Kia Boyz and Corn Kid
after school weekend edition
Hi friends! Welcome back to After School ✨weekend edition✨, an extra long and extra opinionated youth culture digest for paid subscribers.
Last week, Girls Night In published my latest “Ask a Gen Z” column, in which I…ask Gen Z stuff! This month’s question was: What Is Gen Z Actually Wearing? I spoke to quite the spectrum of Gen Zers — a high schooler from Connecticut, a few post-grad Brooklyners — who all had super interesting things to say.
My conversation with 15-year-old Paloma lasted almost an hour and was overflowing with fascinating intel, much of which did not make it into that actual piece, so I wanted to highlight a few more takeaways here:
Skincare is huge and young people are spending cash on the good stuff. She name-checked The Ordinary (which is not expensive but is also not, like, Clean & Clear), Sol de Janeiro, Glow Recipe, and Laniege (the Lip Sleeping Mask and the Water Sleeping Mask, specifically).
The best quote from our talk: “Drunk Elephant is just okay. It’s a little overhyped. It's more for, like, 12-year-olds that want to be 15-year-olds.”
For makeup, she likes L’Oreal Telescopic mascara and anything by Charlotte Tilbury. She also mentioned Two Faced Lip Injection Extreme Lip Plumper and Dior Lip Glow Oil.
She likes Glossier but prefers buying makeup IRL and doesn’t have one local. “I think being in-stores is super-important; I don’t do a whole lot of shopping online, I like to actually go to stores, and that’s the same for a lot of my friends.” Lucky for her — and for Glossier — that they’re entering Sephora next year.
She loves Lululemon and Alo Yoga, a brand I’ve never thought much about until she mentioned it. Now I see it everywhere, and in fact, they’re also debuting their first luxury rtw collection at NYFW this year.
Read the full piece here, if you’d like!
We have a ton to cover today — two weeks of internet! — including:
Unexpected Hot Girl Footwear™
CEO of the Treadmill Strut™
The rise of “that golfer, ‘your dad’s bomber jacket’ aesthetic”
Joey Potter fall
Can a startup make Gen Z care about video e-com?
Can a retailer make Gen Z care about NYFW?
Corn. Kias. Cores!
2,000 words on trends, TikTok, and ridiculous internet theories
Plus everything I’m buying, reading, listening to, etc.!