The uniting theme in this week’s links is simply put: Trends. Are there any, and wtf are they?
Every summer brings its round of cultural dispatches: what’s in, what’s out, and lately, whether “trends” even exist anymore. The wave of reporting this season has leaned toward declaring the end of trends, pointing to the absence of one clear look or idea that defined the summer. But that reading collapses two different time scales: what’s trending and what a trend actually is.
Trending (imo) is momentary, a spike of visibility that fades as quickly as it appeared. Trends, in the truer sense, unfold slowly—across years, sometimes decades. Looked at this way, summer 2025 wasn’t blank at all. Its defining current was less singularly aesthetic than it has been palpably atmospheric: rising conservatism, global instability, and economic uncertainty. As Nick Susi says: culture has physics, and every surge forward meets a counter-pull.
That’s why the absence of a singular “summer trend” feels like a misdiagnosis. We are living through a shift that is too broad, too political, to be captured by one cut of a skirt or a viral sound. Instead, culture is registering the tremors in smaller, more fragmented expressions: the revival of trad aesthetics, the fixation on a particular kind of beauty, the currents of hedonism. Each of these gestures is symptomatic of a larger atmosphere, not the atmosphere itself.
In other words, perhaps we aren’t seeing the end of trends so much as the end of neat, seasonal packaging. What’s unfolding now is messier, more dispersed, and ultimately more revealing. The question isn’t whether trends exist: it’s whether we’re looking in the right place, and on the right timeline, to notice them.
If you want your trend reading list for the week, there were excellent dispatches this week from Kyle Chayka (here), ANU , NEMESIS and Thom Bettridge.
(Update as of 8:45AM—I also spoke to Vogue Business about this!)
Also, I finally watched The Materialists and I want to talk about it. The whole thing felt so flat to me, from the characters themselves to the literal coloring of the film.
I was longing for more tension and dimension to each of the leads, and we could have skipped that terrible plot point with Sophie. She didn’t need that after everything else.
This week’s picks include ‘Dorm Water,’ Roblox cults and $160 lipstick.
Christina’s weekly scroll—
You’re cute jeans! Addison Rae for Lucky Brand (really channeling Britney here) and KATSEYE for Gap. And if you sincerely think either of these are in response to Sydney Sweeney, you’re delusional. Lol.
Loved this celebration of the iMac’s legacy <3
Kanye West launched a meme coin. Anyone who touches this deserves to go broke.
Serena Williams revealed she’s on a GLP-1. Worth noting: her husband not only invests in Ro but also sits on its board.
On that note… Do we think Post Malone is on a GLP-1?
Sorry, but you’ll never be able to convince me to spend $160 on a tube of lipstick, even if it’s Louis Vuitton.
As a former fanfic FREAK, I absolutely loved this fanfic-inspired rom-com social skit from Vera Bradley.
Irony has become Gen Z’s social insurance.
Nikita’s weekly scroll—
One of the things I find more interesting to read about are the intersections between urban planning, class, health, and climate. And this one around shade in public space was illuminating.
Update! The country is hiring a Chief Design Officer. Maybe not what I wanted when I wrote this.
I’ve always loved beauty, but as the industry invents new problems and turns its eye to increasingly younger consumers I look like that one weary ass emoji. Deal with the dorm water, damn!
You can just say no.
In the past few years, there’s been a decent amount of handwaving about the uncomfortable relationships between fashion magazines and fashion brands, from brand limiting editorial/styling freedom by mandating looks be styled straight off the runway to…this “Louis Vuitton” tribute cover. Anyway, after you read that, read this piece I wrote about brands as cultural patrons a few months ago.
Trump’s… special way of speaking has left an indelible mark on our ways of speaking. I found this part quite interesting in this article!!! And while we’re at it, let’s not forget that #43 sucked, too.
Researchers at the University of Chicago have found Mr. Trump to have a quantifiably unique syntactic style compared with those of other politicians. His word choice is less predictable to large language models, a type of artificial intelligence that powers programs like ChatGPT. Others have noted that he disproportionately appends extraneous language to his sentences — like “believe me” or “maybe ever” at the end of the trade deal meme.
In the past few years, no cultural force has overtaken the dominant culture like Southern culture. And I loved reading Amanda’s sprawling take about how the cultural mood, AC, and the tensions that define what the South means to us and the US.
There’s a new tween roblox cult. Take that as you will.
Say this five times fast: Madewell x Courage Bagels and Malin + Goëtz x Carbone.
The creative process is a delicate flirtation between showing just enough to help the client imagine what the product will be, while exercising restraint. I’ve written about this, the ever-excellent Elizabeth Goodspeed has written about moodboards, and now we have Zoë Yasemin’s take. To me, these are always interesting tensions to hold in mind as we think about novelty and creation! I work at a branding agency, sue me.
I’m always going to click on an article about AI, oral cultures, Walter Ong, and grifting. You got me.
I leave you with this.
˚₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ Little Treat Corner ˚₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚
Christina’s weekly report:
READING:
EATING: JOYRIDE Sour Strips.
PLAYING:
OBSESSING: Over Mega Victreebell.
RECOMMENDING: Honey Don’t! Let’s not pit brothers against each other!
TREATING: Myself to a day off.
Nikita’s weekly report:
READING: All about finance in Canada.
EATING: Michelle Siman treated me to a week of Sakara!
PLAYING: The new Kaytranada album (which is a week old but new to me!)
OBSESSING: Over the sweet potato matcha latte at DAE.
RECOMMENDING: Not sleeping in a way that causes a crick in your neck.
TREATING: It’s new manicure week!
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Crazy to think people don't think Katseye for GAP wasn't in the works for months (wouldn't be surprised if it was a year), but I guess those are the side affects of a microwave culture
“Irony has become Gen Z’s social insurance” - so good. And loved that piece, so glad I discovered it here!!!