holywood model: What Happens When Underconsumption Becomes Just Another Trend?

The idea of reducing our consumption—but making it

Now, a shiny new variation has emerged. On TikTok and Instagram, where people are more likely to brag about collecting designer labels and unboxing massive hauls, influencers are boasting about wearing the same ripped jeans from seasons past or using one hair straightener for a decade-plus. And since everything on TikTok quickly gets "-core" appended to it, like it or not, "underconsumption core" was quickly christened the next Big Thing. But is this a fleeting trend with the mayfly lifespan of last winter's mob wives? A growing lifestyle movement? Working-class stolen valor? It depends on who you ask." title="The idea of reducing our consumption—but making it "aesthetic"—is nothing new, from the contemporary minimalist movement to the "de-influencing" trend to the heyday of the Marie Kondo method. Arguably, it even stretches back further, to the WWII-era mandate of "make do and mend."

Now, a shiny new variation has emerged. On TikTok and Instagram, where people are more likely to brag about collecting designer labels and unboxing massive hauls, influencers are boasting about wearing the same ripped jeans from seasons past or using one hair straightener for a decade-plus. And since everything on TikTok quickly gets "-core" appended to it, like it or not, "underconsumption core" was quickly christened the next Big Thing. But is this a fleeting trend with the mayfly lifespan of last winter's mob wives? A growing lifestyle movement? Working-class stolen valor? It depends on who you ask." height="auto">

What Happens When Underconsumption Becomes Just Another Trend?

The idea of reducing our consumption—but making it "aesthetic"—is nothing new, from the contemporary minimalist movement to the "de-influencing" trend to the heyday of the Marie Kondo method. Arguably, it even stretches back further, to the WWII-era mandate of "make do and mend."

Now, a shiny new variation has emerged. On TikTok and Instagram, where people are more likely to brag about collecting designer labels and unboxing massive hauls, influencers are boasting about wearing the same ripped jeans from seasons past or using one hair straightener for a decade-plus. And since everything on TikTok quickly gets "-core" appended to it, like it or not, "underconsumption core" was quickly christened the next Big Thing. But is this a fleeting trend with the mayfly lifespan of last winter's mob wives? A growing lifestyle movement? Working-class stolen valor? It depends on who you ask.