Revisiting 2020 Quarantine Trends: Were We Crazy?
When the entire world shuts down, what do you do?
The teenagers of the world answered this question through a series of seemingly odd, kind of quirky – and, in some cases, delicious – trends, all spread through the popular social media app, Tiktok. And with one official year of quarantine passing, many teens found themselves revisiting these trends.
Today, many are looking back onto the things we ate, danced to, shopped for, and acted like… and it’s a little confusing. Who knew that Cannibal by Ke$ha (a song that came out in 2010) would become a major dancing trend? Or that egg whites would become the main ingredient in a viral loaf of bread (a pretty gross one at that)?
So, let’s look back to these trends and ask ourselves a vital question: Were we crazy?
1. Whipped Coffee
Whipped coffee, or dalgona coffee, is a whipped cream-textured coffee, achieved by whisking together equal parts instant coffee, sugar, and hot water. The mixture is just placed over ice and milk (or, a milk alternative).
Now, this is one of the more understandable trends. It was a good coffee – arguably, not worth the work, but still good. Although, the branches of the whipped drinks were largely much better, like whipped matcha or whipped chocolate. This is also easily the most iconic trend of 2020, having taken over the internet for a solid 3+ weeks. So, we definitely weren’t crazy, but maybe just had a little too much time on our hands.
2. Ghost Photoshoots
The ghost photoshoots both confounded and amused many – people would dress up as Boo Ghosts (using a single white sheet, much like a Charlie Brown cartoon), then go to random locations and take photos.
The individuals brave enough to go out into public dressed in a sheet have honestly gained our admiration, and some of the pictures did turn out well. However, it is our opinion that we will, and should never, revisit this.
3. #maincharacter
A ton of Gen-Z slang and other mannerisms were developed and spread during quarantine, and the character-placing trend became very popular. Identifying oneself and others as “main characters”, “side characters”, “comedic relief”, etc. became a normal and a quick way to describe your personality.
Although some time has passed since when this lingo was first popularized, it’s still used today, sparingly. You’ll still hear kids call themselves the main character. (I’m a supporting character, if you’re wondering.)
4. Banana Bread
It’s no wonder that banana bread became a quarantine special. It’s an easy way to use overripe bananas, and after people shopped for fruits and veggies at the beginning of quarantine (part of the hopes for a quarantine glow-up – many soon abandoned these efforts), most bananas found themselves rotting in kitchens throughout America.
Banana bread is easy to make, uses ingredients you probably already have, and isn’t new. This is the least insane trend of 2020.
5. Bleaching Clothes
Ingredients: rubber bands, bleach, solid black clothes, and sometimes a paint brush or two. Now, bleaching clothes is risky business – one wrong turn and you ruin your favorite shirt! And while the paintbrush bleaching turned out okay (using bleach as a way to paint onto black fabrics), the act of using bleach to tie-dye shirts was short lived and honestly… looks a little tacky.
This trend wasn’t totally bonkers, but was definitely a throw-back to summer camp – something sorely missed while stuck at home.
6. The Quarantine Cut
This was less of a trend and more of a popular mistake. Much like the “break-up haircut”, the quarantine cut was a result of people telling themselves, “Hey, it’s not like someone will see me anyways.” This resulted in some of the boldest haircuts of our time.
Now, not all of these turned out bad! Curtain bangs became widely popular. In fact, I even went to the salon when they reopened to get them done. But a lot of them turned out… poorly – I do admit that when I tried once to cut a friend’s hair with craft scissors, it did not look great! But this is to be expected when people try to be their own hairstylists. In addition to cuts, dying your hair bright colors like pink, blue, and green became widely popular.
7. Chloe Ting
The #ChloeTingWorkoutChallenge started as a way to get in shape with a single workout during quarantine. The results flooded TikTok as people used this to improve themselves before re-entering society (the due date for that is still TBD). Now, you receive programs with set times and the number of days the programs last, all for free!
Honestly, this is an amazing idea and all of these workouts can be completed safely and indoors! I took part in these and it really gave me something to feel motivated about at a time where my days seemed monotonous. Totally something worth checking out.
8. Mugshot Pictures
The mugshot picture trend was a controversial one, to say the least. Teens would dress up as a criminal/convict, take a mugshot-style picture, and title it with a crime of choice. Obviously, this is a bit problematic, but also a bit entertaining.
Of course, this has some issues. Ten years from now, these teens will be applying for jobs, and their potential employers will try to Google their names only to be met with a mugshot of them captioned “My Crime? Being too cool for school.” Not too good.
9. The Bridgerton Corset
Talk about polarizing… the opinions on this corset are all over the place.
After the hit Netflix television show Bridgerton came out, many people found themselves yearning for balls, tea rooms, gold embellishment, and most importantly… corsets. This is where the popular green-gold corset, which can be found on Amazon for $17.99 - $18.99, comes into play.
Now, many parents view this trend as beyond baffling, but, honestly… they're kind of cute.
10. Animal Crossing
The hit video game “Animal Crossing” became huge on Tiktok, with people racing to play the adorable game! It consists of guiding your own little character through the world and through establishing their own prosperous town, making plenty of friends along the way!
With lockdown, people have had plenty of time on their hands, and at least they spent it on happy, peaceful games like Animal Crossing! It wasn’t the worst way to spend idle time.
11. Nabela
Nabela became a HUGE TikTok star during lockdown. Her aesthetically pleasing videos featured “pockets of peace” from her days in quarantine. She would display delicious food recipes, skincare routines, cute outfits, and offer inspiring advice on how to get through the day. Nabela’s videos were extremely motivating for people since they showed productive ways to pass the time, even when time seemed at a standstill.
12 . TV Show Videos
Outer Banks, Tiger King, and All American are just some examples of hit TV shows that came out during quarantine! Of course, the storylines and characters became significant trends on Tiktok. There were creators predicting what would happen next, reacting to new episodes, and rating the shows. Some, however, took it in a… different direction. For instance, claiming their love for John B. or JJ in Outer Banks, photoshopping themselves into romantic scenes with the characters, and even coming up with conspiracies on how Carol Baskin fed her husband to the tigers. While some may have taken things a little too far, who are we to judge a wild imagination?
13. Self-tanning
As the warm spring and summer months emerged, people were heartbroken that they didn't have a huge chance to travel to warm destinations. But hey, no reason a lack of beach-time should stop you from getting that summer tan! People (including myself, I must admit) began purchasing self-tanner. Brands like Jergens and Malibu were widely popular. In many TikToks, people would flaunt their flawless summer glow developed from a plastic bottle and some sunbathing in their yard. In others, people lamented their decision to use too much, and instead flaunted their now orange complexion.
14. Themed Family Dinners
What better way to spice up the quarantine routine then to put a spin on the average meal? Themed dinners became extremely popular, in part, I think, because people really needed an excuse to get out of their PJs and dress up! Many families would rock their cocktail dresses and suits, even if they never left their dining room. They also dined to themes inspired by different international cuisines, decades and eras, and particular movies/TV shows. This was definitely a great way to have a safe, good time in your own home with the people you love.
Now, most of these trends were simple, fun, and fairly entertaining, and we would consider doing again! However, some of these are a little… bold. And best be avoided.
But quarantine isn't over and a ton of trends are still going on! The feta tomato pasta, cold foam, and Shein hauls will stand the test of time, and perhaps a year from now we will be writing another article on 2021 TikTok trends!