The culprit behind our desert walker dressing? Instagram, with heavily curated squares of neutrals filling our phones with the aspirational aesthetic that cuts out colour. But unlike copying styles from the catwalk, this trend seemed much less like a conscious choice.

“Social media is hugely, negatively impacting our lives,” Dr Aurore Bardey, the leader of the London College of Fashion’s Psychology of Fashion BSc course stresses. “As human beings, we are social animals, which means we need to live as part of a group.” Instagram is allowing us to connect and socialise with like-minded people who follow similar accounts, hashtags or celebrities. But, to remain part of these groups and cement ourselves within them, we need to follow the unspoken rules: how they celebrate special occasions, connect with each other, present themselves and countless other small ways of life that become regular routines in how we act. Bardey nods to concerning claims of increased social media usage decreasing our cognitive attentivity and intelligence – although she does stress the definition for intelligence is blurred – and increasing the risk of disordered eating, anxiety, depression and stress.

But when it comes to fashion, Instagram’s impact tells us more about ourselves and our character than those who are leading the taupe troop. And, of course, this doesn’t just pertain to the neutral aesthetic but any other type of trend on the platform too.

“I downloaded Instagram for the first time – and it totally ruined my personal style”