Every six months or so, social media invents a new classification of the ideal (or not-so-ideal) parent \u2014 and now, thanks to that, there’s a mom flavor for every taste.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
It all started with them, and it wasn’t entirely clear whether they were serious or joking. The trend took shape among millennial moms who, back in the 2010s, built Pinterest moodboards full of calm pastel tones with no bright accents \u2014 over time this became “beige motherhood.” The aesthetic got a boost from celebrities who started sharing photos of their kids’ muted-toned rooms and wardrobes as a symbol of status and taste.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\ud83d\ude05 The trend has a funny counter-trend. Humor writer Hayley DeRoche coined the term “sad beige” back in 2021, mocking clothing and toy brands’ ad campaigns shot in muted, joyless tones. Beige moms are accused of deliberately impoverishing their kids’ sensory environment for the sake of a pretty feed. Either way, “beige motherhood” is more of a meme today than an actual trend.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
The polar opposite of beige in spirit \u2014 “crunchy moms” prefer to raise their kids out in the countryside, feed them only natural food, and entertain them not with an iPad but with chickens and sheep.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\u26a0\ufe0f Crunchy moms are all about “natural” in absolutely everything, up to and including skipping vaccines and disposable diapers, home births, and going gadget-free entirely. They tend to build a devoted following fast and call themselves “momfluencers.” Doctors consider the trend genuinely risky, specifically because of its hardline stance on vaccines.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
As a reaction to crunchy moms, another type was born: “silky moms.” These are modern women who lean on the achievements of science, medicine, and technology for their own convenience as parents \u2014 they vaccinate their kids, buy them tablets, and use disposable diapers, wet wipes, and regular household cleaning products. And once the internet got tired of both extremes, it came up with a hybrid: “scrunchy moms” (crunchy + silky), who take the best from both camps.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
The term traces back to a moment from The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (2013): during a juice cleanse, Gigi Hadid told her mother, Yolanda, that she felt weak and hungry. Yolanda’s advice \u2014 “have a couple of almonds, and chew them really well” \u2014 turned into a sad meme, and ever since, “almond moms” has referred to mothers who sort food into “good” and “bad,” praise their kids for eating less, and constantly bring the conversation back to dieting.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\ud83d\udcac Comments about food and bodies become background noise in everyday life and a form of chronic critical parenting. The trend grew its own hashtag, #almondmom, racking up a huge number of views \u2014 under it, grown children share stories about how they were raised, and some former “almond moms” warn others not to repeat their mistakes.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Yolanda Hadid, for her part, never quite shook the reputation. In response to the wave of criticism, she posted a TikTok of herself eating a bowl of almonds, captioned with the hashtags #worstmomever and #almonds.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Following beige and almond moms, social media produced “butter moms” (also seen as “’90s butter moms”) \u2014 an image steeped in nostalgia for the 90s, promising freedom from hyper-control, warm pie on the table, and a gadget-free childhood.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Visually, it’s an anti-beige rebellion. A butter mom’s house might have a bit of clutter, toys left on the floor, and pancakes with condensed milk for breakfast instead of gluten-free crackers made from sprouted quinoa.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\ud83d\udca1 But there’s a catch that makes this archetype especially interesting: affording that kind of “relaxed parenting” takes a certain foundation \u2014 a stable income, no acute housing problems, or help from extended family.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\ud83d\udca1 There’s a funny pattern here. Every new archetype is born as a reaction to the one before it. Almond moms are a product of 2000s diet culture. Beige moms are a response to that same era’s loud, cluttered chaos. Crunchy moms are a revolt against plastic and gadgets. Silky moms are a revolt against crunchy. Butter moms look like “just normal moms,” but really they’re the parenting equivalent of “no-makeup makeup” \u2014 it looks effortless, and it takes hours to pull off. At bottom, all of these types are just the same endless argument about “correct motherhood,” continued \u2014 one where, each time, somebody ends up feeling like they’re not a good enough mom.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Sources:<\/strong> Know Your Meme \u2014 Sad Beige Children<\/a> (origin of Hayley DeRoche’s term); The Bump \u2014 Crunchy Mom: Meaning, Lifestyle and More<\/a>; Know Your Meme \u2014 Yolanda Hadid’s Almond Diet<\/a>; Good Morning America \u2014 What the ‘Almond Mom’ Trend on TikTok Says About Parenting and Diet Culture<\/a>.<\/p>\t\t