The Eclectic Fashion of Clara Perlmutter

Clara Perlmutter, a 23 year old New Yorker who's known as @ TinyJewishGirl on TikTok and Instagram, has always had a unique sense of fashion. While under the pandemic lockdown during 2020, she started posting videos on TikTok as a reason to get dressed out of her pajamas. Her outfit choices are making waves on the social media app, where her style choices are met with a polarizing mix of support from people who praise her for expressing herself through her fashion, and hate from people who are put off by her over-the-top style and makeup. If there’s one thing everyone can agree on, it's that she’s pushing the boundaries of fashion and style. 

When she started posting on TikTok, people questioned whether her videos were satirical or not because her outfits are so outrageous and nonsensical. But Perlmutter asks, “who says it has to make sense? It’s bright, it’s visually appealing, it’s eclectic, and I find that fun.” She climbed to fame largely due to attention from hateful or confused comments from people describing her outfits as horrible, but now has over 700,000 followers on TikTok. She was recently featured in Paper Magazine and encourages other people to find their own unique personal style, and to start by wearing things that “would make your childhood self happy.” Perlmutter knows that her outfits are an acquired taste and will openly call them “insane,” but continues producing videos to show off her stylistic process.

In describing her creative process, Perlmutter has said that she starts with a piece that she wants to style, and looks through her wardrobe for matching colors and contrasting fabrics and patterns to create depth in the look. She has a vast wardrobe of second-hand items that she has collected from friends and resale shops, filled with vintage pieces, designer labels, and smaller brands. Some of her most unique–and divisive–pieces include a headband and harness set made out of Barbie doll heads, and a pair of gold “micro-shorts.” She often opts for a dramatic, colorful makeup look to complete the outfit. She says that one of her style influences is her mother, who also has a unique fashion collection. 

Under the Four C Model of Creativity, Clara Perlmutter is a little-c creative, as an ordinary person using creativity to develop and display her not-so-ordinary fashion. What started as a reason to stay occupied during the pandemic, is now a way to encourage others out of their style comfort zones and pursue fun through fashion. 

https://www.papermag.com/tinyjewishgirl-2656446430.html?rebelltitem=13#rebelltitem13

https://www.tiktok.com/@tinyjewishgirl

https://www.instagram.com/tinyjewishgirl/