By Lena Vasquez, Community Features & Culture Editor

When Lindsay Lohan made headlines in People for calling Louis Vuitton’s new $160 lipstick “overpriced,” she wasn’t exactly breaking news. Luxury brands have been overcharging forever—handbags that cost tens of thousands, jeans marked up a hundred times their worth, and logo-plastered shirts that say more about desperation than status. For decades, the game has been simple: slap a logo on it, jack up the price, and let the wannabe rich fall in line.

But something’s shifting. Frugality, once written off as boring or even embarrassing, is sliding back into style.

Take Taylor Swift. Despite being one of the most powerful entertainers in the world, she’s known for repeating outfits, sidestepping flashy luxury partnerships, and leaning into sensible, wearable looks. Or consider the rise of “Quiet Luxury,” a trend focused on high-quality materials and craftsmanship without the billboard-sized branding. These clothes don’t scream for attention—they just are.

More and more, loud logos are being called out as trashy. They’re easy to counterfeit, easy to buy secondhand, and ultimately meaningless as a marker of wealth. When anyone can grab a knockoff, why should wasting your money be considered a badge of honor?

The bigger question is this: what if the new definition of status isn’t how much you can burn, but how smart you are with what you’ve got?

Celebrities often set the tone for what’s aspirational. If stars like Lohan and Swift are making thrift, simplicity, and understated quality fashionable, maybe that’s the dream our culture is finally waking up to. And frankly, after decades of celebrating excess, stupidity, and shallow signals, being smart with money would be a welcome change.