One day, I was going out for some ice cream with my friends when someone stopped me, pointed at my bag, and said, “Oh my god! You were able to get your hands on the Sandy Liang and Baggu bag?!” This then evolved into a conversation on how brilliant the collection was and how difficult it is to secure a purchase anytime there is a collaboration involving Sandy Liang. Sandy Liang has become a renowned brand. It transports many girls to their childhood, which includes pieces inspired by Sailor Moon and Totally Spies. These heroines inspired the iconic emblems we see in fashionwear, such as the bows, stars, and flowers.
There has been debate on whether or not this frenzy of bows and ribbons is all hype. A user online commented how they could not believe the price increase once a bow is added to a bag. This user was referring to the Sandy Liang x Baggu collaboration. The original nylon shoulder bag retails for $54. The Sandy Liang shoulder bag retails for $62. According to L’Officiel, the collaboration sold out in seven minutes, and this was just the pre-sale. Now, resellers are selling the collaboration for up to $250. Earlier this year, Solomon released their collaboration with Sandy Liang, and the shoes sold out immediately. The collaboration retailed for approximately $200 and are now being resold on StockX for up to $500. When people online were sharing how this has gone too far, people came to defend the bow and ribbons. One person posted, “I didn’t know Sandy Liang had shooters like that.”
The truth is Sandy Liang is influential. It even sparked what we coined “bloquette” style. People are taking their soccer jerseys and Adidas Sambas, replacing the laces with ribbons, creating a femme vibe to boyish clothes. This just proves how bows and ribbons can automatically make anything pretty and feminine. For example, Fidan Novruzova released a boxy short resembling something similar to an Adidas short but with bows attached to the end of the hem. Every day, I see a new creative and girly way to wear a sports jersey. Anytime someone adds a bow to a bag, clothing piece, hair, etc., it is known as Sandy Liangifying, and this term came to life from a TikTok. @bean_on_toasts on TikTok shared a video of her dog with bows on her ears, captioning it: “I sandy liang-ified my dog.”
I feel like the world is being Sandy Liang-ified. Brands have been curating collections that are deemed as coquette. The new Ciao Lucia holiday collection consists of dresses with bows attached in different areas. Urban Outfitters, once known as a hipster brand that would carry beanies, green jackets, and bohemian dresses, has evolved into coquette style in order to follow the movement. The store carries socks with bows, patterned tights, and tops/sweaters with ribbons.
While people may argue it’s a trend, I feel it has transpired a movement. It’s more than just being proud of being a girl. It has created a safe space to be a girl. It’s okay to wear the pleated mini skirt, the two ponytails with ribbons, and the scrunchie that looks as if a flower is growing on our wrist. We live in a world where people say, “You’re such a girl,” in a negative connotation. Sandy Liang changed this. Now it’s “I’m just a girl being a girl.” I think as women in society, we have been asked to grow up so quickly. People would always say, “Girls mature faster than boys.” These collections allow us to ruminate on our childhood and parade around town as Sailor Moon in modern day. It allows people to show their youthful side with confidence. The amount of times I have heard people say, “But isn’t this too young for me to wear?” Sandy Liang reinforced the idea of “we are just girls.” It doesn’t matter how old you are, who you identify as, etc.; anyone can be Sandy Liangified and feel the best they’ve ever felt.
When another girl approached me about my bag, we ended up having a conversation about our love for Sandy Liang and fashion. It turned into a conversation, opening a path towards friendship. The impact Sandy Liang has not only in the fashion world but the real world is astounding. It almost feels like we are leaving this reality that consists of rules, maturity, and societal norms into a world of playfulness, flowers, ribbons, bows, and celebrated femininity. Sandy Liang has a way of making gray have a colorful personality. Don’t believe me? Did you see the Ennis jacket? The long bows? It’s become the uniform of girlhood. The Sandy Liang universe has created bonds and spaces where girls can proudly be girls.