The Tumblr Aesthetic.

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Tumblr had a huge impact on trends, style and music within popular culture, which influenced online trends during the 2010-2014 period. It provided the tools for individualism with the features to customise your own page, giving a home to many different subcultures and aesthetic individuals.

@thattumblrgirl101

The 'Tumblr Girl'

Tumblr birthed the term ‘Tumblr girl’ – a term used for girls with a distinctive and alternative style, who express their emotions and personal identity using Tumblr. Typically, these girls expressed themselves through moody dark-coloured colour palettes and angsty alternative music genres. These girls would often run to Tumblr to express their emotions and real-life issues on blogs with the comfort of being completely anonymous if they wanted to, unlike other social media platforms. Therefore allowing Tumblr to become a shelter online away from the real world for alternative and artistic inclined people.

The rapper G-Eazy even wrote a song titled ‘Tumblr Girls’ featuring Christoph Andersson about the esteemed ‘Tumblr girl’ aesthetic. He romanticises the harmful stereotypes centred around this image and aesthetic through his rap with lyrics such as ‘I’m in love with these Tumblr girls, with skinny waists and drug habits’. As a result, this falls into the negative stereotypes this aesthetic may create for girls online, as it can fabricate an unrealistic female image to which they potentially might compare themselves to.

@thattumblrgirl101

The wardrobe of a 2014 'Tumblr girl'

A pair of Doc Martens:

Fishnet stockings:

Black tattoo choker:

Black skirt:

Arctic Monkeys t-shirt:

@coquettegirlie101

The Coquette Girl Subculture 🎀🦢🕯🍒💌

‘Coquette’ girls are a subculture within Tumblr who are fixated on hyper-feminine fashion and all things pink and ‘girly’. The emphasis on hyper feminine activities, style and minimal makeup has been criticised for attracting the male gaze. In terms of these girls’ characteristics, they are typically thin and light skinned, these characteristics have put pressure on girls wanting to achieve the ‘coquette girl’ aesthetic to the point of disordered eating and forcing themselves into unrealistic beauty standards. Showcasing the sad reality of subcultures on Tumblr and their detrimental impact on people’s self-esteem. However, the aesthetic is now being redefined on other social media platforms without the negative connotations attached to it and instead making it a celebration of one's own femininity.

Coquette girl playlist

Many artists grew popularity and a fanbase from Tumblr’s peak in the years 2009 to 2014. A few of them being:
Lana Del Rey 🍒💋🍷🇺🇸🚬

Lana Del Rey encapsulated the moody sad girl aesthetic within her emotionally ridden lyrics. Whether it be users expressing themselves through romanticising her lyrics or making photo and video edits of her, it undeniably made Del Rey a prominent fixture on the platform. Lana Del Rey played a central role in many of the online subcultures and communities, such as the ‘coquette girl’, due to her grungy but glamorous imagery and fascinating lyrics. Lana Del Rey’s music was escapism for many Tumblr users.

Arctic Monkeys 🎸🐒🖤🎼

Many users on Tumblr were influenced by the band Arctic Monkeys, they conveyed their influence in their style by wearing leather jackets, dark clothing, and fishnets to embody “rock star girlfriend” aesthetic. This often came from fans wanting to be like ‘Arabella’, the hit Arctic Monkeys song. These users would identify themselves as being a part of the ‘indie sleaze core’ aesthetic and they would often wear their emotions on their Tumblr pages. These users 100% owned a pair of Doc Martens and fishnet stockings!

Lorde ⚡️🖤🪐🌅

Lorde’s debut album Pure Heroine at age 16 was a big moment within Tumblr. Lorde’s moody, teen angst lyricism identified heavily with people of her age at the time as she highlights the importance of teenage feelings. This added a relatability to her that people admired. Lorde was also active on Tumblr and would now and then interact with her fan base by answering their questions and more.

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