Last week New York Magazine published an article about a fashion trend called "normcore," about stylish people who purposefully dress "normally" not because they're normal people but because it's a look. It's "a way for adherents to counteract stereotypes by dressing mundanely in order to stand out." I naturally posted this on Facebook with the question, "Is this a joke?" Most people found the story irritating but my friend Jessica Riddle, who has been cooler than I am since I met her in high school and who will be long after we're both dead, defended normcore as an actual thing that's valid. "Are the people who do normcore saying f. you to the massive fashion and lifestyle industrial complex? Maybe," she pointed out.
But I wasn't convinced. But as I got dressed in my usual barely-conscious attire this last weekend, I wondered, am I normcore? Does the blandness of my attire actually make me cutting-edge? So I took photos of what I wore all weekend long and sent them to Jess, asking her to evaluate them on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the most normcore outfit of all time.) It's worth noting that at one point in the weekend I actually put together a kind of nice-ish outfit that involved a blue leather jacket and statement necklace but I a.) forgot to take a photo of it and b.) I'm pretty sure blue leather jackets and statement necklaces are not normcore. Oh and also before you read on I want you to know that I did laundry this weekend so I wasn't just wearing the same socks over and over. Anyway. Let's find out!
Outfit #1: Friday--An old Abercrombie and Fitch sweater I was trying to see if I could bring back, and some Old Navy jeans:
Jessica: Not bad! I'm assuming the sweater is 90s 'Crombie before they exclusively catered to tanned and toned Italian greyhounds. In any case, I like how the beige, cranberry and hunter green fair isle pattern can be rocked, without referencing any one particular holiday, easily from November through March. I also think beige, cranberry and hunter green were the top colors of catalog clothing and car interiors in 1992. Old Navy is about as generic as you can get for jeans, so points for them--but the pink socks and red painted nails are gonna knock your score down a little, because that looks like an attempt at adding flair.
Normscore: Â 8/10
Outfit #2: Friday--What I changed into when I decided I wasn't pulling off the sweater. Same jeans and a huge sweater I got in the '90's from a store called Khaki in Evanston that no longer exists.
Jessica: Did you get this sweater from my mom? I'm serious, that is so her style. But you know what? I'm not sure this is normcore. It's definitely Momcore, and sort of interestingly bland--but a little too austere for normcore. There's those pink socks we talked about.
Normscore: 6/10
Outfit #3: Saturday--Day of the Dead shirt, Sugoi running tights
Jessica: Wearing workout clothes as all-day clothes is a normcore principle, and wearing a 5k vs Boston Marathon t-shirt is a nice modest touch--but I think you wore this to actually work out in, which implies a level of concern about context that most normcorers can't be bothered with. OK so the shirt is ugly and purple, and I think you're wearing a red t-shirt under it which is CRAZY, but this outfit just doesn't do it for me. Trying way too hard. Sorry scro. Normscore: 4/10
Outfit #4: Saturday--Cashmere sweater my mom got me from Saks or Bloomingdales probably and J. Crew cords
Jessica: A turtleneck cashmere sweater your mom got you is pretty much is a passport to the core of norm right there. The only thing one CAN pair a cashmere turtleneck with is cords, so you did absolutely the right thing there. Mama taught you well. Except put some socks and Adidas slippers on those vulgar feets!
Normscore: 9/10
Outfit #5: Sunday--Old Navy tee, Alternative Apparel sweatshirt (that I got for free) and ten-year-old Silver jeans
Jessica: Normcore perfection. Classic gray hoodie, flared and whiskered jeans, glasses, and, finally, the pink socks sound the right note. If you weren't holding a smartphone I would swear this was 2002. I want to cram for the big exam with you. Can we order a pizza and watch the WB?
Normscore: 10/10
So it turns out that on a typical weekend, my average Normscore is a 7.4 out of 10, which means that I am indeed normcore, which proves, I think, that if you're trying too hard, you're just not stylish. Stylish like me.