Social media has become the suburbs. Once, it was a brand new front tier with tales of ragged exploration. Villages, towns, and cities sprung up quickly — populated by a mix of unexpected characters. Now, even the newest platforms drift into curated aesthetics and planned content quickly. The deliberation is fierce, expected, and capitalized.
This is not a criticism or applause.
Lately, I’ve been looking for any disruption in the careful aesthetics that drop before my eyes.
I find seas of beige, with warm, desaturating filters that create enticing contrast between skin tones and shadows.
Then, you find the maximalist, rainbow effect — with layers of pattern and texture to stimulate your senses.
The aesthetic clash of turquoise and red filters has aquired staying power for more than a few summers.
Overall, visual, monotone feasts stop the scroll. With all this consistency and curation, my eye searches for the outliers.
I’m drawn to the nuanced and often messy moments surrounded by perfection.
This week, I pulled together three shades that I’ll probably never use. They’re honest, outdated colors that remind me of rolls of ribbon from my grandmother’s craft cabinet. They’re ready to adorn dolls’s braids or tie around a simple wildflower bouquet. Simple and sweet.
