“VSCO Girl.” Because my target market centers primarily around tweens and teens, it is inevitable that this phrase would come up in my line of work. I heard it giggled in the back seat of my carpools, I saw it on Instagram everywhere. At first I was like, “VSCO girl? What the heck is that?” I’d been using the VSCO app for my social media images for years (I have to remind my teenagers, LITERALLY way back when they were in preschool), so I knew somewhat generally what it was referring to. My kids gave me a description in the vague, ambiguous, meandering way that teenagers have when they don’t want their parents to understand something well (because, heaven forbid we appropriate it). So, to the Urban Dictionary I went:
“VSCO GIRL – Wears oversized t-shirts or sweatshirt with Nike shorts. Has Vans, Crocs, Birks, and wears a shell necklace. She also wears tube tops and Jean shorts . . . always has a hydroflask . . . can’t leave home without a scrunchie and her favorite car is a jeep.”
Sooooo, basically me and all my high school friends circa 1992 (you do the math). To be fair, Crocs didn’t exist then, but pretty much everything else harkens back to an era of fashion (or non-fashion, if you will) that I never imagined would come back. I remember getting my Birkenstocks for Christmas my sophomore year (they were ungodly expensive, and my mom called them “Jesus sandals”) thinking just how much work it took to break them in. I still have them.
My impressive scrunchie collection, however, was tossed sometime in college. I literally had dozens and dozens . . . each time you went to Wet Seal for a new outfit you had to get a scrunchie to match. I really wish I’d saved those, AND my sunflower crop top, AND my several pairs of Doc Martens, AND multiple pairs of overalls. Hydroflasks weren’t around then, and even if they were I don’t think we were really into hydration much. Nothing a diet Coke from the cafeteria vending machine couldn’t fix (sorry Nalgene and S’well, not sure how you became so uncool all of a sudden for doing the SAME EXACT THING). I didn’t have a Jeep, but lots of my friends did, so naturally I also wanted one.
Buzzfeed takes the description a little bit farther, describing a VSCO girl as one who is eco-conscious using metal or paper straws (I LOVE my metal straw!); has her laptop covered in cute stickers (does my business sticker count?); loves Starbucks (but really, who doesn’t?), Glossier cosmetics (their BoyBrow is TDF!) and Mario Badescu facial spray (admittedly amazing after a workout). But heaven forbid I point this out to the adolescents under my roof. Cool points are not given out under very many circumstances.
Every year I do a birthday photo shoot for each of my girls, and this year Piper decided on a VSCO girl theme for her 12th birthday. I wonder if she’ll look back on her sartorial choices and roll her eyes. But I think it perfectly captures the essence of being twelve in 2019 . . . It’s eerily like looking in a mirror at my high school self.
XOXO, the OG
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