It has long been said that art is political, and fashion, beauty and design aesthetics are no exception. When it comes to fashion, the conventional wisdom has always been that you can gauge national perception of the economy, if not the economy itself, by looking at clothes, especially women’s skirts; The lower they are, the narrower and more pessimistic they are. people probably feel it.

Many of us were shocked by the recent election results and never saw a swing to the right coming. But when you put it in the context of fashion and beauty trends, the canaries in the proverbial coal mine were singing all along, and have been for years.

Here are 5 fashion and beauty trends that predict a conservative political surge, according to a fashion expert:

Elysia Berman She is a fashion and style phenomenon who follows beauty and design trends on her TikTok account. In a recent video, she said she sees Trump’s big victory as a mile away because trends are moving toward conservatism, rule-following, and perhaps especially views of femininity that many of us would consider not just old-fashioned but even downright downright outright. retrograde

“Fashion is political, okay?” Berman said in his video, and it’s always been that way. The go-to example is the low-waist and above-the-knee flapper dresses of the Roaring 20s, which moved almost in the blink of an eye after the stock market of 1929 to the natural waist and ankle length of the Depression era of the 1930s. accident.

The same situation occurred between the 1990s and the years following the Great Recession of 2008. The infamous miniskirt business suits of “Ally McBeal” and the booming Juicy Couture tracksuits of the ’90s and 2000s gave way after 2008 to a more subtle, logo-free minimalism that wreaked havoc on just about everyone’s wallets.

And impressively, some of this aesthetic never really went away, even after ostentation returned in basic ways like the Kardashianization of the human face—rather than disappearing with better economic times, the “slim chic” of the Great Recession faded into cold, grey. -the black-beige minimalism of recent years. It is no coincidence that economic factors such as the job and housing markets have not returned to the pre-2008 normal for the vast majority of us.

(By the way, the disconnect with the Biden Administration Strong key economic figures and people’s lived experiences Their own financial realities, where the economic recovery has not yet reduced people’s rent payments and grocery bills, are fundamentally What pushed Trump to the top?.)

But it’s not just economics-based aesthetics hiding in plain sight. The regressive social tendencies brought about by this economic strife were also present in our fashion and design aesthetics from the beginning.

“The alignment in social media and the fashion industry over the last two years is extremely indicative of a return to conservatism,” Berman said. “And honestly, shame on us for not knowing.” Here are five signs we miss when it’s right under our noses.

RELATING TO: Moms Discuss How to Talk to Kids About 2024 Presidential Election Results

1. ‘Traditional wife’, ‘cottagecore’ and other trends shaped by old-fashioned ideas of femininity

This is the most obvious because these aesthetics are based on the following concepts: a woman’s place is in the home – ideally the kitchen – and that their duties and loyalties should be to husbands and families.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with choosing such a life. But when a trend emerges with statements about what women “should” do with their lives, it’s something to pay attention to.

But what about when it’s packaged as a lifestyle trend by influencers with direct ties to right-wing religious movements? Well… This is not an accident (and Many people warned about this For a long time they were just shouted at as sexist and alarmist… forgive me but we tried to tell you.)

2. Melting fillers, laser removal of tattoos, the ‘no-makeup makeup look’ and other trends to reclaim past beauty aesthetics

There are countless think pieces on how to do this, including on this website”Kardashians are over,” and underpinning much of this is the obvious point that many left-wing people, including Democratic politicians, completely miss: People are tired of rich people’s bullshit because they’re tired of struggling so much financially.

Just as the Kardashian rose blooms, the beauty trends they inspired have fallen out of favor. Social media is full of women who have had Kim meat filling. take it For example, it was popularized to return a more “natural” facial appearance.

In their wake came more conservative tendencies in both senses of the word. As Berman noted in another video, “Something about this ‘no makeup’ makeup look screams conservative values ​​to me.” Here again, we’re talking about traditional views of femininity – fresh and demure “natural beauty” rather than sexy and “optimized” in the vein of Kylie Jenner or the like.

RELATED: Stylist Reveals the Hairstyle Women Want That Shows the Economy is Bad — And It’s So Popular Right Now

3. Trends like ‘Utah curls’ come directly from religious conservative culture

This might be the one trend they all need to have on their radar. As mothers and wives who are members of the church or Latter-day Saints become an increasingly larger cultural force online, there is literally a reality show called “”.The Secret Lives of Mormon Women“now – there are beauty trends that are likewise linked to influencers selling it.

Chief among these is “Utah curls,” which is a direct reference to the influencers in question, which is kind of like beach waves but…well, for Utah moms and housewives. Considering that Utah and the LDS church have voted consistently through the ages, the fact that their aesthetic has gone wildly viral in recent years was a significant indication of that.

4. ‘Old money’, quiet luxury and a return to ‘Americana’

The clothes themselves also show a conservative bent. Berman pointed out that brands such as Ralph Lauren and Celine have come to the fore again. The first, of course, is all about the “off-the-shelf”, classic American aesthetic that first had its heyday in the 1980s; Another deeply conservative period (aesthetically not very different from today’s aesthetics), obsessed with the supposedly bygone utopia of the 1950s. ‘traditional wife’ nonsense).

Celine, meanwhile, is all about luxury, but “old money” luxury – think Chanel, but laundered with color and embellishments. This is the embodiment of the old view that “money screams, wealth whispers”; notions of elegant, sophisticated, aristocratic wealth favored not by progressive Hollywood stars or cool kids with a pulse, but by “ladies who lunch.” and hold fundraising events – i.e. conservative women mediating power.

5. Ozempic and the return of ‘there is weakness’

Even people who are ON Ozempic themselves expressed this in Berman’s comments. “I’m in too but Ozempic was also a sign,” one wrote. “The body positivity movement was crushed overnight“

This is truly a narrative. Body positivity was previously about accepting and celebrating those who were sidelined from the mainstream, but now “skinny” has resurfaced with rumors that even the aforementioned Kardashian clan have the legendary curvy physiques they popularized. a slimmer profile.

The point of this, of course, is the sacred conservative value Berman emphasized earlier: conformity. It’s no coincidence that even formerly curvy famous Republicans like Kimberly Guilfoyle have gotten very thin in recent years.

Like many other trends, the last time we did this there was another extremely conservative period. 2000s Bush’s obsession with thinness Many millennial women, and even many men, will tell you that it gives them full-blown body dysmorphia and eating disorders.

Whether turning back the clock will make America “great” again is certainly up for debate, but what it doesn’t is is that we should have seen it coming.

RELATING TO: Divorce Lawyer Says He Took On 14 New Clients The Day After Election – ‘An Extraordinary Week Would Be 5’

John Sundholm is a news and entertainment writer covering popular culture, social justice and human interest issues.