dressing up + talking to strangers

our habits are a sign of the times

and

Feb 18, 2025

Hope you’re all having a wonderful start to your week.

In this edition of the common thred, we’re exploring the latest developments in culture, style, beauty, and tech. That includes why everyone has stopped dressing up, the importance of small talk with strangers, the unexpected return of hair tinsel, and a potential Nike x Skims collab on the horizon.

Let’s gooooooo.

💬 Culture

Why you need one meaningful social interaction a day – vox
Studies suggest that people who have more social interactions experience a greater sense of well-being overall. Even just one quality conversation is capable of improving our mental health, even if all we do is engage in small talk with a total stranger. This may seem like a no brainer, but that hasn’t stopped it from becoming less commonplace. Humans have never been more disconnected, with texts, e-mails, and DMs our preferred mode of communications. Some key tips to brighten your day? Talk to strangers, focus on one quality interaction per day, be open to a broad range of topics and different kinds of people, make and keep plans, understand the limits of technology, and embrace alone time to recharge when it arrives. Oh, and don’t sweat the small stuff.

Why don’t people dress up to go out anymore? – new york times
In 2025, it’s perfectly acceptable to don an expensive-looking tracksuit when going out to dinner. The rise of atheleisure as acceptable everyday wear (on top of a global pandemic) has made us all lazy dressers, or perhaps individuals who refuse to compromise on our own comfort. What does this signal about our culture? This bite-sized article suggests that people have started prioritising themselves over the expectations of institutions. Rather than letting ‘higher ups’ dictate dress codes, we’ve eliminated dress codes altogether. Still, the author hints that things could soon change. Fashion – and how we interact with it – is cyclical, as we should all know by now.

📱 Tech

Could Spotify’s HiFi streaming tier drop in 2025? – thred.
The world’s most popular streaming service Spotify looks set to launch its new HiFi subscription tier this year, but it’ll cost around $5.99 on top of current subscription prices. It’ll grant users higher-quality audio – hopefully bringing it in line with Apple Music and Amazon Music – plus remixing tools and exclusive access to concert tickets. Spotify also secured a recent multi-year licensing deal with Warner Music Group, stating its goal of ushering in the ‘next era of streaming’. All of these developments are signs that the platform is looking to keep up with the ever-evolving demands of its users.

It’s not just AI. China’s medicines are surprising the world, too – economist
China is known for producing generic drugs, supplying raw ingredients to medical companies, and managing clinical trials for the pharmaceutical world. Now, its drugmakers are now also at the cutting edge of medical innovation, producing drugs that are even cheaper than the those on the standard market. As a result, China has become the second-largest developer of new drugs after America, whose expiring drug patents could see them lose as much as $140 billion a year by 2030. The only question left to ask is how Trump’s tariffs could impact China’s upward trajectory.

💄 Style

How hair tinsel became 2025’s first big beauty trend – dazed digital
Have you noticed an uptick in people wearing hair tinsel in your city? I certainly have in London, so I was delighted to stumble upon this article explaining where the rising trend came from. Apparently, audiences have been inspired en-masse by the main character in the film Anora, which came out late last year. The film’s hair and makeup team took inspiration from Adrienne Maloof, a cast member of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, who used hair tinsel regularly. The low maintenance, high impact hair accessory has its roots in the 80s and 90s, when glitter hair sprays and standard hair extensions truly took off. Could sparkly hair overtake blush and glittery eyelids as this year’s most fun beauty trend? Maybe it already has.

Nike x Skims: it’s happening! – puck
It’s no secret that sportswear giant Nike has been having a hard time as of late, with its profits falling by 20 percent in the last quarter. The brand’s new president and CEO Elliott Hill has been tasked with rectifying this drop in success, and it seems that Kardashian-collab is the fix on the upcoming agenda. It would be an on-brand move for Skims, which has focused on partnering with iconic high-end fashion houses like Dolce and Gabanna and Swarovksi, while dabbling in a recent outerwear partnership with The North Face. Keep your eyes peeled in the coming months.

🎶 Recommendation

I highly recommend making a playlist containing all your ‘NO SKIPS’ songs, so that you always have a 10/10 playlist on hand for long car and plane rides, cooking sessions, or some quality tune time.

I attempted this once and the playlist spiralled out of control, but on my second attempt it’s a bit more refined. Out of the good will of my heart I will share it here.

There may be 525 songs, but I’m telling you, there are no skips.

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Until next time,