The New Boujee?
Bows, frills, coquette, dramatic lace…it’s giving Marie Antoinette.
But, really - why are so many wardrobes looking more and more like a 19th century boudoir? If you’re just as curious about the Downton Abbey vibes, this article unpacks the trend, slow fashion style.
Let’s talk history for a minute.
The Victorian Era
The Victorian era lasted from 1837 until the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. The fashion of the time brings to mind wildly uncomfortable corsets and those thiccTM bustles expanding ladies’ dresses from the rear.
But, behind the glitz and glam, there were more complex cultural factors at play like industrial revolution, urbanization, capitalism, and new technological and financial innovations. Despite the age’s advancement, there existed the dark truth of the widening wealth gap.
The economic growth of the 1800s was unprecedented - prosperous for some, but not so much for others. Enter social and economic inequality. While the one-percent elite donned their lavish lace and scheduled their soirees, the working class saw very little of that wealth.
This led to social tensions and labor unrest. Workers organized labor unions and advocated for better working conditions, leading to the emergence of the labor movement.
Economic Inequality Today
In 2024, we see similar socioeconomic disparities and protest against those disparities. A few examples include grassroot efforts to combat toxic workplace culture and the emergence of trends like the gen Z quiet quitting movement.
Not to mention, the hot strike summer of the past three years. In 2023, labor strikes spread across the entertainment, healthcare, auto, and education industries like wildfire. More than half
a million workers staged nearly 400 strikes during the first 11 months of 2023, according to Cornell University’s Labor Action Tracker.
Okay, pause.
Historically, it kind of seems like this whole Victorian style was just a flex for the rich. So, why are so many definitely not-rich people trying to look like English aristocrats? Is this an art-imitating-life type of thing?
There are a number of explanations for this trend but what if it’s about romanticizing a bygone past?
Lockdown’s Lingering Nostalgia
Think back to the 2020 lockdown.
People couldn’t go out and socialize so they turned to their phones, transforming Tiktok into one of the most popular app sensations. Girls, experimenting with cottage-core and dark academia aesthetics, went viral - anything to escape the loud silence of the world literally coming to a screeching halt.
Some dress historians theorize that the Victorian aesthetic might have come from a longing for pre-industrial slower life, the Romantic era, and taking the time to be a little extra which, to be honest, is relatable.
Fast forward to lockdown era - yes, lockdown was crazy and traumatic. But, it forced everyone to slow down and lean into a nostalgia that has always been below the surface of modern-day capitalism.
While a lot of Victorian style was about whose bow-and-frill drip was the flashiest, it was also about one of the realest failures of capitalism: customer dissatisfaction.
Mo.Na. Promotes the Circular Economy
Shameless self-promotion here, you guys, but we love our product. Here at Mo.Na, we’ve come up with our own green aesthetic bent. Cute, completely biodegradable jewelry, Mother Nature-approved.
We’re not knocking the Victorian fit. By all means, love, rock the lace. But why not also flaunt your love for earth while looking fab?
Join us in championing slow fashion and the circular economy because you care and so do we.
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