Was Paul Bunyan the original hipster? Or…
Are Hipsters the new Kavoodle?
Answer hazy, try again later…
I’m just putting it out there, there are so, so, so many strains of hipster now! It’s harder to grasp than the crazy explosion of genetic engineering the dear old poodle. At last count I personally can name 14 poodle crosses.
Don’t believe me? Here they are:
Spoodle
Kavoodle
Moodle
Groodle
Schnoolde
Bernedoodle
Basetoodle – (just no!)
Cockapoo
Saint berdoodle (christ no!)
Rottle
Boxer doodle
Aussie doodle
Papipoo
Bichpoo
14!
Why?
Yes, many of them are very cute, but do we always have to play with nature?
Hipster genres and daily life
But this is not my point today. Today, I want to talk about the delicate lacing of subcultures crossing with hipsters that I see on the streets everyday. And they are multiplying!
I live in the coolest hipster neighbourhood outside of Portland Oregon or Williamsburg/Brooklyn NY. Oh, and Denver Colorado. Ok, coolest on mainland Australia. That is a bold claim. But I think it’s true. Hash tag Fitzroy (yes Brunswick, you heard me)!
My eyes have been drinking in the hipster (r)evolution over the last years. I love watching Portlandia (TV show) both own, and, poke ironic fun at it in the same skit.
The skinny jeans, the dad-glasses, environmental conscious, walking everywhere whilst also shunning any organised recreational activity. The introverted-ness, coupled with grouping together in like-style clusters (please read lifestyle!). Flannel shirts, ironic jumpers, beanies, recycled and up-cycled “fashion”, the beards – I mean I could write a whole blog on beard-sters – overalls, tattoos, moustaches to rival Monsieur Poirot himself! I mean, what’s not to love?
Here’s my take on the strains:
Hipsters – the original, not sure if it’s the best, tight pants, ironic glasses, retro jumper, newspaper, analogue mobile (if any).
Hippie-sters – a delightful hippie/hipster cross breed whereby felt hats and flowy dresses are coupled with shaved side-burns and sub-cutaneous jewels.
Sock-sters – cool rolled up skinnies with just some of the most awesome socks going. Stripes, argyle, poke-mon, anything goes.
Beardsters – what can I say? An entire industry of style, stylists, products, necessary grooming activities, have sprung up around this one. Any questions follow the link below to Beardbro for tips and tools.
Punksters – this one is a bit chicken and egg. Punk DEFINITELY came first; it is just that in some way hipster compliments punk. Like Robert Smith could identify as a post-punk, gothic hipster – no offence meant Mr Smith.
Yup-sters – Apparently people no longer know the term YUPPIE, “young urban professional" or "young, upwardly-mobile professional” which Urban Dictionary describes as who has a 1980’s college educated person in a high-paying job with an affluent lifestyle. Implied in this is an obsession with material things and financial success. While this might seem like the antonym of hipster values – they are often collocated in neighbourhoods, and I think they may have crossbred, as I know a lot of hipsters who earn serious money.
Plaidsters – this mysterious, scruffy sub-genre is up there in my favourites. I love a nice flannel shirt; you really can’t beat them for comfort and affordability.
Travel-sters – these mobile-sters are travelling the world sampling the best hipster delicacies going. There are even travel guides dedicated to how to travel as a hipster. The Huffington Post has an article about it that might help you (see below) – I mean, we all love a good coffee.
Craft-sters – these artisan hipsters are forging resurgence in many a craft and cottage industry or pursuit. Their craft beer, love of knitting, jewellery, bee keeping, farming, grooming, all industries being reinvigorated by this seemingly laconic culture. They could see the revitalisation of whole economies!
And now, introducing my all time new favourite, and the inspiration for this whole blog, Lumber-jack-sters! Today I was walking my dog, and what did I see heading towards us but a bunch of new urban lumberjacks! Styled in their best Paul Bunyan shirts, with what I hope were plastic axes looped into their belts, an array of boots from Docs to urban RM Williams, or maybe they were rural RM’s, and, wait for it, skinny hipster jeans. I assume they were on a bucks night, I mean they could have been on a murderous rampage with actual axes, I will check tomorrow’s paper. But I’m just saying, there is no way you could chop down a tree in those jeans. Not without severing a vital organ.
Anyway, this enigmatic, diverse, multicultural, non-gender binary, thriving community is as inclusive as it is exclusive. My favourite part of it all is pondering where it will head next. And while there are books claiming “Dads Are the Original Hipster” (by Brad Getty), I cant wait to see what the next gen make of this, and how these now-hipsters will view their current age group when they themselves are mums/dads/aunts/uncles/LGBTIQ+ family members. I hope they don’t go the way of YUPPIES and somehow be forgotten!
References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portlandia_(TV_series
https://www.beardbro.net/grooming/styles/
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Yuppie
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/10-tips-for-the-traveling_b_12856100