I never thought that I’d see the girls lusting after a $75 sherpa pullover emblazoned with koi, but I guess that’s just another day living in the Taylor Swift monoculture.
Swift dropped a bunch of merchandise on her website on Monday afternoon, just in time for the holidays. The drop included merch from every album, or “era,” of her discography, with items ranging from sweatshirts to pajama pants to holiday ornaments and jewelry to her music in every format you could ever possibly wish for, even an old-school cassette disc.
But the number one item on the Swifties’ list? A white sherpa pullover emblazoned with orange and purple koi and topped off by a purple breast pocket, sold in the “Speak Now” store for $75.
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Well, at least, it was being sold there. The jacket quickly sold out, leaving a lot of heartbroken fans in its wake. (It’s still available on the international site, FYI.)
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
You may be asking yourselves, why koi? Is this some sort of symbol in Swiftie lore?
It’s a question I had myself, so I went investigating. Unfortunately, the official Taylor Swift Wiki offered no clarity (get on that, mods!), so I went to another primary source: TikTok. There I found the explanation. Swift used koi as a symbol during her Speak Now era, during which she played a guitar emblazoned with the creature during the tour.
She brought the imagery back during her Midnights era, playing what seemed to be the same guitar during her “Anti-Hero” music video and also featuring koi in her “Lavender Haze” music video.
TikTok content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Now, like the Folklore cardigan before it, the pullover has become a hot-ticket clothing item. It’s giving a cool-girl fan vibe, like a symbol you are part of the Swiftie club without wearing a giant T-shirt with her face on it.
It’s giving normcore in the best way, and people are obsessed.
TikTok content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
And, like, maybe it’s so out-there and ugly (as some are saying—NOT ME; DON’T @ ME) that it’s cute?
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Some people saw in its loud colors and embrace of an out-there fashion sense a hidden Easter egg to Swift’s new beau. Like, is this Travis-coded?
X content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Regardless of how you feel about it, it’s already been determined to be that gift of the holiday season.
So, if you see a bunch of girls in fish jackets this winter, don’t say I didn’t warn ya. It’s bound to be everywhere.
