• Katie Chaffee
• On November 1, 2012

It’s Wednesday. 9am. I’m walking to class hungover (Tuesday is 90s night!!) when something catches my eye. It is a pair of neon shorts worn by the ultimate f*cking hipster (hipsters don’t be offended I didn’t come up with the phrase, the Look at this F*cking Hipster tumblr did). I know, I know, I’m in no position to judge. I smell like alcohol and I’m wearing the same thing to class that I wore to bed the night before. But, I’m going to judge this girl anyway. Well, more like  comment on her (9am is too early to start judging).

From the Chuck Taylors with pink laces, to the frayed neon purple high-waisted denim shorts, to the cropped off-the-shoulder top, to the black wayfarers, to the braided headband that cut across the middle of her forehead instead of her hair, to the assortment of bracelets and multi-colored strings on her wrist, this chick was the epitome of the uprising hipster trend. That, or American Apparel took a shit on her before she walked out the door. Did I mention it was 9am?

Now, don’t get me wrong here. I love that the hipster style has become a popular trend. I love shopping at thrift stores. I love that I can by a vintage t-shirt or sweater for under 5 bucks and it’s still considered “in style.” However, like any trend, it’s easy to take this style too far. The great thing about this trend is that it’s supposed to look effortless. It’s supposed to look like you threw something on in under 2 minutes, you didn’t even check yourself out in the mirror, you walked out the door, and you still look awesome. But I think people are beginning to lose sight of that.

Take my beloved school Miami University (of Ohio, the school was created before Miami, FL even existed) for example. For those of you who don’t know, Miami University is notorious for its preppy style. Brightly colored polo’s, collared button-downs, and Sperry’s previously defined the students of Miami. But since the hipster wave hit this generation like a tsunami, even people at Miami are trying to be “different.” Guys are wearing plaid shirts with tight skinny jeans, moccasins, and Woody Allen glasses. Girls are wearing faded denim shorts straight from the 90s with cropped floral tops and bright lipstick. What is happening to us? And it’s not just Miami students. Look around. Hipsters are everywhere. Yeah, it’s great people are trying to stray away from the clean-cut conventional look. But when everyone is being “unconventional” we all just end up blending in again (unless you’re wearing neon at 9am).

I remember a long time ago, like 3 years ago, when wearing vintage apparel and listening to then-Indie bands like Bon Iver, The New Pornographers, The Shins, Architecture in Helinski, Iron&Wine, and so on was considered “unconventional.” Now it’s rare to find someone who listens to pop music and shops at department stores. Or at least find someone who’d admit to it. I think we can all relate to censoring our iPods or putting on a specific playlist to avoid the embarrassing moment when our iPod shuffle starts playing Nickelback or Miley Cyrus. “I listen to good music I swear! I added that song when I was like 15!!” Is my go-to response. Yes, the hipster trend forced people to listen to better music, which is a good thing, but I pray for the day when people don’t give a shit if I occasionally listen to a Katy Perry song and enjoy it.

Alright, let me wrap this up here with a quote. I saw a great one on my newsfeed the other day (yes, I was Facebook stalking). I believe this quote sums up the next step in this hipster trend. “I like mainstream because not liking mainstream is too mainstream.” Is this what we’re coming to? Now that everyone is a fu**king hipster, will it be unconventional to be conventional again? I don’t know. My head hurts. I think I’m over-thinking it. Whatever, I’m going to the Gap.