On almost every red carpet over the last year or so, Barbie mania has appeared to be the unspoken dress code amongst the star-studded guests. Thanks to a combination of the mind-blowingly popular Valentino clothing collection in 2022, plus the long-awaited live action Barbie film which is set to be released in July 2023, there's only one trend on every self-respecting fashionistas mind right now: Barbiecore.
What is Barbiecore?
Barbiecore is the term that was coined when the world seemed to go crazy for pink everything in 2022. Valentino creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli can be credited as starting the trend with his AW22 collection (more on this below), with Anne Hathway adding fuel to the fire and stopping the fashion world in its tracks by attending the show in head-to-toe pink last year. The Grammy's shortly followed Piccioli's show, and its fabulous fuchsia palette totally dominated the red carpet style agenda.
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© Ernesto RuscioCall the timing a coincidence or call it fate. Though the live action Barbie movie was announced way back in 2019, the pink sartorial craze gained even more momentum in June 2022 when Margot Robbie and Ryan Reynolds were spotted on set filming. Fast-forward a year to June 2023 and we have two epic trailers full of incredible outfits, Dua Lipa has announced her role in the film and she's sporting bright blue hair for it, and Nicki Minaj has released an official song from the film soundtrack which samples Aqua's hit single Barbie Girl. On TikTok as of June 2023, the hashtag #barbiecore has garnered 388 million views, whilst #Barbie has a whopping 41.2 billion.
More than a fashion movement, Barbiecore is also a philosophy. According to Business Insider, "Barbiecore is a Gen Z and Millennial response to the quarantining and social distancing from the pandemic, a sexual coming-out moment of sorts, version 2.0 of hot-girl summer. The look, which LGBTQ icons like Lil Nas X and Laverne Cox have embraced, is a feminist statement. It flips the script on stereotypes — specifically that if you wear pink, you're not smart — and expands the notion of femininity to include people beyond blonde, white, heterosexual, cisgender women, industry experts and enthusiasts said."
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How did the Barbiecore trend start?
An obvious reference point was Pierpaolo Piccioli's historic Autumn/Winter 2022 collection was almost exclusively pink; the unabashedly rosy shade was created by Pantone for the show, officially titled ‘Valentino Pink PP’. The pink hue in question was oh-so Barbie, and it was seen on almost everything in the show, from clothing to makeup and hoisery. “I wanted to use one colour to highlight fashion as cut, design, silhouette, shapes, volumes, textures,” explained Pierpaolo Piccioli of the collection.
Add the excitement of the Barbie movie into the mix, and there's nothing the world wanted more than a wardrobe of perfectly pink pieces.
© GettyFew films have been as hotly-anticipated as Margot Robbie's upcoming flick. The film based on the eponymous, world-famous doll by Mattel, is the first ever Barbie live-action movie. So far we have been fascinated by the trailers that show already iconic costumes which are being designed by the Oscar-award winning Jacqueline Durran.
To top it off, Robbie has sported nothing but sensational outfits that nod to her eponymous character in the press and red carpet events building up to the movie release. From retro Barbie looks to a 2013 edition doll-inspired custom Valentino outfit created by Pierpaolo Piccioli, she is only futhering our intentions to add pink everything to our summer 2023 wishlists.
17 things you need to get the Barbiecore look:
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