'Barbiecore' continues to reign supreme - is pink a colour you wear?
Greta Gerwig's Barbie film has sparked a pink resurgence ever since the first photos dropped last year. Have your say on the trend by voting in our poll.
Who would have thought pink would be the colour of 2023? Ever since the announcement that there was to be a live action Barbie, a wave of collective nostalgia for the much-loved doll has spawned a new fashion phenomenon: Barbiecore.
The trend is all about embracing the big, bold, frothy side of fashion. Think bright pink hues, playful patterns and kitsch detailing. From clothing to accessories and even make-up, the aesthetic is currently taking over the style set, with over 562.9 million views (and counting) on TikTok.
But it isn’t just across the fashion and beauty industries where the trend has a stranglehold. It is even influencing interior trends, with the TikTok hashtag #Barbiecoreinterior receiving 4.9 million views as users flock to showcase their bubblegum pink, Barbie-inspired home decor.
Origins of the Barbiecore trend
While we're totally on the way to hitting peak pink right now, according to Lyst’s 2022 Year in Fashion report, Barbiecore was also the top trend of 2022, which initially started gaining traction in June last year when pictures of Margot Robbie as Barbie in an all-hot pink Western outfit dropped.
The look went viral on TikTok and sparked a 416% increase in searches for pink clothing.
Read more: Move over, Margot: It's Sam Smith's Barbie premiere look that has everyone talking - Yahoo Life UK, 3-min read
"From the rise of Y2K fashion to the highly anticipated release of Greta Gerwig's Barbie movie, Barbie has become the underlying style must of the year," the fashion report states.
Nick Drewe, trend expert at WeThrift, says that even though the Barbiecore phenomenon has been around for a while it doesn't look set to ease up any time soon.
“Barbiecore was everywhere last summer, exploding in popularity due photos from the set of the Barbie Movie, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, being released," he explains.
“We first spotted the trend taking heavy influence over the Valentino Pink PP Collection. Now the style is making its way into the wardrobes of a-list celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Megan Fox, Lizzo, Hailey Bieber and more.
“The style is all about looking pretty in pink. We’re seeing lots of matching pink sets, monochromatic looks and feminine silhouettes. Brands like Maison Valentino and Miu Miu have also started to incorporate the signature trend into their fashion lines, embracing colourful prints and textures that incorporate the modern characteristics of Barbiecore."
Read more: Margot Robbie’s red carpet looks for ‘Barbie’ premieres inspired by doll’s most iconic looks from last 64 year - Bang Showbiz, 2-min read
Interestingly, Drewe believes we could see the phenomenon spark a series of sister trends all linked to the Barbiecore aesthetic.
“We’re seeing the term ‘bimbo style’ circulating heavily across the internet, encapsulating the common themes associated with Barbiecore," he explains. "These include hot pink outfits with matching nails, glittery accessories and bleach blonde hair."
The thing is traditionally pink isn't a colour that everyone has embraced, with many deeming it "too girly" or "feminine".
So, how popular is pink?
Research conducted at Newcastle University UK asked adults for their favourite colour, but pink didn't come out on top, not even for women. In fact, the most-loved colour, for both men and women, was blue.
Other research has found the colour pink to be associated all sorts of negative connotations, most notably with a lack of intelligence. A survey, gauging people's perceptions of colours as markers of intelligence revealed pink to be at the bottom with only 5% of respondents believing intelligent people would wear pink.
So far, so stereotypical.
Read more: Barbie's London Premiere: All the good, the fab and the WTF looks from the pink carpet - HuffPost, 2-min read
But the colour is also associated with being joyful and playful and right now we could all do with a bit of that in our lives, with post-pandemic fashion becoming all about mood-boosting dopamine dressing.
While Valentino certainly lead the way last year with creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli dedicating his entire A/W collection to hot pink, other catwalk designers and celebrities have swiftly followed.
Lizzo donned a candyfloss shade at the Brits this year and Kim Kardashian swapped her black legging-boots for hot pink ones.
Meanwhile, Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly gave total Barbie and Ken vibes at the premiere of Machine Gun Kelly’s documentary, Life In Pink.
Even royals are getting in on the Barbie act with Kate, Princess of Wales showcasing several looks with a nod to the trend including a super sweet bubblegum pink suit and two-toned, flowing shirt dress from the brand ME+EM.
So whether you're a pink fan or not, with the release of the film next week and subsequent press tour, it looks like the Barbiecore aesthetic is here to stay, so you might as well hop on board Barbie's dream camper.
