Fashion in 2025: The Dopamine Style
In my previous blog article, I discussed one of the predominant styles today – the power dressing style.
Of course, this is not the only fashion style. However, there is another one that, unlike power dressing, dominates the streets and is much more visible among ordinary people. It is called the Dopamine Dressing style.
As the name suggests, its goal is to brighten up your mood. This way of choosing clothes is often described as “dressing in a way that brings you joy and boosts your mood”. The term was officially coined by Dawnn Karen in her book Dress Your Best Life, in which she explores how colours and textures can psychologically influence our mood. At the beginning of the pandemic, Karen was looking for natural ways to boost dopamine and discovered that appropriate clothing can also help achieve this.
In short, the dopamine dressing style is all about being bright and bold, sometimes to the point of dressing in a slightly inappropriate way. Personally, I think the dopamine style was "invented" much earlier than the pandemic, in northern Europe, where fashion brands traditionally offer clothes in more vivid colours. I have also frequently observed the love of colours in Belgium and the Netherlands. One of the best examples from the latter is the brand Mason Scotch, though the Dutch brand recently went bankrupt.
Brightness is what defines this fashion style. Think of bold colours and hues, pairing different textures as well. However, it should not be confused with the bohemian style, which comes with a vintage flair. There is, however, a certain amount of minimalism in the dopamine style. The bohemian, from the other side, can be demonstrated by prints – think about the small flower prints typical for the French mainstream brands like King Louis.
Nancy Aku Amekplenu has done great research about the scientific proof behind how dressing can affect our mood and perceptions. Moreover, the way we dress and the clothes we choose can actually help us redefine our identity. If it sounds abstract, think about a doctor at a hospital – once you see him with his doctor’s coat on his profession starts speaking more to you than his individuality outside of work. And magically, when he put his doctor’s coat off, he’s no longer a medical person in most people’s eyes.
To conclude my blog post today I’d like to leave you with two of my favorite ambassadors of dopamine style – enjoy and why not? 😊 try one day.
The wonderful Hannah from @hannahscolourfulworld on IG.
