We’ve all heard of having a “hot girl summer”, but BRAW thinks it’s time to introduce the exact opposite, and make it equally cool: meet Cold Girl Winter.
Megan Thee Stallion was the first to coin “hot girl summer” back in 2019, with her song Hot Girl Summer ft. Nicki Minaj. The term stuck around, even all these years later, forming an easy Instagram caption and perfect descriptor of the summer vibe.
No one has ever perfectly defined what a hot girl summer actually is, but Megan says that: “it’s just basically about women – and men – just being unapologetically them, just having a good-ass time, hyping up your friends, doing you, not giving a damn about what nobody got to say about it.”
Unfortunately, Hot Girl Summer has come with an internet trend of toxic overconsumption, weight loss, and work out trends. You can read BRAW’s thoughts on that here.
So, it’s officially time to switch it up for the winter season and embrace the sexiness of being comfortable, well-fed, and sad.
Let us be completely real; no one is having a “good-ass time” from November until maybe April. No one is thriving. We aren’t wearing bikinis, flipping our hair, and not giving a damn. If you are doing all this, please let us know how because Cold Girl Winter is nowhere near as glamorous.
Cold Girl Winter embraces the roots of Hot Girl Summer – finding self-love, having sex if you’re into that, and not giving a damn fuck what other people think of you. Just, add a lot more blankets, a wood burner, and a few more crying sessions.
Replace those bikinis and shorts with fluffy joggers and hoodies, and for God’s sake don’t bother with a bra! Scrap performing for other people. It’s the time of year where being comfortable is cool.
We’re talking leg hair. Lots of leg hair. It is an extra wearable blanket that no one is ever going to see – shower time can be reserved for the fun things (sitting under the water and staring into the void whilst wondering if you’ll ever see the sun again and whether you can afford to put the heating on for an hour).
Winter is the season of good food, so fill those plates! We can’t afford heating, but we can afford potatoes. We’re mammals, and slowing down, eating more, and storing extra fuel is built into our biology in winter. You deserve and need those extra roasties on Christmas day.
Instagram is a world of ‘winter fits’, of big fluffy scarves and tote bags and fur-lined boots. Have you ever tried to walk around the Edinburgh Christmas Markets with a tote bag slipping off your leather-clad shoulder whilst you sweat buckets into the massive scarf that has tangled in your hair? I have. It’s shit. Be comfortable.
Of course, as with Hot Girl Summer, the definition is entirely up to the individual. Readers devoted to their big scarves and tote bags, you are still cool! As long as you are comfortable, both in your skin and in your clothes.
Winter impacts us all differently, from managing seasonal affective disorder to suffering through Christmas with people you aren’t a fan of. Staying comfy, loving ourselves, eating too much food, and embracing the non-trendiness that comes with comfort makes Cold Girl Winter really fucking cool.
As Megan Thee Stallion said, it is all about being unapologetically you, no matter what. So scrap the trends this winter, let your boobs hang free under an old comfort hoodie, and let’s survive this winter season together.
Featured Image Credit: Made on Canva by Alice Pollard
Journalism student at the University of Stirling & BRAW Magazine editor 24/25 and 25/26 🙂
You can see my portfolio here: https://www.clippings.me/alicepollard
