There’s an overwhelming sense in mainstream culture that the impenetrable sameness of lockdown life would obliterate personal style in favour of a homogenised look.

Sweatpants, soft shoes, and nap dresses would rule—crystal earrings would be reserved only for Zoom happy hours.

For a while, in the darkest days of the early spring, this seemed to be the case for many of us. 

But then, the exact opposite occurred. The more time we spent at home, the more style exploded into new realms.

The proof of the re-emergence of truly individual, irreverent dressing is all over the most popular items, most influential people, and most talked about moments of the year.

Consider the rise of the JW Anderson cardigan, a Raggedy Andy by way of Tom of Finland sweater that blew up on TikTok when creators saw Harry Styles wearing it and figured out how to DIY their own versions.

Or ponder the year’s totally polar style stars: Bella Hadid with her Aeon Flux future-past look and Princess Diana, firmly entrenched in the past with pie-crust collars and alluringly off frocks. Even at-home style was dominated by two completely different aesthetics: cottagecore versus gratitude journal deadhead. 

It’s fitting then that Google’s Year in Search data named {indie style” the fashion style term with the highest growth in 2020.

It makes a sort of counterintuitive sense: The more we are told to look the same, covet the same items, and worship the same trends, the more unique we become.

Other top 10 trending styles include “alt style,” “e-girl style,” and “y2k style,” each prioritizing kooky self expression over blending in. 

The rise of TikTok has certainly helped commodify and codify personal style as something tangible—and changeable—for its users.

On the app, every subculture has its own hashtag, and each hashtag seems to come with a wellspring of content defined by a strong personal aesthetic. #WitchTokers can teach you how to perfect your cat-eye eyeliner while learning the significance of certain crystals.

#DarkAcademia pairs tweedy blazers with button-downs and Harry Potter wireframe glasses. #EGirls and #EBoys accessorize their sweats and designer tees with Manic Panic dye jobs, and there are plenty of users who cycle through aesthetics by day.

 @iconicakes, one of the most popular fashion accounts on TikTok, posts weekly challenges where sisters Sara and Avni try out outfits inspired by decades, TV and movie characters, and subcultures, proving that personal style can shift by-the-minute. 

In a year that seemed so bleak, this eccentric way of dressing is surely a bright spot. Not to lessen the importance of sweatpants, but it seems the big fashion lesson of 2020 is that eccentricity is really forever. 

Here, the top fashion trending searches of 2020, according to Google.

Fashion Styles

indie style

streetwear style

alt style

urban style

skater girl style

80s style clothing

boho style

e girl style

y2k style

retro style