Many girls grew up getting their pigtails pulled, made fun of for wearing bows or liking pink, and feeling pressure to hide any signs of femininity. But now, with the emergence of new trends, including the Soft Feminine or Coquette aesthetic, centered around embracing one’s feminine side, teenagers everywhere are finally allowed to break free of the villainized femininity stereotypes they grew up with.
Sophomore Ashlynn Tran reflected on her relationship with femininity, noticing that it was her environment and the trends of the time that affected her style when she was younger.
“I grew up with a brother, so I was a tomboy when I was little,” Tran said. “Throughout elementary, I think I wore darker colors because, at that time, people didn’t really wear pink a lot like nowadays.”
Senior Allysa Celino recalled that in her childhood, she was often driven away from dressing feminine because she wanted, like many other girls, to be more unique.
“I think growing up, I did have that universal experience of pushing it away or denying the color pink or liking Justin Bieber. I was wanting to be different,” Celino said.
Sophomore Paige Souza noted that social media has caused a surge in feminine trends and people’s confidence to embrace their feminine side. As consumers watch their favorite creators embrace themselves, they cannot help but want to mimic them.
“When something becomes popular and trendy, like being Coquette or a Clean Girl, since it became a lot more popular in social media, it’s more appealing,” Souza said. “You see someone that you really like online actually be more feminine and you think it’s really cute, so you want to do it.”
Social media has created microtrends in femininity like the Coquette or Clean Girl aesthetic that focus on always wearing softer, “girly” colors and styling one’s makeup or hair to look more put together. As Tran notices the trends gain popularity, she is able to find her own style that matches those found on social media.
“I feel like now I can wear pink without hiding it and because I like more of the clean girl look. I try to focus on skincare to match that aesthetic,” Tran said.
Celino mentions that as social media creates these trends, it has established a safe space for women to stop feeling bad about wanting to be more feminine or embrace parts of themselves for which they were often made fun of.
“There has been a lot of upside ups and downs with femininity through media because sometimes it’s looked down upon like, oh, something’s too girly, or something’s too pink,”
Celino said. “But lately because of the trends going on, I think it’s more promoting and embracing that femininity that a lot of people have buried under and just denied.”
In contrast, sophomore Mariama Diallo sees femininity as something from within, not as something that is solely expressed through outside characteristics.
“I view femininity as a woman who embraces her nurturing, sensitive and sweet side,” Diallo said.
Because of the numerous ways femininity can be expressed, it is difficult to know how the popularity of feminine styles and the overall idea of accepting femininity will rise or decline in the coming years. Souza feels that because people express their femininity in multiple ways, it will have a lasting impact on people. Unlike more specific niches of feminine trends like bows or Coquette, a general comfort in feminine style will take on many different shapes and sizes depending on the person.
“I feel like since some trends are pretty basic, it can be a broad spectrum of things. That’s something that I think will make it last. But then very specific things like Coquette-ness, that’ll eventually die out,” Souza said.
Diallo has noticed that although being feminine is seen in a positive way now, there is always a chance that others will still see it negatively, regardless of social media trends.
“I strongly agree that it depends on different individuals,” Diallo said. “Some people might see femininity as something positive and empowering, while others view it as weak.”
As Tran has grown up, she has embraced a feminine style because social media has made her feel comfortable in doing so. She has an opportunity to show a side of her that was not as accepted when she was younger, allowing her to find comfort in herself.
“I feel comfortable wearing the color pink and embracing it. Basically dressing up like a little girl again. And I like wearing bows anywhere,” Tran said. “I feel like when I speak, I speak for the majority of the girls that are teenagers right now because we’re all on social media and we see that the girls are embracing themselves and we think that it’s okay for us to do that too.”