Afraid to be Hipster

Hipster. What is a hipster? Why am I afraid of being a hipster? I live near and work in Williamsburg, the 'hipster capital of the world.' The definition of hipster, from dictionary.com is as follows: A person who follows the latest trends and fashions.

I have a pair of eyeglasses that I am embarrassed to wear because of their very inherent 'hipsterness.' I do see better when I wear them and I bought them when I was abroad in Korea where I taught English for a year in Seoul. I enjoyed the aesthetic of the glasses although immediately upon returning to the US, where I could quickly see that eyeglasses such as the ones I had bought were becoming a 'trend,' it made me not want to wear them.

This is a photo of me in my hipster glasses the day that I purchased them in October 2007. I cringe when I look at this photo. I was proud of myself....being so stylish and unique. These feelings only later turned to crush me into hipsterdom when I returned to the US.

Hipsterdom (from urbandictionary.com)
Refers to the hierarchy within the sub-culture of hipsters.
Being a part of this hierarchy often has to do with 'being in the know': knowing what is popular at the moment with art, music and fashion. The hierarchy culminates into a top 1% of people who are what marketing companies refer to as the 'trend-setters', the people that define what's cool and that everyone else inevitably follows. Hipsterdom is generally confined to white people between the ages of 18 to 30, often middle class, often educated in Liberal Arts.

Why is it that following the trends and latest styles has become such a negative thing? It seems to apply to a subculture of people as well...not the massive followers...for example you can't go shopping at Abercrombie & Fitch and follow the latest trends at that store and be labeled as 'hipster.' It seems to surpass boundaries and to me, is almost undefinable. However, when I take a look at the following photo, I do agree that this can be labeled as 'hipster.' I think this boils down to the unnecessary accessories. The hats and scarves which serve no purpose for warmth, just merely for fashion's sake.



Have you ever been called a hipster? How did it make you feel?
What does hipster mean to you?