Even though she once claimed that it’s not fashionable to love her, Lana Del Rey is taking the fashion industry by storm with her latest SKIMS campaign. The Lana Del Rey X SKIMS collab was officially announced on January 18 with a downright ICONIC photoshoot, which features Lana wearing various pieces from the SKIMS Valentine’s Collection against a series of dreamy backgrounds.
As a diehard Lana fan, I feel qualified to say that this is one of my favorite photoshoots she has done in the last few years (maybe even snagging the top spot from her 2023 Interview Magazine piece). Before this campaign, I had never really been interested in SKIMS, but my online cart has slowly started filling up.
And I’m not the only one – it seems like the entire internet is falling in love with the Lana X SKIMS campaign and considering making their first SKIMS purchases. As I found myself on the verge of buying a bubblegum pink bodysuit, I couldn’t help but wonder: how did SKIMS manage to capture all of our hearts and wallets?
The answer to this question comes wrapped up in a bow: coquette core. At the end of last year, coquette fashion came to dominate the style scene. For those unfamiliar with the term, coquette style is dainty and hyper-feminine. Coquette outfits usually involve some combination of ballet flats, pearl jewelry, or lacy details – think prima ballerina in a Sofia Coppola movie. But no coquette is complete without one crucial item: the bow(s).
TikTok decided to join in on the bow craze with the “this is me if you even care” trend. Though exact items varied from calculators to chicken fingers, these TikToks would place bows on random objects with the same “this is me if you even care” caption. As craft stores across the country ran out of ribbon, companies like Duolingo and Air Baltic decided to cash in on the trend. And just like that, coquettes infiltrated corporate America.
The Lana Del Rey X SKIMS campaign shows that coquettes aren’t going anywhere. Lana was already tied to the “this is me if you even care” trend because most of these TikToks use her song, “Let the Light In.” But that’s not all: “coquette” and “so Lana Del Rey vinyl” are basically interchangeable terms, so Lana has really become the face of the coquette movement.
Even though she has now come to symbolize all things coquette, Lana’s personal style is typically much more laidback. Much like her song “Blue Jeans,” Lana’s streetwear often consists of a simple white t-shirt and denim jeans. Despite this, her elaborate music videos and ethereal lyrics have caused many fans to associate Lana with the coquette image over the years.
I love Lana no matter what she wears, but I have enjoyed getting to see her really lean into the coquette trend with her SKIMS collab. Lana is no stranger to playing around with different personas and aesthetics, and this campaign has allowed her to express herself artistically and connect with her bow-wearing, cherry emoji-using fans.
So while SKIMS is definitely capitalizing off of the coquette craze, their decision to work with the people’s coquette queen Lana Del Rey gives the campaign a layer of authenticity and makes for a picture-perfect partnership. As long as the coquette aesthetic continues to have us all in a (pink bow-tied) chokehold, I expect to see a lot more corporate coquette collabs in the future (especially after Lana HOPEFULLY wins her first Grammy).