Here's why we're obsessed with stealing our #internetboyfriend's style

Suffering from Chalamania, BOY-ISH speaks to fangirls about the most influential man in fashion about his influence over their style.

Text by Emily Phillips @takenouthere

Graphics by Jade Cooper @edajrecoop

As women, we tend to love our boyfriend’s oversized, comfy clothes, more than we love our own. Speaking from personal experience, I am all too used to complimenting my friends fits only to discover that their oversized tees actually belongs to their bf’s – and on the latter end of things, I’m often one for receiving those compliments myself, having a style obsessed man of my own. Maybe our shared love of stealing our man’s wardrobe has something to do with the subtle hint cologne that clings to the fabric; maybe – like in my case – it’s because his style is actually so peng we literally can’t help ourselves; or maybe it’s something else. Whatever the reason, it makes us feel closer to him.

So, what happens when our beautiful boy doesn’t actually exist as a real part of our lives; when he isn’t actually our boyfriend, but is just someone we fanaticize about marrying through the tiny screens on our phones?; when he is a celebrity that we are probably never going to meet, but who makes us feel like we know them better than anyone after we watch them give late night TV interviews via YouTube for 10 hours; what happens when our ‘boyfriend’ is, quite literally, ‘virtually’ unobtainable?

The #internetboyfriend has been a thing since the birth of the world wide web as we know it. Us fangirls love to fantasize about our favourite hottie celebs incessantly; and let’s be honest with ourselves here, since 2017 (due to the release of the absolutely life changing Lady Bird and the even more reality shattering Call Me By Your Name – I’m guessing you know where I’m going with this) that fantasy has probably included Timothée Chalamet – if not, then it featured Harry Styles, Ansel Elgort, Noah Centineo, Adam Driver, and/or apparently Jeff Goldblum!? But what I want to know is, even through the multi-dimensional waves of the internet, do we still covet our ‘boyfriend’s’ clothes?

Josie Hingst, 19, is the owner of Instagram fan account, @tchalamet.tt, where she has accumulated more than 32k followers. From her home in Queensland, Australia, she tells me in an email, “Sometimes I find myself drawn to certain clothing items simply because they resemble something Timothée has worn or look like something Timothée would wear.” Or, in other words, #whatwouldtimmywear. The account owner of 2 years claims that she especially loves oversized t-shirts which have been found to be a staple of her internet bf’s closet.

@hellatimmy, is an alternative Timothée Chalamet fan account, this one with over 25.8k followers. Run by 20-year-old Arpiné Smith*, whose surname has been changed for her confidentiality, she claims that Timothée definitely influences her personal style; being sure to acknowledge how Lyst’s Year in Fashion index called him the most influential man in fashion in 2019. She explains to me in an email from her home in France, “He inspired me to wear more colourful clothes… and also patterned socks. I had never really thought of socks as an essential part of an outfit… but thanks to my #internetboyfriend, I bought some cool socks and I match them with the rest of my (now colourful) outfits.” She also admits to having started wearing thin silver chains to accessorize her looks - something Timothée does so, so well.

Both of these fangirls admit to creating these accounts after they could not “shut up” to their friends about the Little Women actor. What contributes to their hard and fast love for Timothée is that he might be the most normal-seeming celebrity ever – apparently, he transcends the paradox of celebrity authenticity. According to Arpiné, “His honesty and bubbly down-to-earth personality makes you want to get to know him… He is one of the most genuine celebrities and he cares for his fans immensely.” Hingst calls him, “relatable “, adding that, “He has the ability to make people feel personally connected to him without even knowing him in real life”. And what about being humble? According to Arpiné he’s that too.

When I speak to Instagram Influencer and serious Timothée Chalamet fangirl Amena Bouki, 19, on the phone, she tells me, “I just think he’s so sweet.” In calling him her #internetboyfriend Bouki feels that she’s being a bit of a dreamer because his celebrity status makes him so untouchable, but at the same time she can’t help it because, “he’s got a different power… he is so attractive,” she says. Like Hingst and Arpiné, she describes him as real, relatable, and oh! there it is again – “down-to-earth”. However, unlike the two fan account owners, when I ask her if Timothée influences her style she says that he doesn’t. Though she does claim to often incorporate oversized t-shirts, big hoodies, and baggy jeans – typical of Timmy – into her style, she does not take inspiration directly from her #internetboyfriend. She says, “I don’t really look to celebrities for fashion inspiration. I guess I like the comfy vibe that Timothée has, but that could also just be because I want to be comfy.” Even as someone who doesn’t necessarily seek style-inspo from celebs, Bouki admits to considering copying at least 1 of Timmy’s looks. She says that the only look Timothée has ever worn that she would directly copy and buy herself was the hoodie that he wore front row at Louis Vuitton at Paris Fashion Week in February.

“His taste in fashion is impeccable,” Hingst tells me – maybe this has something to do with Timothée’s fashion influence? When asked to describe his style Hingst calls it “experimental”; Arpiné, of @hellatimmy, describes it as, “eccentric and bold”; Over the phone, Boukie tells me, “He’s like a cool boy. He wears a lot of hoodies, and like big t-shirts and baggy jeans. Kind of like a skater, but like a skater in New York.”

Some of Timmy’s looks have thrown the internet full throttle into total meltdown – this includes fangirl favourites: the white Berluti suit that he wore to the 2018 Oscars; the Stella McCartney womenswear magenta suit debuted at the Little Woman Premier, 2019; and the suit that redefined all suits, designed by Haider Ackermann, and worn at the Venice Film Festival for the premier of The King. However, in the words of Bouki, “All of his best fashion moments are in Paris.”

25-year-old Jade Cooper is the graphic designer for this piece – she also identifies as bisexual. As we discuss my ideas, she writes to me over DM, “I’ve never been obsessed with a boy, but then I realise that I am with girls, and it has fully influenced my style - like Paris Hilton and Snooki.” She adds, “When I was younger, I loved Deena from Jersey Shore and I completely copied her style.” Snookie may not be what you think of when I say #internetboyfrfdfiend, but maybe wanting to copy your crush’s style isn’t unique just to male heartthrobs.

As it turns out, we may love our #internetboyfriend’s clothes just as much as our real bf’s – if not more – and with Timothée Chalamet being one of the best dressed men on the planet, it seems the inevitable truth that Timmy’s fangirls would want to steal his style. But it’s not just those adorable floppy curls and overly baggy jeans that make him the number 1 heartthrob. Arpiné tells me that immediately after the release of his Oscar nominated performance for, Call Me by Your Name, she knew he was special. She says, “He’s an Academy Award Nominee, he’s talented, passionate, and eloquently spoken. He’s fashionable. And he’s here to stay.”