The fall of the clean girl aesthetic was always inevitable. I hate to be biased, but I was never the biggest fan. Like it or not, the ‘clean girl’ aesthetic was not just a trend but a cultural moment that changed the way many of us dressed, organised and behaved. However, the once ubiquitous slick bun, glossy skin and neutral palette is quietly disappearing from our feeds. An aesthetic that promised minimalism and effortless beauty is being replaced by louder, messier and more expressive styles. So, is the clean girl aesthetic dead, and what does this decline mean about where beauty, fashion and aesthetics are headed next? 

The image of a clean girl is one that reflects the environment in which it was created. The pandemic saw a rise in many different fads in fashion but clean girl is the only one that really stuck. In a world that was filled with chaos and uncertainty, an aesthetic that promoted discipline and self-care is what we needed at the time. The association with health, wellness and productivity was definitely a positive to the aesthetic and encouraged people to look after themselves when it was so easy to let yourself waste away in the comfort of your own home. 

However, there is an illusion within the so-called ‘effortlessness’ of the aesthetic. The products that were required of you to be a ‘clean girl’ that stuck out to me, were products from Hailey Bieber’s ‘Rhode beauty’ and clothes from brands such as ‘Brandy Melville’ as well as the focus on ‘Alo’ yoga sets and ‘Stanley’ water bottles. 

For many at the time, the idea of owning £40 + beauty products and clothes was not only unrealistic but laughable in the face of a global pandemic. Naturally, due to all these factors there would inevitably be pushback from clean to chaos. So, as we move into the cold and early days of 2026, the pandemic and all of its questionable aesthetics and ‘scenes’ that came with it seem like a distant memory. 

The clean girl aesthetic now feels restrictive, repetitive and increasingly out of touch with where fashion and beauty are heading. But what is the reason that the world is moving towards experimental silhouettes, heavier makeup and completely contrasting with what the clean girl aesthetic stood for. 

I believe it to be an accumulation of things, but the main factor to me is a cultural fatigue of ‘perfection’ being an aesthetic which explains the resurgence of Indie Sleaze that is making its way onto my for you page and perhaps yours (Thank you algorithm). Past ‘it girls’ and icons have resurfaced with more alternative, experimental looks such as Alexa Chung with her Jane Birkin-eque silhouette – and we follow. 

Being at Cardiff University, there is an array of aesthetics, and clean girls are definitely alive and well but the question remains if 2026 will fully erase this aesthetic or perhaps relegate it to a niche. It’s strange how a world filled with political uncertainty has not delved into order through the clean girl aesthetic but instead gone to chaos and anarchy through fashion.

The hemline theory states that when your country is doing well socially and economically, hemlines of dresses and skirts become shorter however, when the country is not doing so well they get longer. Well, in any other scenario or point in history in the UK this is true, however it seems that thankfully people are rejecting this theory and using fashion and beauty to express the shambles of the world around them and not conforming to what was once before. 

If you look at the trend forecasts for this year, we’re seeing a lot of tartan and ‘glamorrati’ take centre stage, all in which focus on loud patterns and accessories that make you visible. 

Furthermore, trends mirror emotional states in general, and today’s culture seems to crave expression over restraint. Minimalism won’t disappear, and the clean girl aesthetic’s death isn’t a death and it isn’t a failure but actually the evolution of evolving attitudes and trends. All in all, fashion and beauty are making a significant move away from perfection and closer to personality.

Words by Mia Samson

Featured image courtesy of Alexandra Fuller via Unsplash. No changes have been made to this image. Image license found here.