking credit for popularizing their slick bun or their ‘brownie’ glazed lips (yes, Hailey Bieber, I’m talking to you), when women in the Black, Latina, and Indian communities have been donning these “trends” for years without any recognition.
This isn’t meant to shame those who love chunky gold hoops and minimalist dewy makeup—it’s merely a critique of trends that seek to exclude others and don’t give credit where credit is due.
The demise of the clean girl trend is a long time coming and aligns with a broader cultural shift in the desire for authenticity on social media. As internet fame becomes more achievable thanks to TikTok’s algorithm, a barrier is being broken down between regular people and this new era of so-called celebrities.
We know most of these TikTokers are just regular people, and that is why we’re craving influencers who offer us a glimpse of their true selves. After all, nobody sleeps in matching PJs with a hair mask on every night.
Being honest and not putting on a show is what draws people in. People are realizing that creating a perfectly aesthetically pleasing lifestyle isn’t a priority, nor what matters. Nobody is going to remember if your ponytail had flyaways, nor will anyone remember your ‘donut glazed’ manicure.
Letting your natural hair down is in. Doing your makeup however you want is in. Wearing eclectic jewelry is in. Being yourself is in, whether that means embracing a minimalist or maximalist outfit.
What’s out is shaming others for their style choices, using words like “clean” or “dirty” to describe aesthetics, and creating so-called trends without acknowledging the women and cultures that are at their roots.
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