Conform: The Scandi Look

A Disgusting American Passes Judgement on the Famously Beautiful People of Sweden

From 3:00pm to 4:00pm on a weekday in Västerås, I would sooner step in front of a city bus than get on it. That's an exaggeration, obviously, but I really do avoid the after-school crowd when possible. It is the norm in Sweden that children use public transportation by themselves from as young as twelve years old to go to school by themselves. But even if Swedish teenagers are more independent than American teenagers, they're just as awful. They travel in packs, laugh loudly, swear profusely, rudely point at people and things, and for some ungodly, unknowable reason, the boys constantly spit on the ground. Yes, they are awful, and unfortunately they are in some cases unavoidable.

Other than their typical teenage qualities, the first thing you might notice about Swedish teens is how similar they all look. Or, rather, how similar they all try to look. In the generation-defining travel memoir Eat, Pray, Love, the Swedish Sofia tells the American Liz that if she had to describe her hometown Stockholm in one word, it would be “conform". Years before Sweden was even on my radar, when a past version of myself would only consider the idea of living here in an alternate reality, this bit from Eat, Pray, Love vanished into the ether of my brain. And then, the other week when I saw a group of girls all with elbow-length, pin-strait hair wearing light-wash bootcut jeans, white sneakers, and cropped black peacoats, it came back to me: “conform.”

There is a common belief, especially among Americans, that Swedes are all blonde-haired, blue-eyed Viking deities. When I told a classroom of students at LSU I was moving to Sweden, one boy said,

“Swedish people are supposed to the hottest people in the world. They're all tall and blonde, and super fit.” (One of his classmates, a Black girl, rightfully responded, "By whose standards?”)

But these teens, despite their unofficial uniforms and identical hair cuts, are quite diverse. For one, there's a sizeable immigrant population in Sweden that adds racial and ethnic diversity to the crowds on busses or on the street. But even native Swedes with Scandinavian ancestry come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. And they are, for the most part, ordinary-looking people. Most Swedes, to be frank, don't seem to be that concerned with how they look. Looking fashionable in Sweden, though, means looking just like everybody else in the know and committing to the Scandi look: a minimalist, contemporary aesthetic in fashion and interior design that is said to have originated in Scandinavia and has taken over fashion world with its Quiet Luxury vibes in the past decade.

I'm far from the first to breakdown Scandinavian style and beauty, but unlike many stylists or designers singing its praises, I find myself critical of it, even if I have adapted one or two practices into my own style or routine. Google and Instagram abound if you want to learn about its aesthetic benefits (it's so practical! affordable! timeless!) or how to execute it in your own life. But for now, BuzzFeed-style, here are my own ten observations of the things that Swedes, mostly teens and young adults, do to conform to the Scandi look.

1. Dye their hair blonde. Remember the "Scandinavian hairline” trend back in summer 2023? Surprise! It's alive and well in Scandinavia. It's mostly native Swedish women who will bleach their hair, many of whom may already have light brown hair to begin with. I'm sure some men do it, too. The blonde ideal is a white, Eurocentric obsession not unique to Scandinavia, but especially prevalent.

2. Tan or spray-tan. Again, mostly women, but some men. A prime example of this is Matilda Djerf, the influencer and fashion designer. Her iconic tan is probably the pinnacle for teens across Sweden. Maybe it's an overcorrection for the dark, seemingly endless winter?

3. Wear minimal makeup, or none at all. When I go out with just lipstick on for dinner or drinks, I feel like a clown compared to locals. If women wear makeup at all, though, they liberally apply bronzer. Whereas Parisians love a red lip and Londoners love a smokey-eye, I cannot express emphatically enough how much Swedes love a good tan.

4. Wear neutrals. Especially black. Avoid patterns. It's a cliché because it's true, and it is more true for younger generations; again, see Matilda Djerf. If I spy a red, or green, or purple coat on the street, nine times out of ten it's worn by someone over the age of forty.

5. Wear minimal jewelry. Plain silver, but mostly plain gold, ideally real, precious metals. Simple designs, rarely with accent stones. Swedes tend to be modest, placing much less value on material goods or luxuries like jewelry.

6. Embrace cosmetic procedures like fillers, and likely botox. (I know, it doesn't seem to add up with these other trends that are based in minimalism and modesty. I'll expand more on this later.) Making an observation like this might be problematic because I only have anecdotal evidence, but I see many young women out and about who have had obvious fillers or botox for pouty lips or lifted brows, or who are wearing their makeup in a way to mimic these procedures. This is world-wide trend, but is particularly prominent here.

7. Work out. Gyms are cheap and abundant in Sweden, and they are full of people. There is real statistical evidence to back this up, and I've seen it myself, going three or four times a week to work-out classes that are always booked solid. Still, while Swedes aspire to a slim, athletic build, I don't feel out of place or judged, and I wear a dress size 18 American and 50 European. It was an adjustment getting over my own modesty in the gym locker room, where it all hangs loose, but it's worth it for a post-work out sauna:

8. Saunas. Scandinavians have used saunas for centuries to combat the cold, and they purportedly have a multitude of health and cosmetic benefits: boosting your immune system, regulating your metabolism, improving circulation, increasing lymphatic drainage, etc. (I don't know how much of that is truly backed by science, but I do know that when I do saunas three to four times a week, I am less sore after workouts and my skin is clearer and brighter.)

9. For teenagers: avoid weather-appropriate winter clothes. On a day like today where the high was 1C/34F I personally needed leather boots, my puffer coat zipped up to my chin, a hat, and gloves to stay warm on my walk this afternoon. The teens I saw out and about shivered in light down jackets or the famous cropped peacoat, blue jeans, and sneakers. If you offered them mittens or a beanie, they would probably refuse. Teenagers really have something to prove, don't they? Do they even know what it is? It needs to be well below freezing before they don thermals and snow boots.

10. Seek out specific brands of clothing. (This, too, seems like a contradiction. Swedes don't place as much value on material goods, so why would particular brands be so important to them? I don't know. Culture is complicated. And this list of ten things can't truly capture the history and nuance that influences, like the Internet, how Swedes dress and present themselves in the world.) I don't know many of these popular brands by name, but I certainly see the same insignias over and over again. One I recognize is Ralph Lauren puffer jackets, or Nike sneakers. Even the Adidas Samba craze of 2023 couldn't break Swedish teens’ loyalty to Nike.

There are, of course, exceptions to these rules. There is a somewhat reactionary trend taking off in Denmark, where the emergent Copenhagen fashion week is famous for kooky maximalism. And Stockholm is still a major metropolitan city where you can see all kinds of subcultures out and about (if you go to the right neighborhoods.) But here in Västerås, when I see an exception on the street, with purple streaks in their hair and an orange bomber jacket over a band t-shirt, I want to pump my fist in the air and holler “hell yeah!” feeling proud of this random kid with the courage to express themself! In a typical American high school, the social stigma of nonconformity is incredibly low compared to Sweden. It's even normal for an American teen to go through a "rebellious” phase with their personal style. In Sweden, though, even a shoulder-length haircut on a teen girl is a bold move. As for boys - I don't think I have ever seen a teen boy dress in a remotely alternative style. They all have such short, cropped hair, with a part down the middle (even when aggressive cowlicks would really suit a side-part better.) When Swedes reach their mid to late twenties they seem to branch out with more individualistic hair styles, color palettes, or bolder accessories. This timeline is true for most people regardless of culture, but the degree to which it is exhibited in Sweden is pretty extreme.

I recently saw a comment on a YouTube video analyzing "Scandinavian style" that allowed all of these observations I have made to elucidate themselves. It was from a Swede who argued that the subdued, neutral aesthetic was really just a product of the Swedish tendency to avoid ostentation, model modesty, and strive for conformity - you may have insight into this if you read my post on lagom. Maybe spray tans and lip fillers don't seem the exemplars of modesty in most cultures, but if everyone else around you is suddenly doing them, then not doing them may seem immodest in a convoluted way?

All that said, Sweden is one of the happiest and healthiest countries on Earth. Living here, I think a huge contributor to this is a strong commitment to community. Third places - the sociological buzzword du jour - abound here with busy coffee shops and cheap cafeterias, community and holiday markets, green spaces, free cultural and recreation centers, etc. Who's to say that that sense of community isn't somehow connected to the the uniformity of the Scandi look? This may unintentionally lead to what, through my American eyes, is an occasionally drab and restrained aesthetic that still allures in an exotic, uniquely Scandinavian way.