What is Frugal Chic

If you’ve been on the internet in the past 6 months, the words ‘frugal chic’ have undoubtedly flashed across your screen at least once. The term ‘frugal chic’ was coined by Mia McGrath on TikTok in August 2025. Quality over quantity is the ethos of McGrath’s ‘frugal chic’ concept, which she describes as being a break-away lifestyle shift away from mindless overconsumption and towards a more intentional and self-invested way of living.

McGrath emphasises the importance of indulging in hobbies, experiences, long-term investments and yes, even fashion, beauty and wellness products that will improve your overall quality of living, rather than spending your time, money and energy on trends and lifestyle choices that don’t align with your idealized version of present and future self. The visual and fashion aesthetic of ‘frugal chic’ is focused around high quality, luxurious looking, timeless and elegant motifs, often intermixed with images of it-girl business women and quality workwear clothing. ‘Frugal chic’ became an instant hit in the underconsumption trend that has persisted through 2025 and now into 2026.

Underconsumption

Underconsumption as a trend-turned-lifestyle has been widely adopted by many Millennials and Gen-Z consumers, as global economic hardship is increasingly affecting quality of life (except among the top 1% or so, who seem to be doing even better recently). Popular trends within the underconsumption lifestyle include project pan (using beauty products until you reach the end of the product) and using quality goods over trendy items so as to increase the use-per-cost (durable water bottles over ones that are trendy for a season).

The original goal of the underconsumption trend was to influence people to use what they had until it reached the end of its lifecycle in an attempt to try and stop the overconsumption and accumulation of products that were popular but never fully used. However, as with most things in a late-stage capitalist society, the trend was adopted by companies as a way to sell you on ‘investment’ products that would last a lifetime, or with some other quality focused strategies.

McGrath’s original intention with ‘frugal chic’ was to promote a way of underconsumption that still attempted to aestheticize the act of buying and having less, but in recent months, the trend has diverged from that altruistic goal. Like anything on the internet, ‘frugal chic’, along the same lines as underconsumption, was adopted by influencers and corporations as a way to sell you more things. The packaging of ‘chic’ gained the most traction, and the concept of frugality seems to have been left behind.

What is ‘Chic’

In the later months of 2025, it seemed as if every influencer online was making a video about “The top things that I find the most chic” or similar videos along those lines. The concept of chic was running wild in consumers mind, thanks to the popularity of ‘frugal chic’, and everyone was suddenly clamoring to know what was the most important things to buy in order for them to exude the same effortlessly cool and polished look that their favorite internet personalities were selling them.

In the 21st century, chic has come to be a catch-all word to describe anything that might be deemed stylish, elegant, unique, sleek, fashionable, trendy, timeless, or otherwise worthy of note in Vogue and every other fashion publication. The official definitions of chic include “smart elegance and sophistication especially of dress or manner” and “a distinctive mode of dress or manner associated with a fashionable lifestyle, ideology, or pursuit” (Merriam-Webster, 2026).

In 2025, ‘chic’ became an identifier on social media for any fashion or lifestyle content that one might associate with the upper-classes of society. Despite ‘frugal chic’ behavior being focused around decreasing consumption and spending less money, the aesthetics of the trend are centered around timeless elegance that one can only achieve through intentional financial and energetic investment or, in most cases, generational wealth. It seems that as the trend has evolved away from the original goal of frugality and towards the popularization of ‘chic’ living, the upper-class aesthetic has permeated and solidified itself as the main signifier of ‘frugal chic’.

Perhaps this is because we see individuals with excess wealth as being content with their material possessions (regardless of the frequency of use or price) because there is no financial or general stress concerning their consumption habits. By attempting to emulate the same sartorial aesthetics, the ‘frugal chic’ trend tries to provide accessibility to the aspirational lifestyle of the ultra-wealthy.

History of the Class-Fashion Divide

Up until the 20th century, clothing was a clear indicator of someone’s access to wealth and leisure. American sociologist Thorstein Veblen states in The Theory of the Leisure Class (1899) that ‘fashion is a product of class distinction’. Veblen’s work was published during the ‘Gilded Age’ in the United States, when the divide between the wealthy and the lower classes was rapidly increasing due to economic deregulation and exploitation.

The fashions of the upper-classes were ornate, expensive and intricate; difficult for someone of lower economic status to replicate on their own. Clothing was a clear signifier of class not only due to the cost of producing garments, but because the upper classes had the freedom of leisure that the working class could not afford. The richest people in the world did not have to spend the day working or providing labor, and could therefore indulge in leisurely activities, including traveling and learning about art and history. This afforded them a deeper and larger understanding of culture, refining their ‘taste’.

Fashion, like all art, is influenced by world events, and through their leisure, the upper-classes gained more knowledge to inform their fashion taste. Lower and middle classes did not have the same access to time, knowledge and money, and this would have been reflected in their clothing choices and consumption habits.

In 1977, sociologist Ivan Reid conducted a study in UK social class differences, and found that over ‘half of women interviewed rated dress and behavior as the clearest indication of class’. Britain was experiencing rapidly rising inflation and unemployment rates, as de-industrialization was increasing throughout the country during the 1970s.

Fashions of the lower classes focused on practicality and affordability, including denim and polyester workwear as everyday dress. Working class women were donning suits and trousers in order to fit into their respective places of employment. Rebellious youth subcultures like Punk and The New Romantics challenged mainstream ideals of economic and social conservative through diy-ed clothing and vintage styles. Just like the socio-economic culture of the American Gilded Age, the fashions of the British upper, middle and lower classes in the 1970s all reflected access to wealth and labor.

Within the last century there are countless other examples of socioeconomic experiences similar to those of Veblen and Reid that impact the way in which clothing becomes a signifier of class and behavior.

Consumption, Class and Clothing

Joane Entwistle, in her seminal work The Fashioned Body (2000) asserted that ‘clothing and possessions are used to identify individuals as belonging to a group or class’. This backs up Bernard Barber and Lyle S. Lobel in claims that ‘consumption equals wealth…therefore consumption equals social class position’ (1993). Both of these arguments are based on Pierre Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus and subsequent taste.

Habitus as described by Bourdieu is the ‘structure that generates internalized practices and perception, which operates as “distinctive signs” or “classifiable acts” ‘ (1984). In summary; how we act, based on our experiences and perceptions of the world, indicate our class and social status. Bourdieu believed that your habitus would develop your personal taste and therefore taste could be based on your socioeconomic and cultural class.

Barber, Lobel and Bourdieu all propose the idea that consumption and class are intrinsically linked while Entwistle, Veblen and Reid provide an argument for fashion’s ability to signify class. Within the ‘frugal chic’ trend, it is evident that these claims may not hold true within the landscape of a post fast-fashion boom.

While Bourdieu asserted that ‘class based inequalities are apparent in everyday consumption habits’ he also believed that the middle class has an innate desire ‘to be seen in a good light [which leads to] self representation normally associated with those in a higher position’ (1984). Recent research suggests that while the ‘working class has a functional approach to clothing…the middle class, anxious over the judgements made by others, looks for fashionable and original garments’ (Appleford et al, 2013). Rather than generate new and original ideas of what ‘chic’ is, the ‘frugal chic’ trend looks to the fashion and lifestyle aesthetic of the upper class.

Georg Simmel proposed that this is because ‘the charm of imitation [is that] it makes possible an expedient test of power, which, however, requires no great personal and creative application’ (1957). The ‘frugal chic’ lifestyle allows for the acquisition of a high-class aesthetic without great personal investment, creativity or loss to an individual. This is part of the reason it may have grown so popular in the last few months. It requires no risk but promises a higher visual reward for those individuals that participate.

Being Frugally Chic

Sophie Woodward proposes that ‘clothing enables women to construct social identities and enact certain personality traits’ (2007). In the age of social media, where the digital and visual have become more and more integrated into our personal lives and how we view ourselves and the world, this statement is validated in the ‘frugal chic’ trend.

The ‘frugal chic’ provides individuals with the guide for how to live a frugal life in order to achieve a social identity based on one that is above their economic class standing. The lifestyle concept encourages people to invest their time and money into their purchase in order to make them last longer and appreciate them more. It prioritizes fashion aesthetics traditionally associated with higher socioeconomic classes and emphasizes education and artistic indulgence (much like the upper-classes of the Gilded Age). ‘Frugal chic’ sells financial and aesthetic freedom for the middle class, wrapped in lifestyle packaging of the ruling wealthy.

Ambition and aspiration is never a negative influence, and while the ‘frugal chic’ trend can be harmful, the beauty of it lies in its original conception. McGrath’s work to bring an attainable version of a highly sought after lifestyle to the masses is commendable and achievable. You just have to make sure you commit to the lifestyle switch and not just the wardrobe change.

thank you so much for reading! this is a newer piece I wrote to help bridge my writing from academic towards more public facing work. let me know if you enjoyed and what you think of ‘frugal chic’, will it withstand the test of trend-ification? references will be in the comment section.

In The Fashion System (1967), Roland Barthes illustrates how contemporary ideas of fashion form a coherent production of meaning, one that can be defined by a ‘sequence of constraints, and not that of freedoms’ (p.161). Barthes’ definition can be difficult to understand, as his work focused on the semiotics of the fashion system. However, the idea of constraint producing fashion remains true when applied to the practical and physical aspects of the fashion industry.

As Barthes points out, constraints, limitations, and the lack of personal freedom have always existed in and are a vital building block of the ever changing production of what is ‘fashion’. In this context, ‘fashion’ refers to the cyclical consumption and production of objects, ideas and dreams of dress. Over the last few decades since the publication of The Fashion System (1967), corporations, mass public media and consumer culture have gained expansive control over what is fashionable, what is marketable, what is worth spending time and money on. Individuals living within capitalistic realities are slowly losing their freedom and agency of choice and participation through the forced conformity of contemporary consumption. Within the ‘fashion’ system, the idea of docility has become one of the most desirable qualities, within both the individual and the collective consumer base existign in a postmodern capitalist society.

Merriam-Webster dictionary (2025) defines docility as being ‘easily led or managed’. Docility could also be defined as the willingness of an individual to conform to the force of a higher power’s often selfish or exploitative desires. The idea of docile bodies, a theory introduced by Michel Foucault in his book Discipline and Punish (1975), provides a solid theoretical foundation for understanding how consumers become susceptible to capitalism’s whims. Michel Foucault (1926-1984) was a French scholar, who is well known for his ideas of panopticism, power, discourse, discipline and punishment. While he did not directly apply his idea of docile bodies to the field of fashion studies, the theory is useful in explaining how and why consumers are susceptible to conformity and adherence within the ‘fashion’ sphere.

Foucault explains his idea of a docile body as ‘a body is docile that may be subjected, used, transformed and improved’ (Foucault,1975 p.170). This is the idea that after having conditions of control, discipline, and surveillance exerted upon them by forces of a higher power, individuals will behave in the manner that is desired by that controlling power. By conforming to these conditions, the individual is normalizing the behavior for themselves, and in turn this normalizes the behavior for others. Foucault explains that docile bodies are created and sustained through hierarchical observation, examination and normalization.

Hierarchical structures, such as class systems, allow for the organisation of individuals into definitive groups with varying levels of power, which can be visualised by all individuals on all levels of the hierarchical system. This social architecture generates a framework that allows for individuals to become aware of the privileges of themselves as well as others, and also allows them to view the conduct required to achieve and sustain such privileges. By being able to observe the hierarchical structure, individuals can examine and evaluate how others behave within their own stratum and in different strata.Through these assessments of behavior, beliefs of the popular majorities create ideas of what is socially acceptable within those social systems.

This process of judgement of others’ behaviors is then reflected onto the individual, which results in self examination within the individual, a process that prompts them to inspect their own behaviors. This is also known as a normalising or disciplinary gaze (Foucault, 1975, p.184) which is an unseen force that leads people to adjust their behavior to a certain standard in the fear that examination and punishment will occur within themselves and within the social system. This elicits a sense of being surveilled and turns the hierarchical structure of a system and its easy visibility into an ‘exercise of power’ (Foucault, 1975, p187). This creates a sense of constant assessment and paranoia within individuals and the social system as a whole.

Foucault’s original conceptualization of docile bodies was in a very literal sense of the human body. He explained his idea through examples of student’s conduct in schools and soldiers executing physical drills (Foucault, 1975 p.135). However, the idea of docile bodies can be applied to any other areas of study concerning the body, including fashion studies. Soldiers and students are expected to perform in a certain manner to fit in or avoid punishment from the higher forces they are under, such as a drill sergeant or a teacher. Within the ‘fashion’ system, individuals are taught or conditioned to behave in the way that the higher forces want them to behave.

As Joanne Entwistle (2000, p.329) explains, Foacualt’s concept of docile bodies can be used to provide an understanding of ‘fashion as a discursive domain that sets significant parameters around the body and its presentation’. Entwistle describes how the dominant force controlling dress, at least in Western countries, is the constantly changing force of fashion and the discourses surrounding it (Entwistle, 2000, p.329). Drawing upon the ideas of the body and discourse that Foucault sets up in his book Discipline and Punish (1975), Entwistle establishes the institutional relationships between visual language, clothing and consumption for individuals living within the Western fashion system.

In the global fashion system, a hierarchical system of power is set up, with designers, celebrities, brands and models at the top of the organisational system. Nowadays, individuals outside that hierarchy have access to more knowledge of the types of conduct and rewards that these higher forces have, thanks to modern media allowing for the constant and intimate visibility of these entities at the top of the hierarchical fashion system.

Brands and celebrities are being constantly watched; examined for how well they adhere to the higher forces of the fashion system, and the benefits and consequences that follow their behavior. Social media is propelling the constant examination and comparison of individuals to these higher forces within the fashion system. Photographs and videos of brands, celebrities and models being posted and published on social media helps to promote the examination of all areas of the hierarchical fashion system, as visual imagery of all levels of the organizational structure can be viewed simultaneously, prompting individuals to contrast their behavior against others.

This constant behavior of judgement becomes even more normalised, and creates a contrast between those adhering to the ideas of the higher fashion forces and those who are not adhering. Those individuals who are found to be ‘unfashionable’ or that do not appear presentable, might often be judged for being ‘left behind’ the trends, which imply that by not self-disciplining oneself to fit within the fashion system that there will be negative social consequences.

This idea that a body can be forced to comply with the forces of a higher power is exemplified in various ways within the fashion industry. Women’s bodies are often susceptible to the gaze of the companies pushing a ‘thin agenda’, forcing women to conform their bodies to fit not only within physically limiting clothing but within what is deemed as acceptible bodily standards by society (Bordo, 1993; Barnard, 2020). Bodies of all shapes and genders are expected to conform to a standard set of sizes, set in place by higher capitalist forces (corporations) that can create great profit through the ease of production of a standard sizing system.

In a more general sense, all bodies are expected to be clothed, in a certain manner depending on their age, occupation or location. All bodies are forced to conform to the idea that a ‘correct body’ is a clothed body (Entwistle, 2020) and clothing corporations capitalize on this societal fact by creating ‘fashion’; ever changing standards of dress that many are expected to follow and adopt, in order to conform. This cycle of constant new fashion items being produced and consumed has never been more visible than it has been due to the increased use of social media for fashion discourse and consumption.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, there has been a collective shift in consumer culture away from the body positivity movement of the late 2010s. This dangerous new trend, extremely prevalent on the social media platform TikTok, promotes diet and workout culture to young women, wrapped in aesthetic visuals and with both self-hatred and self-affirming language. On TikTok the hashtag #SkinnyTok had over 68,000 posts, a majority of which were accompanied by other similar hashtags such as #weightloss, #healthylifestyle and #bodyimage. The hashtag has recently been removed from the TikTok platform and when searched, replaced with resources for mental and physcical health support.

The main content of these #Skinny posts are about how women can become skinnier, leaner and happier by simply changing their lifestyle and consumption habits. The content promotes increasing the number of hours an individual should go to the gym, workouts for drastic weight loss, dieting advice for cutting calories and more recently, the promotion of wieght loss enhancers like GLP-1s. Most of the posts with the #Skinny include pictures or videos of an individual showing the audience before and after content of their own weight loss. These individuals usually show this weight change through the use of clothing, wearing the same pieces of clothing in the before and after content to show the changes in how the clothes look on their bodies before and after the weight change. These pieces of clothing are usually athletic gym wear, or similar ‘working out’ clothes.

Some of these #Skinny influencers, often have videos reviewing, wearing or in partnership with different athletic clothing brands. These types of posts create a relationship between self-disciplining weight loss behaviors of the trend and real clothing that can be purchased by any individual. An individual might buy the athletic clothing as a way of buying into or trying to conform to the trend, giving these brands and pieces of clothing an aspirational appeal.

This might create the idea that if an individual owns this clothing, they might be able to gain the same rewards and social power as the individuals who have large social media followings and brand partnerships. The #Skinny trend is circulating the idea that by creating extreme self-discipline in oneself, through the act of working out, losing weight or buying the right athletic clothing, that an individual can achieve aesthetic dreams of social power.

Social media platforms, such as TikTok, illuminate a hierarchical organization between young women, as the organizational structure of the platform allows for a transparent view of individuals and their social power, through quantifiable data such as the number of followers or ‘likes’ an individual might have. The transparency of hierarchical organization and algorithmic strategies, based on individuals’ interaction with certain content on social media, gives individuals an abundance of different and similar behaviors to observe.

This leads to judgement, of oneself and of others, based on social performance, of how individuals who look and act a certain way are rewarded with higher followers and ‘like’ counts on the social media platform. In the instance of #SkinnyTok, individuals saw that TikTok users who were conforming to the rules of the trend (weight loss, athletic clothing consumption, self-discipline) were gaining more followers, more ‘likes’ and more social power. This in turn leads individuals to believe that if they too can conform themselves to the standards set by the trend they can reap the same rewards. This internalization of social behaviors is a key component in creating a susceptible and docile individual. The #Skinny trend on social media is a contemporary example of how Foucault’s idea of docile bodies can be applied to practices of fashioning the body, through discipline and consumption.

Foucault and Barthes both present theories that can be used to explain how fashion is inherently restrictive and forces conformity and docility upon everyone who participates in fashion under modern mainstream marketing and capitalist strategies. However, there are some groups of consumers that rebel against the inherent submission of established fashion norms. Subculture groups such as punk and goth are historically known for choosing to go against the fashions of the general population and create their own genres of style. Foucault and Barthes’ work offer us one explanation of consumption habits within the fashion system, but should not be held as the only concepts with which to understand contemporary fashion practices.

In an increasingly late-stage capitalistic reality, consumption is the one of the only powers the individual still holds. By creating conditions in which there is increasing hierarchical observation and judgement, corporations and the extremely wealthy diminish the control that one has over their purchasing behaviors. In order to regain agency over our personal consumption habits, we must first take a look at the ways we are consuming, viewing, comparing and judging others around us, and how that affects how we see ourselves.

this essay was written in may 2025 for a fashion cultures and politcs course as part of my masters in fashion cultures and histories. it may be a little outdated but i think the sentiments still hold some weight in our current sociocultural situations. i’ll leave the references in the comments, let me know if you think this is still accurate and i hope you enjoyed <3

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Medieval Fashion on TikTok and Beyond

A new species of fashion subculture is developing on TikTok. Rather than being organized or formed around physical spaces, movements or activities like traditional subcultures, online subcultures are developing around personal presentation, aspirational messaging and escapism tactics. Communities centered around aesthetic ideologies are coming together with the goal of sharing fashion, art, lifestyle, and beauty content. These new subculture communities operate under a ‘core’ that is usually attached as a suffix to a word that captures the overarching idea of the group (Doshi et al., 2024). These new breeds of subcultures help to create a means of expression and collective and social identity for individuals, but exist wholly online, populating on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram (Doshi et al., 2024). Examples include ‘cottagecore’ (centered around feminine countryside aesthetics) and ‘Barbiecore’ (inspired by the aesthetic style of Mattel’s Barbie doll). One of the most popular ‘cores’ of 2025 was something known as #MedievalCore.

‘Medievalcore’ is the umbrella term that encompasses medieval art and fashion imagery circulating social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram and Pinterest. As a fashion trend, it glamorises and modernises chainmail, armor, long intricate hairstyles, medieval footwear and bliauts (which are the long-sleeved gowns associated heavily with the Middle Ages and fantasy costumes). On Tik Tok alone, the hashtag #MedievalTikTok has over 659K videos under it, with many of the popular search results relating to medieval fashion and containing either historically informative or contemporary fashion content involving medieval imagery. In January 2025, Pinterest compiled a ranking of the top 2025 aesthetic trend predictions, with castle-core among the top listed trends alongside other fantasy and historically inspired aesthetic fashions (Pinterest, 2025). The circulation and re-creation of medieval fashion imagery, blended with elements of fantasy, falls in line with the idea of neomedievalism. Neomedievalism is a framework for interpreting how our current understanding of the Middle Ages changes based on our reproductions of medieval history and imagery. KellyAnn Fitzpatrick defines neomedievalism as ‘the ongoing process of reevaluating what can be done with the Middle Ages in an ever-moving present.’ (2015, p.33).

The main participants in these neomedievalism social media trends are young women, the demographic that is also actively participating and engaging with the fantasy literary genre (Balling and Martens, 2024). Fantasy media has gained popularity since the COVID-19 lockdown, with social media platforms like TikTok creating new opportunities for women to connect with each other over escapist media that takes place in fantasy worlds and medieval inspired societies. Younger women, specifically within the United States, where socioeconomic and political issues seem to be inescapable, are turning to fantasy media and medieval imagery as a form of idealised escapism (Balling and Martens, 2024). This form of escapism seemingly falls parallel with the rise of Medieval-core on social media platforms.

The real Middle Ages was not a time of glamour, mystique and romance; as it is so often depicted in fashion, pop culture, or fantasy and historical media. It was a time of hardship, suffering and turmoil, where the wealthy and privileged classes held almost absolute power (sound kind of familiar?). In order to understand how and why the medieval period is so popular with young women, and how it has been romanticised, it is important to look at how medievalism and neomedievalism developed over the last 500 years.

Historical Iterations of Neomedievalism- The End of the Middle Ages

The medieval time period has long held the fascination of the general public, artists, and designers. Imagery and aesthetic influences from the Middle Ages have permeated popular culture through many different types of media, from literature, architecture, film and even fashion. Since the end of the medieval era, people have found new ways to interact with and reinvent elements of the period to suit the demands of whatever rising themes, fads and fashions were being demanded. These reinterpretations of the medieval period, concepts called medievalism and the newly developed neomedievalism, create new understandings of what it means to be medieval. While medievalism and neomedievalism are a relatively new area of academia, aspects of the concepts can be found in practices throughout the past 500 years or so.

Fashion and depictions of it, for example, have been subject to neomedievalism interpretations since before the Middle Ages ended. During the late 15th century, artists were already creating paintings, portraits and other forms of art that held nostalgic recreations of the early medieval period. According to Anna Reynolds, manuscripts from the Renaissance and medieval era would ‘often include some figures wearing fashionable outfits, while others in the same scene wear invented fantastic or historical clothing’ (2017, p.157). Portrait sitters were more likely to wear their most expensive clothing, which would have been more formal and possibly out of fashion at the time of painting. This presentation of individuals and Renaissance fashion leads to misunderstandings of the type of everyday clothing that would have been worn during the time period, which in turn, actively creates a medievalism viewing of dress in Renaissance art. Reynolds also cites Emilie Gordenker’s research into Dutch artists in the seventeenth century and their uses of fantasy clothing in portraits, in order to create a narrative within the artwork (Gordenker, 2002).

Another example of inaccurate fashion in Renaissance art was in depictions of masque dress. Courtiers would put on elaborate performances, called masque, and would dress up, act, sing and dance out historical or fantastical works. Paintings of these events would illustrate these highly ranking members of society wearing clothing not from their time or fantastical versions of recent fashions, creating new interpretations for future generations of what dress was like at the time. Through their participation in these whimsical events, even monarchs would contribute to the creation of medievalism art. The artist John Hoskins created a miniature portrait of Queen Henrietta Maria (Fig. 1) in which she is wearing her masque dress from her performance as the mythical being Circe (1632). Illuminated manuscripts also inaccurately depicted clothing of the time period, with figures wearing ‘fashionable dress alongside others wearing (sometimes inaccurate) historicising or invented clothing’ (Reynolds, 2017, p.166). These interactions with historical dress, both in everyday life and in art, show how medievalisms were being created even as the era was coming to a close.

Figure 1 : Queen Henrietta by Hoskins (1632)

The Nineteenth Century

Between 1800 and 1899 there are countless examples of medievalism in fashion, in everyday dress and costume. In the mid 19th century, a new style called ‘Aesthetic’ dress gained popularity and drew inspiration from the form fitting yet unconstructive styles of historical medieval dress. These new fashions were designed for movement and highlighted athletic bodies, unlike the stiff and formal styles of the mainstream fashions that were popular at the time. (Becker, 2017, p. 75). Figure 2 depicts the loose flowing silhouette of the ‘Aesthetic’ style. This aesthetic movement was tied to naturalism and Pre-Raphaelite art movements, emphasising a desire to be reunited with human nature and depart from the frilly and excessive fashions of the mainstream. The Pre-Raphaelite movement originated as a brotherhood of young artists disillusioned with the teachings of English art education that promoted the work of Raphael and Renaissance masters as the standard for creating art (Lang, 2014). The movement focused on the spirit and themes of pre-Renaissance artworks, ascertained from medieval literature, heralding a return of medieval imagery within popular artwork in Europe (Cheney, 1992). Pre-Raphaelitism marked a period of cultural investment in medieval themes and naturalism, and led to an increased interest in medieval inspired fashions that allowed more freedom and expression to the wearer (Becker, 2017, p.75).

Figure 2 : Symphony in Flesh by James McNeill Whistler (1871-1874)

The Twentyfirst Century

At the start of the 21st century, people were drawn again and again to the medieval ages as a source of inspiration for all forms of media, art and fashion. A rise in medieval fantasy films and television series in the 2000s, 2010s and early 2020s created a large pop culture craze, interested in these fabricated ideas of what it means to be, act and dress medieval. Films such as The Lord of the Rings trilogy , A Knights Tale, The Chronicles of Narnia, Ella Enchanted, Kingdom of Heaven, and Stardust (while containing vastly different depictions of the Middle Ages) all create neomedievalisms within the 21st century for an audience that is clinging on to nostalgic hope of a better life than they found in the 20th century (Marshall, 2007, p.10).

Television series like the CW’s Reign (2013), a semi-historical show about the life of Mary Queen of Scots, fed into misconceptions of historical medieval dress by having the main characters Mary and her ladies in waiting wearing contemporary designer gowns from the 2000s and 2010s (Figure 3). HBO’s Game of Thrones (2011), a high fantasy series based on G.R.R. Martin’s books of the same name (based on the War of the Roses which took place in 1455-1487) entranced millions of viewers worldwide. The costumes in the show vary from accurate depictions of medieval peasant wear to highly fantastical dresses and armor (Figure 4) . There are countless other examples of neomedievalism fashion in contemporary media, but examples like Reign and Game of Thrones are important to highlight, as they were produced as Generation Z was growing up and exploring popular culture. These types of neomedieval films and television programs influence not only the way that we interact with the Middle Ages, but also how Gen Z understands and engages with neomedieval fashion.

Figure 3: CW’s Reign Costumes (2015)

Figure 4: Game of Thrones Costumes (2017)

Designer Inspiration

Neomedieval fashions did not originate solely on film and television screens. There have been several designers and brands that have taken inspiration from medieval imagery and themes in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. In 1997, Betsey Johnson debuted a collection that drew heavily from medieval fashion imagery (Figure 5). John Galliano designed an entire medieval inspired collection for Dior’s A/W 2006 haute couture show (Figure 6) which included armor, chainmail, headpieces and other medieval silhouettes and elements bricolaged with contemporary styles. Paco Rabanne’s S/S 2024 show exhibited a collection that displayed medieval fashion imagery blended with elements of ancient Greek fashion imagery and contemporary styles (Fig. 7). More recently, Louis Vuitton’s 2026 cruise show debuted in Palais des Papes, one of the most notable European medieval palaces, and featured a collection full of medieval inspired patterns, silhouettes and fabrics (Figure 8). Louis Vuitton described the collection as ‘a dramatic clash of eras, the splendour of the Middle Ages collides with glam rock’ (Louis Vuitton, 2025). These examples showcase how neomedievalism has transitioned from literary, art and film spaces and has now seeped into fashion at the highest levels of power and significance. By utilising neomedievalism in their collections, these legacy and influential fashion houses are imbuing cultural meaning to neomedieval fashion as a legitimate style of dress, and popularising it for the masses.

Figure 5: Betsey Johnson A/W Dress (1997)

Figure 6: Galliano for Dior (2006)

Figure 7: Paco Rabanne Dress (2024)

Figure 8: Louis Vuitton Cape Dress (2025)

Rise of ‘Medievalcore’ on TikTok

‘Medievalcore’, which utilises medieval imagery and aesthetics, has been circulating on TikTok since the COVID 19 lockdown but has had a recent surge in popularity since 2024. At the MTV Video Music Awards ceremony in September 2024, pop artist Chappel Roan appeared and performed in three separate neomedieval ensembles (Figure 9). Until Roan brought ‘medievalcore’ to the forefront of pop culture, the online subculture had been mainly centered around medieval costume. Now, individuals are finding new ways to incorporate neomedieval dress into contemporary style on social media.

Figure 9: Chappell Roan at the 2024 VMAs (2025)

Establishing the Aesthetic Canon

While the majority of the ‘medievalcore’ and associated aesthetic movements are appearing on TikTok, Pinterest has become a place of digital curation and inspiration for medieval fashion imagery (Pinterest, 2025). Above are examples of moodboards (Fig. 10 & Fig 11) created on Pinterest that appear when searching for ‘castlecore’ ‘medievalcore’ and ‘medieval’. These moodboards contain prevailing fashion and medieval imagery that is heavily circulated and used within ‘medievalcore’ TikTok posts, like those discussed in this research. Moodboards such as these contribute to the establishment of the popular idea of what ‘medieval’ means to young women who interact with these themes on social media (Silva, 2025). Common imagery includes chainmail, veils, bliaut style dresses, armor, costumes from period or fantasy films, artwork from the Middle Ages and artwork depicting a romanticised medieval period. These themes are seen repeatedly throughout ‘medievalcore’ posts on TikTik, with most imagery reinterpreted to form new understandings of what medieval fashion truly looked like. This circulation of similar imagery makes up the canon of ‘medievalcore’ , along with archetypes of the warrior or princess, such as Joan of Arc and Eleanor of Aquitaine, and motifs of catholic or gothic aesthetics (Aesthetics Wiki, 2024).

Figure 10 : Medieval Weirdcore Moodboard (2025)

Figure 11: Medievalcore Inspo Moodboard (2025)

So why is MedievalCore popular online?

Nostalgia is the biggest factor influencing the rise of MedievalCore, and other similarly romanticised historical sub-communities. Generation Z is interacting with MedievalCore in order to mediate feelings of anxiety, fear, and uncertainty towards the future through the use of nostalgic and escapist imagery. Medieval clothing within a contemporary space invokes feelings of nostalgia in an audience. Susan Bennett (1996) explains that using historical elements in a current setting allows individuals to explore current situations, through the lens of nostalgia (p.20). In Imagined Nostalgia (Jinhua and Chen, 1997) the purpose of nostalgia is described as ‘the construction and embellishment of remembrance to assuage the present‘ (p.145). The use of nostalgia in MedievalCore content is a response to current fashion practices, where fashion is no longer focused on function but rather produced for production’s sake. The medieval fashions present in MedievalCore media invoke nostalgic feelings for ‘pre-postmodern’ fashion in viewers and the contemporary setting of medieval garments allows the audience to negotiate those feelings of nostalgia in relation to current fashion trend cycles and systems.

Generation Z has grown up under the rise of late-stage capitalism, devastating climate change and never-ending geopolitical conflict. They are nostalgic for a world that values beauty, romance, justice and heroism; all traits that they associate with the medieval period due to their interactions with neomedieval pop culture and media. The MedievalCore subculture allows young people to escape into a world in which they believe that good will always win, the valiant hero will marry the dazzling romantic lead, and wearing beautiful dress into battle will not end in disaster. It provides nostalgic hope that everything will be alright in the end and that you too can be powerful, as long as you dress up in chainmail.

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