[Source: BBC Entertainment]

If brat described our wild and unapologetically messy summers, then exemplary manners, politeness and being a stickler for rules is what’s taking us into autumn.

In recent weeks, thousands of videos showing us how to refine our etiquette have popped up on TikTok, all off the back of the “very demure, very mindful” trend.

The satirical idea started out as poking fun at the stereotypical ideas of femininity, but it has since taken on a life of its own.

While half of the internet are using the phrase ironically, others are concerned that the trend is just another way of setting unrealistic standards for women.

So, is anyone actually trying to be demure, or is this just a massive in-joke that’s been blown out of proportion?

The seemingly harmless catchphrase was coined by content creator Jools Lebron, who posted a TikTok earlier this month on her demure work outfit and mindful make-up.

“You see how I do my make-up for work? Very demure, very mindful,” she told her millions of followers.

“A lot of you girls go to the interview looking like Marge Simpson and go to the job looking like Patty and Selma. Not demure.”

She also reminds us that when dressing for the office, her shirt “only has a little chi-chi out, not my cho-cho”, adding: “You should never “come to work with a green cut crease”.

After achieving overnight fame with her videos, the internet sensation has quit her checkout job, appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and updated fans that she’s now able to finance her gender transition.

Not only have content creators and celebrities been jumping on the trend, but even companies like Nasa have joined the bandwagon.

“You see how Earth looks in space? It’s very demure, very mindful. Earth looks very cutesy in the solar system,” the space agency posted on X.