The 2025 trends are here
Thred Media
An award-winning Gen Z-led consultancy agency helping brands and agencies to connect with today's youth.
Welcome to the latest edition of The Gen Zer. This week we discuss the trends in travel, fashion and everything else that we might be seeing in 2025. We also discuss digital cameras, crypto and the joy of second-hand gifts. Read on for more!
For the second year running, Pinterest has given us a glimpse of what trends we can expect in the coming year. With ‘Pinterest Predicts,’ the platform annually curates the search terms that are not yet trending, but that are quickly emerging and show good signs of staying power.
I find Pinterest pretty interesting as a platform. It’s obviously different to the more ‘social’ of the social media platforms, and yet over the past few years it’s seemingly returned as a new favourite amongst Gen Z. Nowadays, the vast majority of its audience is aged 18 to 34, with Gen Z making up its fastest-growing age group, and overall the platform now boasts over 500 million monthly users worldwide.
Its predictions tend to carry more weight than those of other platforms, too, given that it is primarily a search and curation service. Look at what Gen Z are posting on Instagram, and you might get some idea of what’s been trending recently. But look at what they are searching for — whether it’s for their wardrobe, their bedroom, their kitchen or simply for their camera roll and the ‘gram — and you get a deeper look at what trends, vibes and aesthetics will be shaping their lifestyle going into the year ahead.
So what are 2025’s trends?
When it comes to travel, it seems that the kids are yearning for the mountains. Searches for the Atlas mountains in Morocco, the Dolomites in Italy and Portillo in Chile have increased by 30%, 45% and 195% respectively. On a similar level, searches for mountain trip outfits and skiing outfits have been increasing by an even greater extent — even in the mountains, Gen Zers still want to look good, it seems.
It’s an interesting contrast to the focus on city breaks we’ve seen over the past few years. I think a part of this is simply due to the current widespread desire to slow down a little. You can do a city break in a long weekend, but getting to a more mountainous location is going to take longer. And then, once you’re there, your days aren’t going to be filled with shopping, sight-seeing and a dozen other fast-paced activities. Instead you’ll likely be out in nature, far away from the usual fast pace of modern city life. As with the boom in romantasy and romance, I think the global state of permacrisis we’ve been living through in the past few years has got people craving a little more escapism in their lives. Time to run away to the mountains.
It’s not just hiking boots and ski jackets that we’re looking to fill our wardrobes with, of course. Chainmail may also be making a comeback. Searches for ‘medieval core’ have increased by more than 100%, with a lot of searches for things like medieval dresses, chainmail necklaces, and antique ruby rings. Again, I think this points towards a deeper desire for escapism — for a bit more mystery, magic and even role-playing in people’s lives. 2025 might be the first year we see armoured knights returning to the catwalk.
Other emerging fashion trends are just as eclectic. Makeup is going full-on colour with Pinterest’s ‘aura beauty’, ‘cherry coded’ and ‘goddess complex’ trends. Millennial beige is nowhere in sight (despite Pantone’s recently-announced colour of the year). Instead, Gen Zers are moving towards colour palettes of rainbow and gold, or simply a bold, singular use of cherry red. This last one goes far beyond makeup, with plenty of searches for things like ‘cherry vibe,’ ‘cherry bedroom’ and ‘cherry car’.
This slightly surrealist vibe can be found in pretty much all of the emerging trends for 2025. ‘Sea witchery’ is all about sultry siren makeup, wavy wet hair looks, mermaid aesthetics and witchy outfits. ‘Fisherman aesthetic’ similarly brings the nautical vibes, with more cable-knit jumpers, fisherman sandals and even sardine tattoos.
The oceanic trends arguably go hand in hand with the mountainous ones. Gen Z are increasingly incorporating nature into their wardrobes and lifestyles, moving away from the more monochrome, urban fashions of the past one or two decades. Sustainability was another feature of this year’s Pinterest Predicts, with increases in searches for gardening, community spaces and solarpunk fashion.
‘Rococo revival’ is another trend bringing both colour and escapism. Searches for ‘rococo outfit’ are up by more than 5,000%, along with searches for Rococo weddings, parties, make-up and cakes. ‘Rococo’ refers to the Late Baroque period, an era of lavish balls in the French courts with plenty of fantastical gowns, artworks and tablescapes.
Interestingly, the original Rococo period arose during a time of intense financial and political turmoil. During the 1700s in France, national debt was rising, along with widespread dissatisfaction with the monarchy. Whilst things worsened, art styles became more and more escapist, dreamy and other-worldly — think bright colours, whimsical architecture, and fantasy-like pastoral scenes. Rococo revival (along with almost all of the other trends emerging here) have a similar vibe, you could argue; whilst anxieties rise both domestically and abroad, our clothes, holidays, make-up, home décor and everything else become a greater source for escape, distraction and fun. I think it’s little surprise that searches for hand-painted furniture are up by 135%; if the outside world feels chaotic, then your interior one matters more than ever.
Finally, when it comes to food, things are just as chaotic and colourful as with all of the other trends. Pickles are apparently in, with the little green number appearing in everything from margaritas to loaded fries to, um, cake. Fittingly, ‘chaotic cakes’ is another trend (they’re pretty much exactly what they say on the tin, if you’re wondering). Experimental soda recipes are another food and beverage trend, as Gen Z look to put a spin on more traditional drinks. For 2025, expect increasingly bold flavours, recipes and variations.
Overall, the emerging trends paint a pretty colourful picture of the year ahead. The most surprising trends will, of course, be impossible to predict. But it does seem like vibe trends will be sticking around for the time being, as both Gen Z and life online get yet another year older.
See also:
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That’s all for this week! Make sure to subscribe for the latest on Gen Z and youth culture, and check out The Common Thred for a weekly roundup of the latest news, trends and thought pieces.
Until next time,