Everything may be receding

But not your hairline💁‍♀️

If you haven’t been under a rock for the past year(???) chances are you’ve come across some earnest piece of media pointing out a new “recession indicator.” Some are more deliberate and back-scienced than others, but it doesn’t matter—newspapers, creators, niche cultural commentators, they all have their own “you’ve missed this, here’s the real sign” take. And of course they have a theory for how it will impact something we’ve all already been living for ages, if not a decade.

Here’s the thing: when everything becomes a recession indicator, nothing is a recession indicator. Wrap it in a meme, make it cute, even frivolous—and suddenly, the edge softens. Maybe it’s just the internet.

And look (sighs) we live in a society. The macro economic data is real. But the vibes are too. What’s more interesting is that (!!!)often economics and investors look at these offbeat sources of date or offbeat trends for predictive purposes. With that said, here’s my personal take and mini essay (possibly lightweight, possibly profound) on this growing genre of economic semiotics: long) hair is a recession indicator. And I’ve got some evidence.

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In here you’ve got two in one: pop girls™️(I am not gonna write about that as there are already tons of essays and articles on the link between the rise of pop girls and recession) and long hair, which—at least in my telling—feels like recession-maxing in its purest form. It’s abundance, fluffiness, richness—deliberately extra in a moment where extra feels like both rebellion and fantasy. Maybe that’s why, not by accident, one of the first beauty trends of 2025 was hair tinsel: an accessory that (let’s be honest) really delivers on dramatic effect, and especially pops on longer hair.

@coachellaDrop the hair care routine @Doja Cat Watch “Demons” Live at Coachella 2024 on @YouTube #Coachella

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There’s a bigger, deeper thread running through how we see and value long hair across cultures and eras. For instance, it doesn’t seem casual to me the focus that photographer Francesca Allen recently put on by documenting Lithuania’s legendary long-hair contest—a tradition that’s existed for decades, but which now feels newly relevant with the aesthetics of the time but it also highlights the care, ritual, and sense of community women build around their hair. Allen’s project underscores how, even in our hyper-modern age, long hair remains a living symbol: part of collective identity and personal history, woven into both social ritual and self-expression.

Plaukai (Lithuanian for “hair”), a photo series by Francesca Allen.

Across generations, long hair holds significance. It’s historically a symbol of power and spirituality - especially in Lithuanian folklore. ”Lithuania has a strong history of paganism and witchcraft,” she says. ”Speaking to some of the contestants, it was often believed that women with long hair had magical powers.” In line with this ritualism, the finale sees every participant gather onstage, turn their backs to the crowd, and shake their hair in unison.

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Our collective fascination with hair as a marker of identity has deep, Victorian-era roots. Back then, hair became a literal medium — worked into mourning jewelry, woven into rings and brooches, braided as wearable mementos. As Gibson AKA the Hair Historian points out, hair has been woven into mourning masks, suits of armor, and status pieces marking marriages, births, or battle victories. The lovelock, worn through the 16th and 17th centuries over the heart as a necklace or on the ear as an earring, served as a sign of romantic attachment. Across cultures, hair has been used as a totem, accessory, or textile—its significance magnified in societies where hair is considered sacred, a part of the self and soul.

Fast-forward to today, and hair is taking on that kind of heft again, reaching peak obsession in fashion. Designers like Simone Rocha, Schiaparelli and D’Heygere are turning hair into wearable art—from hair-covered jewelry inspired by Meret Oppenheim’s surrealist works to dramatic statement pieces on the runway.

Hair attracts, repels, and fascinates all at once—a material perfectly suited to the statement-making impulses of fashion. In an era defined by digital ephemera and rapid change, this resurgence feels like a collective urge to hold onto something lasting, sensorial, and deeply personal.

Which brings me back to my starting point: long hair as a recession indicator may sound whimsical—but it speaks to a deeper truth. In uncertain times, the stories we tell with our bodies—and our hair—become potent cultural and economic signals. The strands we choose to keep—or to cut—carry those stories forward, connecting personal expression, social identity, and the currents of the world around us.

Note: This piece does not address the deep and complex histories of Black hair culture. Black hair carries its own distinct political, social, and cultural meanings, with legacies of resistance, discrimination, and creativity that require their own space and expertise. Rather than flatten those histories into my narrower observations on long hair as an economic/semiotic trend, I’ve chosen to focus on the specific visual language and references within the (mostly white, Western) cultural contexts I’m drawing from here.