Wake up people, a new it-girl subgenera has arrived. If clean-girl, granola-girl, trad-wife or coquette-core didn’t strike a chord with you, the mob wife awaits. With The Sopranos celebrating its 25th anniversary and Netflix launching Griselda there comes a new romanticisation of criminal luxury among women. For this vibe, think eccentric jewellery, fur coats, red nails, voluminous sixties hair and ultimately; bold, loud excess. The classic women of this style are Carmela Soprano, Elvira Hancock and Ginger McKenna, often being associated with crime and grandeur. Italian-American influences permeate this look, with the New Yorker Italians’ embrace of prints, and an eclectic mix of old and new fashion.
There is something undeniably fun and exciting about the mob wife’s unapologetic expression of femininity, compared to the subtlety and minimalism of the clean girl. Despite this appeal, the mob wife crumbles under scrutiny. The embedded status of ‘wife’ unfortunately places the mob wife’s power as contingent on the career and power of her husband. In 2024, this is undeniably a setback for emancipatory identities for women. Equally, there is the question of who this aesthetic is for, if it hones into extravagance and luxury, how can everyday people be expected to participate? It is perhaps no coincidence that the recent participants in this trend have been the likes of Kendall Jenner and Dua Lipa, both women of immense wealth. Ultimately, regardless of whether we can join in, living through these modern waves of consumption and the lens of a limiting aesthetic is plainly exhausting.
Here lies the paradox of the modern young woman’s identity; we all crave the micro-individuality of having a unique style and a voguish demeanour, yet we also find ourselves funnelled into rigid aesthetics that offer no personal flair. Everything is a hashtag, every vibe has a label, and lifestyles and personalities are condensed into consumable aesthetics. The truth is, with identities being more fleeting than ever, in a few weeks people will find another label to cling to, and the mob wife trend will be no more.
So where do we go from here?
I would suggest moving away from TikTok and trying to curate a style that resonates with you and your lifestyle, since we aren’t all luxury wives of Mafia men. Wear things that make you feel comfortable, but also uniquely reflect your character; try personal jewellery, fun hairstyles and colours that make you feel yourself. Mob wife or not, we all deserve to feel confident!
“TikTok on iPhone” by Nordskov Media is marked with CC0 1.0.