Will TikTok’s biggest styling hacks of 2023 work in real life?
Move over, clothing hauls and unboxing videos: the growing phenomenon of videos offering unexpected, quirky or, on occasion, surprisingly practical ways of styling the clothes you already own are taking off.
A Gen Z take on “make do and mend”, these styling hack videos have blown up in 2023, taking social media by storm. On TikTok, the hashtag #fashionhacks has more than 17.4bn views, and #stylinghacks has 1.2bn. Stylists’ tips and tricks often involve reimagining an item of clothing so that it is worn upside down or back to front. Almost anything, it turns out, can be worn as a top – so long as you’re not fussed about having sleeves.
The interest chimes with the growing awareness of waste in our wardrobes. Earlier this year, a Business of Fashion report found that a “growing niche of consumers are pledging to buy fewer or no new clothes, amid growing anxiety about the climate and the costof-living crisis”.
So, with sartorial innovation and sustainability in mind, can these leftfield social media hacks work in the offline world? I put five of 2023’s most popular hacks to the test.
Cropped shirt hack
Many of this year’s top hacks revolve around cropping an item of clothing, without taking scissors to the hem. Hoodies – especially those from the 90s, during which they were worn oversized and baggy – are ripe for a cropping. TikTokers often opt for a twistand-tuck method, with the surplus material scooped up and tied inside the back of the (still relatively loose) hoodie, which I imagine works well until you need to sit on a firm chair.
Instead, I opt for the cropped shirt hack, as demonstrated by the Canadabased digital creator Shayne Hydn – and many, many others. Hydn takes an oversized shirt and fastens the top button as normal, before fastening the next button down at the back of her neck. Then, she continues buttoning at the front, before undoing the very top button to reveal the final look.
“This hack is useful because it allows you to repurpose boring clothes easily without needing advanced sewing skills or equipment,” says Hydn. “It’s a simple and costeffective way to give an old oversized button-up a fashionable look.”
This may be true, but it’s fiddly. The magic of TikTok means Hydn achieves her chic, cropped style at lightning speed; I have to enlist my sister to help and still end up looking a bit like I’ve accidentally missed a buttonhole.
Long sleeve/one shoulder top hack
One of the most ambitious hacks doing the rounds this year, this involves not putting your arms in the sleeves of your long-sleeved top at all, but rather tying them around yourself on a diagonal to create a one-shouldered handkerchief top. I say top – it only