Hyperspecific Gifts and Hellenistic Revival
"completely different and new, but still yum"
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Esports org 100 Thieves raises $60 million in Series C funding; Kamala Harris’s headphones are youth culture; and Pete Davidson takes over Calvin Klein’s Instagram.
THE HYPERSPECIFIC GIFT GUIDES OF TIKTOK, vox
From 11-year-old gamer girl nieces to “the sort of guy who buys everything that he wants for himself the second he thinks of it,” there’s a gift guide on TikTok for literally everyone. But why are so many creators taking the time to painstakingly putting together gift guides for complete strangers (beyond the hope of affilate revenue)? Reporter Rebecca Jennings’ answer is bleak:
A cynical take might be that as more of the attention economy is spent watching professional influencers and online creators do their jobs, the more we’ve subconsciously adopted their rituals and mannerisms (“link in bio!” “like and subscribe!” “use my code for discount!”). Perhaps as social media has forced us all to become one-person media empires, product recommendations are the internet’s answer to magazine ads or commercial breaks, creating an endless loop of products to see, buy, and recommend again to one’s own followers.
PINTEREST PREDICTS 2022 PROVIDES ADVANCE LOOK AT NEXT YEAR’S TRENDS, adweek
Among the predictions are “pearlcore,” “barkitecture,” “Hellenistic revival,” and “lounge-erie.” Also: tooth gems. There are some good insights in here, but I could have done without “don’t quit your yay job.”
↳ Y2K fashion, pink, handmade knits and preppy looks are the top-selling trends for spring 2022, according to the spring 2022 runway report from Moda Operandi’s trunk show results.
THE BIZARRE TREND THAT'S TAKING SCHOOLIES BY STORM, dailymail
It brings me no joy to include a link to Daily Mail, but this is some A+ trend reporting: Apparently young Aussie men “are opting for matching group attire, wearing resort-style coloured shirts and matching shorts, along with polarized sunglasses that are usually donned by lycra-cladded cyclists.” They’re also — perhaps relatedly — drinking a lot.
FEELING RICH IN THE YEEZY GAP JACKET, nyt
A surprisingly delightful piece about what it’s like to wear the YZY x GAP collab on the streets of New York.
“The coat is completely different and new, but still yum,” Karon Sanders, a 20-year-old from Florida, said.
Yum?
“That’s a new word I’ve started using for things I like,” she clarified.
“Yes, I second the yum!” said Cal Trucco, a 19-year-old from Argentina. “It makes my eyes feel good.”
THE HOTTEST NEW SCENE ON CAMPUS: INVESTING CLUBS, money
Really makes me wonder how much richer would I be if I had joined the investing club rather than the school newspaper.
One last thought: