Try it, buy it, knit it, change it, stitch, upgrade it, wear ’em, post ’em, might remix it – sounds about right if one were to describe how many Gen-Zers dress these days. Perhaps it’s because their coming-of-age has coincided with times of turmoil more so than that of previous generations (SARS, climate change, Covid, you name it).
Defined by youthful insouciance and unexpected juxtapositions that blur the highbrow with the lowbrow, their style can be said to be equally – and unprecedentedly – chaotic: a constantly shifting bricolage of clashing influences and interests that reflect their quest for originality, self-discovery and meaning. Bring back the essence of Harajuku street style as captured in the recently revived Fruits Magazine and add in a dash of pop-punk for a Y2K redux? Work. Mix Regency-era fashion with coquette and fantasy aesthetics? There goes another “-core” trickling into For You Pages.
Whoever said Gen Z hasn’t brought newness to fashion?
And at a time when the industry is grappling with a slowdown in the economy, consumer confidence and some might even say creativity, this sense of eccentricity and adventure is all the more what we need. Here, meet five under-25-year-olds in Singapore inspiring us with their riotous, anything-goes style.
SHEA CHIA EN, 22, STUDENT
HOW CHATGPT WOULD DESCRIBE HER STYLE: “Thematically confused and unemployment‐friendly”
HER BIGGEST INFLUENCES: “Ero guro art (an art form that centres on eroticism and decadence) by Suehiro Maruo ... Music‐wise, it ranges from the eclectic dressing of bands such as (the 1980s Scottish new wave duo) Strawberry Switchblade to the hippie look of folk musicians, and the rave‐ready fits of breakcore artistes such as Machine Girl and Kikuo. Campy films such as The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Pink Flamingos, Kamikaze Girls and anything by Sion Sono shape my aesthetic too.”
ON DRAWING FROM DIFFERENT INFLUENCES AT ONCE: “In hindsight, this probably stemmed from my childhood. A beloved helper who took care of me until I was eight loved to dress me up in a mishmash of clothes, which were often repurposed from fabrics such as blankets and towels at home. It was almost as if I was her life‐size Barbie doll. Perhaps that still sticks with me today.”
ON MINIMALIST STYLE TRENDS: “Not for me, but to each one’s own! I tried dabbling in that as an experiment, but I couldn’t resonate with it. I think dressing up in good faith is the most important. In a way, fashion is an externalisation of how I think and feel. Maybe my mind is a chaotic place, explaining my maximalist aesthetic.”
ON DRESSING CHAOTICALLY FOR WORK: “I’d love to if I end up in the creative industry. Otherwise, I feel there is still a lot of stigma surrounding dressing loudly for the workplace.”
WHAT'S EXCITING ABOUT GEN Z FASHION: “I think the coming-together of digital culture and hauntology makes for an exciting cultural phenomenon. The Internet expands our reach and allows us to access a range of inspirations from the past. I also like how unserious fashion has become, evolving from something high-brow to this postmodern concoction that’s diverse and irreverent. Rather than hopping onto trends, the Internet has helped turn fashion into an increasingly individualistic pursuit. This lack of cohesion in Gen Z’s idea of fashion also changes the industry and makes it cater to a wider variety of aesthetics.”
GEN Z STYLE IN THREE WORDS: “Post‐subcultural, nostalgic, playful”
DOES CURATED CHAOS REFLECT AUTHENTICITY?: “For me, it does. I don’t like to take life too seriously – or at least I like to convince myself so. Curated chaos helps me embody that absurdity, which ironically grounds me in reality.”
SHIRUI LIAN, 24, MODEL
HER BIGGEST INFLUENCES: “Aesthetically, it’s the Regency era. There’s this image of exaggerated womanhood from the period that’s fun to play on. I’m also into the sci‐fi and fantasy genres. Another influence comes from mundane little things in life. It could be a ribbon that had been used to tie a friend’s present – I’d keep it and build an outfit around it.”
WHAT IT MEANS TO EXIST IN THE CONTEXT OF ALL IN WHICH SHE LIVES: “You can’t exist in society as an isolated individual. Nowadays with social media, everyone wants to be someone and do something. It’s a totally understandable impulse, but we also have to remember that life is always happening. One doesn’t have to look too far and try too hard to find influences. Just by virtue of existing, you already have a lot to work with.”
READ MORE: Laufey: Our Quintessential Icon Of ‘Very Demure’ Fashion
HER THOUGHTS ON STYLE: “For me, dressing up is a practice in imagination. When I get ready, I look in the mirror and imagine the character or creature that I want to be. It’s more about having commitment to the look than having consistency. One important aspect of my style is hyperfemininity as performance: taking stereotypically feminine elements such as Regency‐style corsets and exerting ownership over them to the point that they’re over the top or unsettling. Womanhood is complicated and growing up involves this discovery of what being a woman is. I find my sartorial presentation tied to how I understand my own identity and sense of self.”
WHAT'S EXCITING ABOUT GEN Z FASHION: “I find Gen Z more accepting of the people around them than other generations. Our generation understands that it’s okay to not conform and to see beauty in the difference – be it in terms of aesthetics, history or background – even if it’s something that they’re not familiar with.”
GEN Z STYLE IN THREE WORDS: “Innovative, individualistic, fierce”
DOES CURATED CHAOS REFLECT AUTHENTICITY? “Definitely. Life is sort of unfeeling and random, so it’s one’s job as an individual to take control over it and make meaning. I think curated chaos reflects that philosophy whereby you exert autonomy while understanding that there are things beyond your control.”
PHYO THANT KYAW 21, PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHER
HOW CHATGPT WOULD DESCRIBE HIS STYLE: “That I look like a bad Kamen Rider cosplayer”
HIS BIGGEST INFLUENCES: “Kamen Rider. I binge on that Japanese series and it’s honestly underrated as a style inspiration. Its costume designs offer a huge range of aesthetics, from 1970s biker to 2000s visual kei. My friends also inspire me. They’re quite nonchalant about being fashionable – in existing as they are, they’re already cool.”
ON MINIMALIST STYLE TRENDS: “Personally, I'm a maximalist and a hoarder: More is more. I’m the opposite of the saying, ‘before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off’, because I can never decide on one thing. But if minimalism works for others, it’s also valid.”
HIS FAVOURITE ERA: “Specifically, the 13th-century because of the little boy named Onfim who lived in Novgorod. He was a seven-year-old who left behind drawings of mythical creatures alongside writing exercises all scratched into birch bark. His story reaffirms my belief that no matter the time, we’re all the same – that we’re thinking about the same things, aspirations, and dreams now or even before paper was invented.”
READ MORE: Brendan Mayle Kor: The Maximalist Creative Director Behind The Most Kitsch Creations
ON DEVELOPING PERSONAL STYLE: “If you observe the world and the people around you enough, you can discover your own ideals of beauty. I think that’s how style is formed.”
ON DRESSING CHAOTICALLY FOR WORK: “I don’t see why not, unless it makes you less productive.”
KRISTINA GWENETH PONCE SIMUNDO, 22, SUSTAINABILITY PROJECT OFFICER
HOW CHATGPT WOULD DESCRIBE HER STYLE: “That I’m too Libra because I can’t decide what vibe or persona I want to go for and am trying to be too many things at once!”
HER BIGGEST INFLUENCES: “I find myself taking inspiration from Pinterest, paintings and visual art. I also link things that I care about – social justice, labour issues and the climate – to how I understand clothes. These are significant external influences that make me conscious about what’s in my wardrobe and how I consume clothing.”
READ MORE: You Can Shop Less And Not Run Out Of Wardrobe Ideas
HOW SHE DEVELOPED HER STYLE: "I think my first memory of style or fashion was this one book I read as a child. It was about a fashion designer who went on a metaphorical journey of creating her sense of personality and escaping reality through clothes. Though that was just a book, it shaped my attitude towards dressing up: It should be about playing around, mixing-and-matching pieces and changing things up.”
ON DRESSING CHAOTICALLY FOR WORK: “I recently started working in the professional space, so I’ve been thinking about this a lot. I try to incorporate bits and pieces of my personality into what I wear for work, even if it’s some jewellery. It’s important to me that I do this because I want to feel like myself at work. Trying to completely fit into the corporate vibe feels a bit like putting on a costume.”
WHAT'S EXCITING ABOUT GEN Z FASHION: “That Gen Z has such a rich history of clothing and style to mine from and build our own hybrid style.”
GEN Z STYLE IN THREE WORDS: “Expressive, scrapbook‐ish, iterative”
DOES CURATED CHAOS REFLECT AUTHENTICITY? “Not necessarily. In fact, I don’t think any specific style is authentic anymore. What should be authentic is people’s relationship to their style.”
GYNNE HO, 22, STUDENT
HOW CHATGPT WOULD DESCRIBE HER STYLE: “That everything here is mismatched – or that I’m some Scottish kilt‐wearing wannabe because I wear so much plaid!”
HER BIGGEST INFLUENCES: “My friends, both online and offline, from all over the world, and Shibuya‐kei music, a subgenre of pop popular in Japan in the 1990s, such as that of Serani Poji and Frenesi, both known for their upbeat and kitschy pop sound. They inspire me to approach fashion with a cutesy and optimistic POV.”
HOW SHE DEVELOPED HER STYLE: "I experimented stylistically when I was younger by participating in trends such as 2014 tumblr grunge and 2017 art hoe. At the same time, I discovered Fruits magazine online. I admired how creative the outfifits featured were and found styles, such as lolita, that I never knew existed. I wanted to emulate the looks, so I started thrifting to obtain unique pieces. Eventually, I found my way to the Japanese marketplace, where I became exposed tothe brands associated with Harajuku fashion from the late 1990s to the early 2000s.
ON DRESSING CHAOTICALLY FOR WORK: "I won't, unless I'm in a creative workplace that encourages or embraces it. I d like to keep my work life separate from my personal interest in fashion. And it s cool to have an alternate persona – regular employee by day, cool girl by night."
WHAT'S EXCITING ABOUT GEN Z FASHION?: “I like how we’re increasingly into customising like accessorising shoes and hanging keychains on bags, or Jane Birkinifying. It’s fun and adds a personal touch. One can guess what someone’s personality is like based on what he or she wears and shows to the world.”
READ MORE: Tokyo Thrifting And Vintage Expert Nicole Wong Shares Where She Shops In The City
GEN Z STYLE IN THREE WORDS: “Girl, diverse, core”
DOES CURATED CHAOS REFLECT AUTHENTICITY?: “We live in an era of fast-changing trends and micro-trends of which many emphasise minimalism and cohesion. Conversely I think that curating and putting together seemingly messy elements is a deliberate form of self-expression and affirmation of one’s own identity since this is based on your own terms and not bound by rules.”
ALL INTERVIEWS HAVE BEEN EDITED FOR BREVITY AND CLARITY.
Coordination Kelly Janine Photography Angela Guo Art Direction Jonathan Chia Hair & Makeup for all except for Ristina and Gynne Hazirah Binte Alam Hair for Ristina and Gynne Tan Eng Chong/Kizuki+Lim Makeup for Ristina and Gynne Keith Bryant Lee, Using Nars
This article first appeared in the October 2024 Unusual Edition of FEMALE