My 2024 Trend Predictions
My goal for 2024, not exactly a “New Years Resolution” but something of that ilk, is to become less “online: and reorient a greater portion of my attention towards the so-called real world. I spend a significant chunk of each day responding to my Instagram messages, which I do because it seems like the polite thing to acknowledge other people’ interest in you; also, I’ll admit I like the attention. But as the nature of the internet shifts — according to NYT opinion, 2023 was “The Year Millennials Aged Out of the Internet,” — I ultimately want to put my time and effort into cultivating real-life friendships and experiences.
Case in point: I have spent the past week engrossed in the extremely real-world task of painting my apartment. I blast Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite, put my phone down, and engross myself in a physical task that is soothing, meticulous and somewhat creative. I have never felt more embodied in my life and I’d like to feel more of that. So I plan to adopt an “Out of office, busy enjoying life” mentality. Of course, I’ll still post and go online and post but my desire to engage with people I will never meet is waning.
Anyways, now the hallway in my apartment is Barbie pink with butter yellow trim. (I used the Benjamin Moore colours “Romance” and “Yellow Roses,” respectively.) The effect is hyper-kitsch, somewhere between “baby nursery” and “thrift store.” Freak Palace founding subscriber Jay Cockburn pointed out its distinct resemblance to British children’s television character “Mr. Blobby.” I think it’s magical. Each day, my home is closer to becoming the true Freak Palace of my dreams
Without further ado…
My 2024 Trend Predictions
Coloured tights are coming back in a big way
If you’ve scrolled past any influencer on Instagram lately you have probably noticed one thing…they’re all wearing red tights. The crimson leg wear renaissance is already here in a huge way, but I predict this trend will extend to other colours like Yves Klein blue, Playmobil yellow etc etc. The red tight this is also going to trickle down so it’s something we actually see in real life as opposed to exclusively on the internet, which is where most trends occur these days.
Shoes will become even more naked
Foot guys rejoice! See-through ballet flats were huge this year thanks to the Row’s $900 mesh sock slipper and Alaia’s fishnet mary janes. Next year, I think we’re going to see everyone going for broke on this trend with full feet out. Thong sandals are going to come back in a huge way and footwear is going to to — pardon the pun — flip flop away from the chunky styles of yore towards delicate, strappy, barely-there sandals, as pictured in the above photo from Michael Kors’ SS 2024 collection. This shift is fascinating to me given the way it clashes with the “no free feet” contingent, who love to gatekeep images of their feet, as if they are anticipating slavering perverts just waiting to earmark an innocent image of one’s naked toes and squirrel it away for their proverbial spank bank. Foot fetishists are going to have a field day in 2024.
Bring on the bloomers
This year we have seen and endless parade of bows. Sandy Liang slapped some bows on a Bag and called it fashion. (No shade, I love Sandy Liang so much.) There were bows on socks, bows on sweaters, even bows on baguettes. While bows have already become corny in their overexposure, I believe bloomers are primed to take their place as the chic coquette-wear du jour. Imagine a pair of pajama-style pants with a lacy ruffle on the bottom. There’s something delightfully silly about them. They’re frilly, feminine and old-fashioned at the same time. Mark my words, Victorian underwear as outerwear is going to be having a moment.
People are going to stop giving a sh*t about TikTok trends
This year I was forced to learn about “Okokok vs. Lalala,” “blokettecore”, and “regencycore” all entirely against my will. I will admit I feel slightly responsible for this unbearable shift in discourse, because my NYT cottagecore story was an early example of journalism treating a TitkTok aesthetic trend as something important and of substance. But I think people are finally beginning to realize that most of these things don’t actually exist beyond a phone screen and writing about them as if they hold any sort of currency is incredibly cringe. These microaesthetics influence online discourse for approximately three days before then move on. Perhaps if one of these trends begins to see wider application we can give it the explainer treatment, but otherwise? Pass.
Bye bye blonde wood, hello dark mahogany
One of the hallmarks of the Airspace aesthetic, the predominant influence in interior design for the past decade, is blonde wood. During the height, people couldn’t seem to get enough of the light, airy, Scandinavian vibe, eschewing any furniture that skewed dark and heavy. But now that people are starting to realize that most of these ‘minimal’ items are aging poorly and cheap made, they are beginning to understand the appeal of cumbersome antiques built to last a lifetime that previously people couldn’t get out of their houses quickly enough. Dark wood furniture is redolent of ancestors, conjuring images of dusty-cabinets with creaky drawers filled with forgotten objects, drawers that have not been opened in a generation filled with treasures just waiting to be discovered. I predict people are going to get into CHAIRS in a big way, as that’s the most entry-level way to get into hand-carved antique furniture compared to massive cabinets. This trend combines the grand millennial embrace of fusty maximalism with the sparing-but-historic Shaker-style interiors that are growing in popularity to produce an aesthetic entirely rooted in a veneration fo historic value. White walls aren’t safe either. Dark, rich shades of emerald green and other jewel tones will become more appealing, dispensing with the emptiness of a blank canvas.
As clothes get more expensive, “customization” discourse becomes less insane
For a good portion of the year, terminally online fashion enthusiasts were subject to asylum-level discourse comparing vintage resellers to landlords, and misdirected vitriol spewed at a woman who upcycled a vintage dress. In a world where there is more stuff than humans could ever feasibly wear, it seems that people would rather bicker over who has the right to buy stuff rather than direct their class rage upwards and agitate for real political change. I suspect as new clothes get more and expensive to buy and most people will ONLY be able afford clothing from thrift stores, which themselves are becoming prohibitively expensive, this discourse will settle down. People will begin to accept that fabric is abundant and you should be able to do anything you want to it — unless it’s an antique quilt with historic value — but otherwise, go off.
Freak Palace will be taking a one-week break over the holidays. Signing off until the New Year. <3