Years ago, who knew that people who used to bully you in high school for wearing a Star Wars shirt would be the same ones asking you for fashion advice right now? Geeks and fashion used to be two words that simply didn’t go together, and the whole geeky subculture was to be a well-kept secret if you wanted to have a good social standing. But, times change and women are brave, and dorky girls with big glasses and even bigger intellect realised that if they can figure out how to speak Sindarin, code a program, and beat Half-Life in under an hour, they can figure out this whole fashion thing, too. And thus, geek chic was born, and tight shirts and miniskirts stopped being the only valid form of stylish wardrobe. But how does the whole hipster thing tie into it, and how do you know which one is better? Well, beside explaining just that, we also offer a few tips on how you can use these two styles and incorporate them into your own wardrobe.
Geeky girls and feminism
Geeky girls used to be a pretty invisible part of the society. Men were there to recite sci-fi references and play video games, while women were there to look cute and ask those geeky boys to help them with their homework. Watch any old rom-com and you’ll see that the idea was pretty ingrained into the society. But, as these clever geeky ladies were not the kind to sit still and be overlooked, they slowly started establishing their place, and soon enough others started seeing the appeal of the more natural, less done-up style of these women. With ponytails, large glasses and clean, crisp shirts underneath their big sweaters, this charm became apparent.
Pop culture and hipster style
Geeks became more numerous and slowly the social stigma started fading. What used to be a subculture turned into a part of everyone’s pop culture and the hipster style was born. People took the simple, slightly shabby, smart-looking outfits of the geeks and started giving them their own twists. Trends started popping up, some of them great, some of them pretty stupid. People clung to that image of slightly misunderstood, smart, unique geek and wanted to find ways to copy it. New elements were introduced into the hipster style – chunky-framed glasses, shirts tucked into pants, well-trimmed beards and moustaches for men, suspenders, bow ties, and an abundance of tattoos and piercings. While the geek chic was clean, prim and cute, hipsters took it to the next level and gave it a certain edge, a tone of defiance against social constructs and rules.
Unfortunately, for some people, the hipster style was just a fad that passed quickly, and left a few regrets in its wake. In Australia particularly, there’s an increasing number of people who regret getting a tattoo, so most of the hipsters who hate their excessive body art rushed to the nearest laser tattoo removal clinic in Sydney. But still, for the most part, hipster fashion is here to stay and there’s no indication that its popularity is fading.
How to bring out your inner geek
Geek chic and hipster style are really very similar, because hipster look is just an evolved version of the first style. They are very similar, though hipster fashion does tend to be a unique mix of polished and rebellious, while geek chic remains fairly lighthearted and takes itself a bit less seriously. Masculine elements are present in both styles, though they are a lot more obvious with hipsters. Ladies can try wearing suspenders with their favourite slacks, and pair that with comfortable loafers and a plain white shirt. Over-the-knee socks, A-line pleated skirts, messy buns, Converse, t-shirts with titles of your favourite shows, Doc Martens, beanies, Chucks and flannel shirts – a mishmash of styles borrowed from various eras and combines into something unique and quite fashionable. If you like the hipster aesthetics feel free to rock it with bright green or pastel hair, a meaningful tattoo, a small piercing, basically anything to give it some edginess.
These fashions are not just about the clothes, they’re about the attitude and your own interests. While you can wear whatever you wish, you’re going to look a tiny bit weird in your Doctor Who shirt if you haven’t seen a single episode of the show. In the end, this is your own style and you can pick and choose which elements you want to put in it, and create your own unique look.
