Summer is almost over which means it’s time to pack up your brat summer (or hot girl summer, if you prefer) ways and get ready for the next season — and no, I don’t mean fall, I mean the new TikTok trend dictating how we’re supposed to act. And I don’t mean this in a negative way — ever since I’ve become an adult I have just been begging someone to tell me exactly what to do with my life, so thank you TikTok trends. Anyway, instead of a hot girl fall, we’ve got a new agenda going forward: we’re going to be “demure.”
Okay, I know what you’re thinking: Is this another ploy from the trad wifers to regress women back into the 1950s? Is Nara Smith doing a press run? Don’t worry, this has nothing to do with that. I mean, if we’re getting technical, “demure” means modest, reserved, and shy, and while there’s nothing wrong with having those personality traits on your own, I can see why someone would be suspicious of any trends that tries to push that on people — especially women.
But honestly, the trend is more of a joke than a serious way of life. And I hate to be the person that makes a trend uncool by breaking down exactly what it is, but you’re reading this article for a reason so let’s get into it.
i can always tell when there’s a new tiktok buzzword because i saw 73 tweets with the word “demure” in it today
— june (@matzahluvr) August 12, 2024
What Is The “Demure” TikTok Trend?
@joolieannie #fyp #demure @OAKCHA @Paul | Fragrance Influencer ♬ original sound – Jools Lebron
In early August, TikTok creator Jules Lebron (@joolieannie) made a video called “how to be demure at work” where she talks about how she goes to work, being “very demure, very mindful.” She has a full winged-liner look and a lot of blush, so it makes you laugh because you’re not really sure what about the look says demure. But immediately, the trend caught on. Since then, Jules has made 30+ videos where she describes her look or something she’s doing and explains things like “how to apply deodorant in a demure way” or “how to be demure in Vegas.” You never really get what aspect of the activity is “demure” exactly, but it’s just fun to say. Oh, and she throws in a “very cutesy” at the end of each video to really drive the point home. If you still don’t get it, it’s just very absurdist humor which makes it the best kind of humor.
Since Jules’ first video, there have been almost 13K videos made using the tag “#demure.” People are posting their meals, talking about their nights out, and even “finishing emails” all in a “very demure, very mindful” way. Is there anything really “demure” about someone eating a caesar salad or getting a waking up without a hangover? No. But is it still really fucking funny? Absolutely.
So unlike Charlie XCX who had a pretty specific definition of what a “brat” is, Jules is basically saying, “be demure, be mindful” but not giving you any sort of real idea of what that means. A demure queen.
