Summer of 2024 had its share of micro-trends, which started off with Charli XcX’s “Brat” summer and its carefree, messy lifestyle. Then onto “demure girls” at pilates with slick back hair, and even trends from the past like animal print and bright colors. Trends often go in and out of style. Let us look at this season’s trend cycle.

A micro-trend is similar to any trend but more niche and shorter lived. Micro-trends are smaller groups of people and are accustomed to what each person likes, and they often change as people grow. They tend to be more unique and out of the box than most basic trends. They also encourage people to change their style up, shop at new places and experiment with what they love as well as what they are passionate about.

“I love how often trends change to help me experiment with what my style is,” sophomore Liv Franzel said.

At the start of summer on June 7, Charli XcX released her album, “Brat”. This upbeat pop album displayed unbothered, jovial energy which made fans go wild. Brat started the trend of lime green due to the iconic album cover, and with over 41.2k posts under the TikTok #bratsummer, it was one of the fastest on-the-rise trends of the internet. From the TikTok trend “the apple dance” to the popular game, Dress to Impress, to even Kamala Harris with her presidential campaign, Brat is all over. 

“Trends often cycle through popularity due to changing societal values and interests,” psychology teacher Taylor Thines said.

Social media plays a key role in the spread of trends through our society. Trends such as short hair, cheetah print nails and bright colored shoes took over TikTok this summer. Patchwork clothes took off, people repurposed sweatshirts and often added their own personal flair to fashion. 

“It’s easier to follow trends when it comes to clothes because it’s what we see in stores the most,” junior Meadow Tian said.

 Trends are now more accustomed to peoples’ personalities rather than copycats of others’ styles. As society begins to grow in their creativity and people start to build a sense of individuality in how they dress, trends are a thing of the past and micro-trends are here now more than ever.