WE'RE ALL IT GIRLS

Words: Lesego Ntsime | Images: Getty

When the term, "It Girl", comes to mind, one is immediately transported to a universe of fashion and glamour where all things shimmer and shine like a childhood dream that stretches into adulthood.

Synonymous with Y2K princesses such as Paris Hilton, Aaliyah, and Devon Aoki (any millennials and Gen-Zs in the house?) It Girls have long constituted part of our society. We will forever have a thing or two to learn from the ever-so-graceful Elizabeth Taylor to the mighty Diana Ross. 

Over the years - and especially during the pandemic years - the term has somehow managed to escape us, hiding behind the backdrop of uncertainty that gripped the world. With the integration of society 'post'-Covid, the term finds itself at the tip of our tongues once again - a mirroring of our desire to start dressing up and going out more.

From muses to trendsetters, It Girls have been an entryway into a world that has, more often than not, been inaccessible to the average person. However, the notion that all of us aspire to the same echelons of beauty and glamour or that our definitions of fabulosity are alike is heading for the door. There has never been a better time to catapult the term to heights that meet today’s person. 

The rebirth of the It Girl is in some ways a stark contrast to what the term has previously denoted. The It Girl agenda is no longer fixed, it is as dynamic as ever. Metamorphosing from a static term into a life-filled conversation, it addresses the pressing matter of taking up space and asserting ourselves as we are in a world that may sometimes oppose that. The modern-day It Girl interacts with society from a space of empowerment, exploration, and self-awareness. 

Once arbiters of beauty, the It Girl has evolved into someone who decides who they should be and what looks good on them without care or comparison. They carry an aura of a self-determined je ne sais quoi, whether androgynous or bedecked in sequins from head to toe. It’s no longer about emulating any one person, but strutting your stuff boldly and confidently. 

The secret is that there is no set path to the land of the It Girls. “It-girl-ism” (if you will) is what you make it - a moment in time captured through whatever you choose to aborn your body in and the confidence that accompanies it. Drape it till you make it, right? Everything from casual wear to evening glam can be turned into a teenage dream stuck in a scrapbooking box somewhere you can’t recall. In 2022, few things say It Girl like a pair of biker shorts paired with an oversized tee or blazer for a quick coffee run à la Princess Diana in the ‘90s. 

As we bid farewell to lounging and opt for days (or nights) out on the town, we can anticipate an intense revival of the mini dress in endless styles and colours. And take it from us, It Girls and mini dresses are the perfect cosmic match. 

In CR Fashion Book’s FROM CLARA BOW TO LIL MIQUELA: THE EVOLUTION OF THE IT GIRL, Sophie Shaw reflects on today’s It Girl:

“Today, social media has brought about yet another type of It Girl. With influencer culture rampant, some women have accrued millions of followers, built businesses, and have been able to take control of their public narratives - rather than tabloids or publications directing their stories - redefining who and what embodies the It Girl.”

The girl (or person) of your dreams was previously sold to us as something that was too far out of reach. Today’s It Girl conjures up that vision wherever they are in whatever they want. The clothes don’t make the It Girl, the It Girl makes the clothes. A pair of sneakers can provide the same chicness as sky-high heels, a bold daytime maxi with the same drama and flair of couture evening wear. Fashion is essentially a-thousand-and-one dreams compacted into fabric and an It Girl wears their dreams, aspirations, and story without a hint of hesitation. 

In Dazed’s How Instagram killed the It Girl, Ethan Price asserts that “she is an embodiment of a life without limits or cares, she’s the glimpse of what it’s like to drop off a precipice. The feeling of the fall is something we all crave, yet few are brave enough to jump themselves. And so instead we watch the It Girl, morbidly fascinated, and live vicariously through her.”

Our voices and expressive bodies are amplified by the need to get out, connect, put our best outfits forward, and most importantly, define our own “it.”

Lest you forget, you are the star of your own show and that’s enough It Girl criteria for us. A seismic shift is underway - more and more we are embodying our own unique energies and narratives instead of a single pedestaled person who we may or may not resonate with. 

As we glide into a decade that is presumed to echo the energy of the “The Roaring '20s” - more is more - the It Girl is enjoying something of a renaissance. The new incarnation of the It Girl fits the zeitgeist of an era subsequent to precariousness. What follows must be reminiscent of the Jazz Age - unrestricted, uncontained, and copious amounts of the X-factor. We are without a doubt, BACK TO BOLD.

So what makes an It Girl, you ask?

Is it the clothes, the strut, or perhaps knowing all the right people at all the right places? The above-mentioned may very well glamourise and bejewel the term, but the “It” factor lies in all the things we cannot see. The trust evident in the strut, the confidence that took years to build, and the hopes and dreams of someone who merely wants the world to make room for them.