If someone were to start using the internet for the first time today, by tomorrow they would become familiar with Labubu, and by the end of the year they would become familiar with their own identity, or lack thereof. Recently on social media, individuals were seen kicking their Birkins and other luxury bags, intentionally damaging them to achieve that worn-off look akin to Jane Birkin’s own beat-up bags. This trend synchronized with adorning handbags with as many bag charms as physically possible. Celebrities like Lisa from Blackpink elevated the presence of one particular, impish-looking bag charm called Labubu, which has been compared to how Jane Birkin used to style her own bags. And while some people might actually like the look of damaged leather and stacked bag charms, what the TikTok girls are emulating goes far beyond the visuals.
An aesthetic, an identity.
Jane Birkin’s messy bags signified the very lifestyle she lived: sporadic, busy, and carefree. It’s the lifestyle of a charming and successful woman that many people find aspirational. When fashion designer Mary-Kate Olsen was asked about the reason she was still carrying her damaged, ink-stained Balenciaga bag, she also explained that it reflected her life throughout the years. By beating a bag and sticking things on it, we are approximating a visual aesthetic, but this aesthetic also signifies a lifestyle and thereby an identity. Having assumed taste and specific preferences signifies a deep knowledge of oneself, which is usually formed through experiencing life itself, and living it to the fullest. The problem here may be that Jane Birkin decorated her bag with activism stickers and ribbons, whereas young people are now buying charms in packs of five. And while one might get the look right, they cannot get the story behind it.
To live and tell
The plethora of fashionable toys and collectibles that are currently being marketed towards adults, such as Labubu, Jellycat, Smithki and Sonny Angels, all serve as microcosms of a larger issue. It’s the lack of substance and context, and by relation the lack of quality and endurance in fashion and in general. Collectibles in fashion offer an outlet to tell a story or to recall a memory tied to a rare garment or an accessory. At their finest, maximalist aesthetics and limited fashion are open scrapbooks of things that a person once loved and connected with. Today, however, as mass convenience is becoming a demand rather than a luxury, collecting and fashion are facing the danger of turning into mere forms of distraction. With everything at our fingertips, we might be left with few stories to tell.
by Ella 