I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately. About the slow death of the polished aesthetic. About how connection gets lost in curated perfection. And about how brands can turn up the colour, loosen the grip, and actually make people feel something.
The research backs what my gut’s been shouting for a while now: People are tired of minimal. They want messy. They want real. They want colourful. They want something tactile. Especially if those people are part of the generational powerhouses currently driving culture. And doing the buying.
So if your brand is craving more emotional pull, cross-generational relevance, and an aesthetic that actually gets noticed, here’s where to start.
Why messy, colourful storytelling works
We’re living in a moment where feeling something is the real luxury, and everyone from Gen X to Gen Z are craving it. Albeit for slightly different reasons, but with the same visual outcome.
Gen X (born 1965–1980) came of age in full colour
They grew up surrounded by crayon boxes, clashing interiors, MTV, mismatched outfits, and lived-in houses full of stuff. Today, they are deeply nostalgic for that raw, sensory world, especially in a market that often ignores them or flattens them into ‘mature’ minimalism.
Gen X wants:
- Bold colours
- Emotional storytelling
- Irreverence and humour
- To feel seen in campaigns, not erased
Gen Z, on the other hand, grew up online
They’ve seen filters, influencers, and hyper-curated feeds from birth. Now, they’re yearning for the texture and truth of their parents’ analog lives: messy bedrooms, smeared lip gloss, awkward moments, and heart-on-sleeve vibes.
Gen Z wants:
- Visual imperfection
- Sincerity over polish
- Retro vibes from before their time
- Emotion they can trust
- Experience over anything
That’s why colour and beautiful mess are the new brand power moves.
What ‘messy’ actually looks like in branding
Let’s be clear, we’re not talking chaos or sloppiness. ‘Messy’ means signs of life. It means art direction that feels warm, layered, emotional, and real.
It looks like:
- A lipstick that’s been used
- A coffee cup with a lipstick mark
- A still life tray with scribbled notes, tangled jewellery, and an open diary
- A product photographed mid-use and squeezed, not sitting pristine in a white box
It sounds like:
‘You didn’t come this far just to be beige’.
It feels like:
- Memory
- Play
- Texture
- Permission
- Experience
5 ways to add colour + mess to your campaigns
Here’s how to make your branding feel more real, while still staying visually impactful and commercially sharp:
1. Design for feeling, not just function
Choose colour palettes that feel joyful, rebellious, or tender, not just ‘on trend’
Ask: What would this product have looked like in a 1994 bedroom?
Then bring that feeling into the photography, packaging, and copy.
Example:
A supplement brand could shoot products on a teenage nightstand: with scribbled diary pages, a cassette tape, smudged eyeliner, and a bottle of supplements for balancing midlife hormones beside it.
2. Embrace imperfection as intentional style
Let products look used. Let visuals feel a bit undone. It creates trust, and a little thrill. After all, nothing in life stays pristine. And we remember the messy moments most.
Example:
Lip glosses squeezed. A shampoo cap off. A bath scene with bubbles, magazines, and a phone in a hand with chipped nail polish.
3. Reference nostalgia without looking stuck
Think layered, like the bedroom walls from My So-Called Life. Think textures, like jelly shoes, body glitter, and denim over everything. Use these cultural cues not to time-travel, but to ground your audience in shared emotion.
Reference but don’t replicate cues like:
- Buffy’s locker
- Clueless’s outfit planner
- Babysitters Club sleepovers
- A Mizz magazine collage
4. Speak to both generations, without diluting either
You don’t need to split your marketing. You just need to find emotional overlap.
Use:
- Gen Z’s love for retro and irony
- Gen X’s craving for recognition and colour
- Shared humour and honesty
Example tagline:
‘Your mum’s 90s bedroom called. It misses you. And it’s got better taste than you remember’.
5. Work with creatives who get it
If your brand is colourful, nostalgic, or female-focused, your visuals need to reflect more than just product. You’re selling a feeling.
Work with stylists, photographers, and art directors who understand the cultural nuance, maybe even lived it.
Want help bringing this to life for your brand?
I create still life photography and campaign visuals that are colourful, beautifully human, and emotionally intelligent. Let’s make your next shoot feel like a messy bedroom, a good cry, a friendship bracelet, and a dopamine hit all at once.
Get in touch, concepts are ready.
TL;DR
Colour cuts through beige minimalism fatigue
Messy is emotional, and emotional = memorable
Gen X has the buying power
Gen Z has the cultural influence
Both want marketing that feels real and visually rich
References / Further reading
Pinterest Predicts 2024 Report – “Romcom Core” and “Eclectic Nostalgia”
Wunderman Thompson Intelligence – “The Forgotten Generation” (2022)
Deloitte Global Marketing Trends 2024 – “Human-First Creativity”
Medium: Daria Morgendorffer—the cynical outsider who let you feel like an insider