When it comes to Jell-O, attitudes and expectations have changed considerably in recent years. Anyone who’s scrolled Instagram knows we’re in the midst of a jelly renaissance, with no shortage of quivering creations to adorn our tables, and ourselves. Jelly Blush, jelly bags. Jelly sandals have been crowned the shoes of the summer—a trend precipitated by The Row and fueled by ’90s enthusiasm, from millennials who are nostalgic for it and younger generations longing to experience its fashions firsthand.
Food-inspired fashion is having a moment, and gelatin-inspired wearables are the next logical step. “It’s food without being too on the nose. A more subversive way to say you are—or in this case you wear— what you eat,” says Sarah Isenberg, an art historian and social media strategist at MOMA PS who prefers a pair of sandals from Plasticana. She’s also the proud owner of a Rachel Antonoff skirt emblazoned with old-fashioned bundt-shaped jellies, the ultimate item of jelly fashion.
In the food world, where trends are also cyclical, jellies have been percolating for a while longer. In the past, it has been both a symbol of medieval wealth (the upper classes made it by boiling down the carcasses of their roasts) and mid-century domesticity. No one’s forgotten the aspic of the ’70s, after all—but maybe now is the time to reclaim it.
Photo: John von Pamer / Courtesy of Gelée
Photo: John von Pamer / Courtesy of Gelée
Jelly trends today can also be seen as a natural extension of the squishy sofas and bubble furniture trends that surged during the pandemic. Its inviting roundness appeals to us in the post-Covid era, where rigidity in other aspects of life has given way to a collective craving for softer things. Nunchi, Lexi Park’s made-to-order jelly cakes, rose to prominence during this time—as did Laila Gohar’s surreal gastronomic spreads for Prada and Hermès—when the unique circumstances of the pandemic (not to mention our ballooning Instagram usage) cultivated our interest in imaginative, multisensory culinary experiences that provide a welcome escape and sense of wonder.
