Cottagecore: Romantic, Rural Style

It’s wonderfully amusing to me that cottagecore is a fashion style that people choose to emulate. Because while most people see it as a fairytale aesthetic — a combination of puff sleeves and hair bows that is a fantasy far removed from our reality, I see it a little differently. For me, cottagecore is a (much more fashionable) reflection of my childhood. If you follow this site, then you’ll remember that in July I shared that I would be joining The Everygirl‘s freelance team as a fashion writer. I’m excited to now share that my first official story for the site has gone live. And it feels only fitting that it would be about cottagecore.

Having grown up in the countryside of Upstate New York, I’m no stranger to a rural lifestyle and the beauty that comes with living sustainably and self-sufficiently. My childhood was filled with fresh vegetables from the garden, days spent on my grandfather’s sheep farm and countless hours playing in the woods, embroidering different fabrics, and baking homemade desserts. As I learned earlier this year, cottagecore is a fashion style that epitomizes the lifestyle I just described. It is — you guessed it — very hygge.

If you’re not familiar with cottagecore, it’s a style that represents a romanticized version of rural life. Every time I hear the word I can’t help but mentally picture Disney Princess Aurora hiding away in the woods with the Three Good Fairies. It’s a lifestyle that glamorizes the contentment that comes from living off the grid, making homemade goods and relishing in old-world crafts such as baking, embroidering, knitting, and the like. It’s also an escape from the screen-heavy, notification-filled world as we know it. It’s a term that first started popping up in 2017 but an idealogy that only became more popular as we all bunkered at home during the pandemic.

While our daily routines are starting to look a little bit more normal as the world reopens, the appreciation for a simpler lifestyle is sure to stay — at least I know it is for me. And in terms of fashion, cottagecore is sure to be one of the most popular trends this fall. So how, exactly does cottagecore play into fashion? Be sure to check out my cottagecore fashion article on The Everygirl.

And while it’s currently sparse with its one article at the time of this post’s original publication, feel free to check out my author’s page on the site here!