Every time I open my phone, there seems to be a new reason to close it again. There is a lot happening in the world right now. But between the horrifying headlines, an economy that’s hell-bent on draining our bank accounts and the fact that Europe is literally burning, fashion has decided to cope by putting more stuff on. We are, broadly speaking, in our maxxing era.
The internet has attached maxxing to every form of self-improvement imaginable. There’s looksmaxxing, sleepmaxxing, healthmaxxing. If you’re unfamiliar, the basic idea is to take something you love and crank it ALL the way up. And naturally, fashion got involved, too. We cannot simply accessorize anymore, we must accessory-maxx. It makes sense in an era when, as a recent New York Times opinion piece argues, traditional subcultures have given way to an endless stream of internet-driven aesthetics. The latest iteration is called whimsy-maxxing, and it’s a very unserious antidote to coastal grandma, stealth wealth and every other trend that told us to have restraint.
