24 June 2011

My next fancy dress party theme: Hipster


WHEN something is said to have jumped the shark, it means it has declined in quality beyond recovery - something (or someone) has reached their peak and are now heading downhill. Just because we love using the phrase so much, each week Word Chic will detail a situation/object/tv show/idea/etc that we believe has jumped the shark (JTS). Introducing week one's JTS topic: Hipsters.

hipster, n. (slang)

1. A person who markets a facade of originality for social standing, when in fact they are not original; attention seeking and fake.

2. People who, despite following the hipster style trends, music, and culture, deny being a hipster.

Synonym: pretentious

Once upon a time you could count on one hand the amount of hipsters you knew (or would see one out and about). Except, they weren't always called hipsters. In fact, I can't for the life of me put my finger on a past name for hipsters.

Once upon a time a "hipster" was someone who dressed eclectically - fashioned from finds at Vinnies, Salvos and the like. They listened to music you had never heard of and kept to their own little crew because that is who understood them.  Now, hipsters are a farce.



Once upon a time I envied hipsters. I tried to find similar clothes in op-shops, to no avail. I never "got" their music. I wasn't "ironic" in the right sort of way. I was a hipster wannabe - the people hipsters hate. 

There is no fear of abuse from hipsters about arguing they have jumped the shark because no hipsters read this blog. This blog isn't cool enough for hipsters. This blog is not ironic. Most of the postings are mainstream. Photos uploaded are not taken on old school Polaroids or the like.



So why have hipsters jumped the shark?
- Hipsters are meant to be dressed originally, in their own unique fashion. Instead, hipsters are carbon copies of each other.Their clothes are now mainly purchased through chain stores (like the rest of us!) not vintage stores.

- Hipsters want to convey the perception that they  put absolutely zero effort into their respective scenes, that they are just naturally quirky like that. And everybody already fucking knows that all hipsters do is obsess over how to pull their scene. They fail at everything else — like working — because they spend all their time hunting for mustache wax and authentic leg warmers.

- When people hold a theme party in your style, you have jumped the shark (hipster themed parties are all the rage on the States I have been told)

- Children think dressing like hipsters is cool (I gathered this information from a very reliable source - my nieces), especially the glasses

- Comedians LOVE to mock hipsters. My favourite is the Bedroom Philosopher's song Northcote (So  Hungover) below.


- Hipsters will hate something just because you like it. Hipsters are the type of people who immediately hate Triple J's Hottest 100 because it's "so commercialised and mainstream."Popular things are popular for a reason. Trying to be "progressive" but really just being a anti- establishment tool is not cool.


If you are not convinced that hipsters have jumped the shark then I leave you with this Honda Jazz ad.


Just like hippies, emos and goths before them, hipsters have jumped the shark - they have declined in quality (are no longer original, quirky, enviable and cool), and are heading downhill.

Do you agree hipsters have jumped the shark?

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