What's the difference between Cottagecore and Goblincore?

When it comes to cottagecore and goblincore, though both are aesthetic movements that emphasize a connection to nature and a simpler way of living, there are a few key distinctions:

Cottagecore key features:

Aesthetic: Cottagecore romanticizes rural life, often with an emphasis on quaint, picturesque elements such as cozy cottages, wildflower meadows, and vintage fashion. It has a soft, dreamy, and whimsical feel.

Themes: It focuses on pastoral beauty, traditional crafts (like baking, gardening, and knitting), and a slower, more mindful lifestyle. The aesthetic often includes floral patterns, light colors, and natural materials.

Inspiration: Draws inspiration from English countryside living, fairy tales, and folklore that emphasize simplicity and pastoral bliss.

Activities: Common activities associated with cottagecore include tending to a garden, cooking homemade meals, reading classic literature, and enjoying picnics.

Goblincore key features:

Aesthetic: Goblincore celebrates the beauty in what is often considered less conventionally attractive aspects of nature. It includes elements like mushrooms, moss, dirt, and insects. The aesthetic is more earthy, grungy, and eclectic.

Themes: Focuses on the appreciation of the imperfect and the overlooked aspects of nature, such as fungi, rocks, mud, and decaying organic matter. It's about finding beauty in the natural world's "messy" parts.

Inspiration: Draws from the folklore and mythology surrounding goblins and other mythical creatures that live in untamed natural environments. It embraces a more untamed and wild side of nature.

Activities: Common activities associated with goblincore include foraging for mushrooms, collecting rocks and bones, exploring forests, and creating art from found natural objects.

Essentially,  Cottagecore is about idealized rural living with a focus on beauty, simplicity, and traditional, wholesome activities. Goblincore is about finding beauty in the wild and messy aspects of nature, embracing the strange and the imperfect. Both aesthetics encourage a connection to nature and a break from modern, urban life, but they do so in different ways and with distinct visual and thematic elements.