What is a celestial aesthetic? Get to know the otherworldly fashion trend set to dominate 2023
Trends move fast in the 21st century, and let me tell you, 2023 is looking as though it’ll be no different. Wave goodbye to mermaid sleaze and balletcore, and sashay your way into the ethereal—where the stars align and there’s always enough glitter to go around.
This year, expect the gen Z style to move away from its earthy, mystic routes as we begin our ascent to fully embracing this space-trotting aesthetic.
What is the celestial aesthetic?
Embodying a celestial vibe originally took you down only one pathway, a route supported by a love for star-gazing and the zodiac—as well as a premium subscription to Cafe Astrology. All of these subculture elements helped to initially construct the early celestial look, one that was interlinked with the Stevie Nicks-inspired whimsigothic. But things have already changed since then, with celestial fashion taking things up a notch.
As a whole, it lets you embrace floral, and almost witchy patterns that are adorned with stars and references to the zodiac. Think long skirts paired with custom-patterned corsets or shawls. Star prints are rife too. These girlies are sure to have a deck of tarot cards tucked into their purse—and they’re not afraid to use them.
When rapper Princess Nokia announced on 9 January 2023 that she is embracing clairvoyance and plans to do astrological readings this year, gen Zers couldn’t have been more excited, which is evidence alone that those invested in the celestial zodiac subculture are here to stay.
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Celestial realness goes Space Age
Things are starting to look even more sci-fi as the style begins to soar into the new year. Celebs, make-up artists and fashion lovers are all embracing the more retrofuturist and ethereal alien look that can be embodied within celestialness too.
Picture a very easy-going alien who’s crash-landed on Earth, lazily getting through their days, remnants of stardust still painting their face with illumination. The celestial aesthetic is truly unhinged and is perfect for anyone wanting to experiment with fashion or beauty.
A lot of the new wave celestial looks take pages directly from Elon Musk’s ex and twee-alien-queen Grimes’ nostlagic futurism-inspired book. The singer has been known to adorn herself with alien-inspired makeup and Space Age garms, with a blend of mediaeval thrown in for good measure.
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Everyone’s favourite second-hand vintage marketplace, Depop, is here to back this claim up, having forecasted a rise in chainmail, feathery trims, and cut-out bodysuits (as well as a continued trajectory for zodiac motifs) evidenced by search traffic on its app.
Emboldened by looks from pop superstar Dua Lipa, it’s clear the style is gaining cosmic speed. Lipa rang in the new year in a glamorously shiny cut-out dress with matching star earrings from celebrities’ favourite, Ludovic de Saint Sernin.
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To top it all off, we saw some wonderful adaptations of the style and aesthetic in Valentino’s Spring 2023 runway from last year that gave us a stunning future-facing Dune vibe.
Speaking of, 2023 will also bring us the highly anticipated Dune sequel as well as the return of sci-fi glam icon Barbarella to the big screen, who will be played by none other than Euphoria stand-out, Sydney Sweeney. In other words, expect the celestial to begin oozing from people’s wardrobes once these flicks show up in cinemas.
The aforementioned aesthetic has also been making waves in the beauty world, with legendary make-up artist Pat McGrath stunning audiences at the Andreādamo Spring 2023 show with faces covered in futuristic fallout.
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Within the beauty industry, the trend seems to manifest itself through the messy and unrestrained use of powdery glitter and shimmer both around and under the eye. The technique results in a dazzling starscape adorning your face, one that is well suited to whatever celestialness you hope to achieve.
So, as we go deeper into 2023, expect the aesthetic to be launched to new galactic heights—having grown from its roots in the star-gazing and fully embracing the star-roaming.
