There’s a new kind of influencer in town that’s quickly dominating the realms of YouTube and Instagram. No, they’re not faking photos at famous landmarks across the world, nor are they stomping out poppies at Joshua Tree or faking trips to music festivals. They’re just cleaning their living spaces for the world to watch. That’s all.
The Guardian, Bazaar, and most recently The Atlantic have all documented the rise of “cleanfluencers,” who are online personalities that rack up likes and follows for the simple act of tidying a home—think Marie Kondo mixed with visuals you’d see scrolling through Target’s Cartwheel app. While most of the world is watching public freakouts, raw footage of fights, and cursed TikTok videos on the internet, a large demographic is now beholden to the likes of @misshendyhome, @mrshinchhome, and @frenchy_home_and_lifestyle. These accounts use knolling photography techniques to take cute, fluffy photos of their cleaning supplies and offer tips for followers in search of budget-friendly cleaning techniques. They’re accounts for the #cleaningobsessed and those who, for some ungodly reason, enjoy #cleaningtime.
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There’s also a massive pool of YouTubers who record themselves cleaning their living rooms, kitchens, and bathrooms through time-lapse videos set to calming music and commentary, like Myka Stauffer, How Jen Does It, Brianna K, and Clean My Space. They record themselves grocery shopping and visiting the Dollar Tree to unpack and show off their “cleaning hauls.” Because the only thing better than cleaning your own damn house is watching someone else clean theirs, apparently.
It’s all positive ~vibes~ and #blessed feels, though, as these types of posts have reportedly been helpful for anxious-ridden folks who find most of the social media sphere unbearably cluttered. You know it’s a wild world we live in when #clean no longer just applies to photos of fresh sneakers.