A clearly delighted model.
Maybe we do become a facsimile of what we once were in our youth, but Helena Bonham -Carter, who frequently makes the “worst dressed” lists in style magazines, remains a style icon to me, a goth in the punky Victorian mode, or what came to be known as “steampunk”.
I like her vintage quirks and the fact she channels the 80s, both 1980s and 1880s. But recently, a more youthful way of dressing swept the UK, and it’s still going strong: kidcore.
Defined by dungarees, wacky accessories, bunches, stickers, and cartoon characters on t- shirts, anything goes here- as long as it’s brightly coloured, maximalist and kitschy. Think colourful eighties TV oddballs Su Pollard and Timmy Mallett, and you get the general idea.
Style icons Su Pollard and Timmy Mallett.
At it’s most creative, we have Bjork, circa The Sugarcubes, with her cute junk shop threads, all clashing colours and fun accessories. Then there’s the Harajuka kawaii look from Japan – at its best, fun and funky; at its worst, the weirdly sexualized little girl chic known as “Lolita”. There is of course an even seedier side to that, but that’s best left to documentary makers.
Harajuka street style
I suppose it beats the alternative. I’m not a prude by any means, but people running around wearing very little in the colder months just looks impractical, and they must be freezing. FFS, put on a bloody coat!
Kidcore is the antithesis of sexy and skimpy. It harkens back to more playful, carefree days, when we didn’t worry about money, relationships, or unwanted pregnancies. Days seemed limitless and we had youth and innocence on our side. Things seemed possible; we just lived in the moment. It’s a rose tinted look, nostalgia as safe haven.
Even as a fifty-something goth, I can see the appeal of kidcore. It’s fun to embrace your inner child and express some wild individuality. But I will never, ever, get the appeal of dungarees on adults.
Hit The North 
it’s like wearing a smile
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