Clothing for Asian and Indian guys? Discuss here.

[Python]

I started this thread since there seems to be a relative dearth of information out there regarding fashion for Asian guys (beyond the usual, tacky designer gear with big logos and lots of bling, practically screaming, 'Look at me, I'm wearing expensive stuff, so I must be rich!', re: Armani's diffusion lines).

Anyway, the point is, what looks good on a man of European descent does not necessarily look good on someone of Subcontinental, Asian or Middle Eastern descent, mainly due to colour coordination. For instance, we tend to have black hair and yellow or brown skin - therefore, khaki, brown, olive and yellow aren't exactly flattering colours (which limits us a little in terms of shoes). Gold, too, may not be ideal, depending on the exact skin tone. At the same time, other colours which are not so flattering on others may look better on us - black, for instance, tends to suit us very well, owing to our already-black hair, as does silver. White tends to be better than ivory or cream, while vivid colours - deep purple, ruby and fuschia - look great.

Me? I tend to steer towards strong colours, generally with contrast within an outfit. For example, when dressed semi-casually during the daytime, I may wear a black sports coat, crisp white button-cuff dress shirt, dark indigo jeans (fitted, with a slight bootcut - can't stand the baggy, hip-hop look), black Chelsea boots and silver accessories (watch and belt buckle). For a night out at a trendy bar, I might wear a black or pinstriped suit, purple or red French-cuffed dress shirt (in silk) with no tie and two buttons undone, silver accessories and either black Chelsea boots or black shoes. For an outdoor event during the day, I might wear a white suit and paisley shirt, again with no tie.

What are your thoughts and opinions?

P.S. I know brown isn't exactly a flattering colour for us, but how would camel look?

 

[neyus]

I would disagree with brown not being flattering. People with dark complexion often look great wearing brown.

But it depends on a number of factors. Hair Colour and eye colour for starters.

 

[Christofuh]

 

[Python]

Originally Posted by neyus

I would disagree with brown not being flattering. People with dark complexion often look great wearing brown.

But it depends on a number of factors. Hair Colour and eye colour for starters.

Well, eye colour is pretty much universally brown (ranging from brown to almost black) and hair colour tends to be black.

 

[sloaney]

these are ALL generalizations but my personal opinion is that asians tend to dress very poorly. here in london, i notice some indians wearing very old faded clothes (that look like they were bought in india). the chinese either end up looking very nerdy (wearing glasses) or a fashion freak (too much H&M) when it clearly does not suit their features. for some reason there seem to be VERY few asians who dress in a classic/understated/expensive manner - say, a white shirt, a cashmere baby blue sweater, clean dark jeans, brown loafers. also, very bad hairstyles. i think asians which have softer features look much better in classic/preppy gear. this applies to anyone who has softer features by the way. and asian women do not understand understatement either, they try to be trendy but fail miserably, clutching their lv and burberry and guccis....
i think generally asians need to focus more on themselves (better grooming, better haircut, fitness, developing their taste) and less on what they buy to wear (trendy clothes, branded clothes), if that makes sense? for some reason the majority, by the way they dress, just does not come off as tasteful/sophisticated/well-educated/posh. there is big difference in dressing between an asian who grew up in a connecticut suburb and one who grew up in chinatown new york. also very few asians are willing to spend money on clothes. they usually like h&m and zara (cheap and trendy). when they spend money on clothes, they want logos (lv, gucci, prada). you almost never see them wearing zegna/loro piana/etc. asians need to exercise more restraint. cut down on the loud outfits. emphasize more on cut, fit, texture. understatement understatement understatement understatement. go with more harmonious/softer color palettes. do not do navy+red or black+white+red.... try light blue+navy, white+khaki, etc. i have a colleague here at the vp level who wears this horrible green cotton "bomber" jacket from h&m to the office. cheap, tacky, tasteless, and frankly out of place in a merchant bank. i mean, i wonder how he feels standing next to other people? sigh.

the truth hurts

ps: upon further reflection, i think that 70% of the natives here in london (or new york for that matter) dress poorly but 98% of minorities dress poorly. most of the immigrants who have great taste tend to come from the european union. am i being racist or do you agree with me?

for example, i think there are so many things wrong with the outfits below but i think most asian women will think they are great

and ????????

 

[josepidal]

Originally Posted by Python

therefore, khaki, brown, olive and yellow aren't exactly flattering colours (which limits us a little in terms of shoes)
I echo your concerns except the part about shoes. I don't see how you can't look good in brown or tan shoes.

You might distinguish, however, between Asians with darker brown skin and black hair, and those with very light skin and black hair.

 

[Get Smart]

Sloaney, sounds like you should teach a seminar on proper Asian styling.

sorry, but I don't agree when someone has absolutist manifestos on how SOMEONE ELSE should dress. keep your rules towards your own style, I dont think the choir you're preaching to gives a f@ck

back on topic, I think Asians can look great in brown but they tend towards safe dressing and stay with a black foundation. The right shades of brown can be a good neutral palette to bring in some other bright colors if you want that *pop* and contrast

 

[Kent Wang]

I don't like black very much. Chocolate brown and medium grey work well for me.

Ah so.

 

[lockey2k]

Originally Posted by sloaney

I like the two girls on the left. Need to see the face of the third.

That being said, I think Asians can wear browns, but should note not all browns work. Like most rules of thumb, exceptions always exist.

 

[Python]

Originally Posted by sloaney

these are ALL generalizations but my personal opinion is that asians tend to dress very poorly. here in london, i notice some indians wearing very old faded clothes (that look like they were bought in india).

Really depends - my gf is Sri Lankan and IMO a well-thought-out sari looks very elegant in the right setting (she's also a style-maven - always ends up looking good, as well as appropriately dressed for the occasion).

the chinese either end up looking very nerdy (wearing glasses)

Definitely true here, although I think it's more a 'nerd' think than an 'Asian' thing - just that (again, another generalisation) certain populations tend to identify more with the 'nerd' culture than others.

or a fashion freak (too much H&M) when it clearly does not suit their features.

Definitely. May I add Armani Exchange, Emporio Armani and Versace Jeans Couture to that list?

for some reason there seem to be VERY few asians who dress in a classic/understated/expensive manner - say, a white shirt, a cashmere baby blue sweater, clean dark jeans, brown loafers.

True, although IMO this is partly because such 'classic' looks don't tend to look as good on Asians as on fairer-skinned Caucasians. With similar styles but a different colour palette, it would look much better - but, then again, that wouldn't strictly be 'classic', would it?

also, very bad hairstyles.

Definitely true - too much hair dye/bleach as well. One does not need to be blonde to look good...

i think generally asians need to focus more on themselves (better grooming, better haircut, fitness, developing their taste) and less on what they buy to wear (trendy clothes, branded clothes), if that makes sense?

I'd say this is partly a cultural thing - whereas understatement in style is inherent in classic European fashion, it's the opposite in parts of Asia and the Middle East. As in, if you've got it, flaunt it. That said, I totally agree with what you say...

also very few asians are willing to spend money on clothes. they usually like h&m and zara (cheap and trendy).

I can't agree here - if anything (in Australia at least) Asian- and Indian-Australians seem to spend a lot more on clothes than the average person of Anglo-Saxon heritage. What they spend it on may or may not be tasteful, but spend they do.

when they spend money on clothes, they want logos (lv, gucci, prada).

Sad, but true. I've seen too many of them walking around, flaunting their 300AUD T-shirts with 'Versace' printed across the front in rhinestones (sometimes in the middle of winter...), while I walk past in a stylish 2000AUD three-quarter-length peacoat with no external labelling (albeit also Gucci, but I liked the styling of it)... guess who gets more attention?

you almost never see them wearing zegna/loro piana/etc.

I'd have to agree here. Personally, at my age I wouldn't wear Zegna (their styles are too conservative for me) but love the fabrics produced by Loro Piana - just today I ordered a Pal Zileri suit in their fabric. As for older men, my father is just about the only Asian man I've seen wearing Zegna (Brioni is quite popular though, at least in Australia; apparently it became much more popular a few years back with the release of 'The World is Not Enough').

asians need to exercise more restraint. cut down on the loud outfits. emphasize more on cut, fit, texture.

Agree.

understatement understatement understatement understatement. go with more harmonious/softer color palettes. do not do navy+red or black+white+red.... try light blue+navy, white+khaki, etc.

Agree to an extent - understated items are a good idea (e.g. suits, sports coats and stylish leather jackets instead of leather-and-metal abominations and ripped, rhinestone-studded jeans) but I wouldn't agree with softer colour palettes for all people. By nature, Asians tend to have higher contrast than Anglo-Saxons (black hair on light skin) and can often get away with higher-contrast, bolder colours and still look good. IMO certain low-colour combinations which look good on Anglo-Saxons can make Asians look plain, washed-out or even unwell...

i have a colleague here at the vp level who wears this horrible green cotton "bomber" jacket from h&m to the office. cheap, tacky, tasteless, and frankly out of place in a merchant bank. i mean, i wonder how he feels standing next to other people? sigh.

Given that he continues to do it, either he doesn't care, or hasn't noticed.

ps: upon further reflection, i think that 70% of the natives here in london (or new york for that matter) dress poorly but 98% of minorities dress poorly. most of the immigrants who have great taste tend to come from the european union. am i being racist or do you agree with me?

London? Definitely. Here in Melbourne, it's more like 90% of the population (whatever origin) who dress badly. Really, thongs belong in the backyard or at the beach; even then, I generally prefer some nice leather slides.

for example, i think there are so many things wrong with the outfits below but i think most asian women will think they are great

The girl in the middle photo of the first image seems OK; all the others are painful to look at.

But, as I said before, all this is just my opinion... YMMV.

 

[Python]

Originally Posted by Get Smart

back on topic, I think Asians can look great in brown but they tend towards safe dressing and stay with a black foundation. The right shades of brown can be a good neutral palette to bring in some other bright colors if you want that *pop* and contrast

Only certain browns, though. The richer, chocolate-browns and reddish-browns can look good when paired well (even with black, I would hazard, despite the general rule of 'don't mix brown and black'); a reddish-brown leather jacket, black shirt, black pants and reddish-brown shoes with black soles would actually look quite good as casual-wear (in my mind's eye at the moment, anyway). Khaki and the muter, 'dustier' shades of brown, however, look awful on us at the best of times...

OTOH black almost always works - whereas it may look too strong on fair-haired and fair-skinned people, IMO it simply accentuates the features of Asian people, who already have black hair anyway (so it's not like you're increasing the contrast too much).

How do you think camel would look? As in, camel sports coat, dark jeans and camel boots for a day out, instead of black?

 

[sloaney]

phython, i've never had someone agree with me so much.
or maybe you're just a very agreeable person!

i have to say though that i consider the girls in the pictures very ugly and un-elegant
i remembered when i was in college my roommate (white) asked me what i thought of a vietnamese girl he was interested in (he thinks she looks gorgeous). i regret it to this day but i told him very undiplomatically that i think she is one of the ugliest women i've encountered

he appreciated my sincerity and didn't try to kill me.

 

[sushijerk]

I think Men's Clothing will have a slight bias towards how Asians tend to dress because of its more trad/preppy mindset. Keep in mind that most Asian countries come from a history of tight government control and only recently had a choice on what they could choose/afford to wear. After decades of seeing the older generation limited to a monotone uniform of subdued colors I don't think it is unnatural for teenagers to embrace the the more chaotic and colored look.

Also note that the traditional clothing of most Asian countries lean towards the loose, wide, and flowing. There is no history of "fit" as is defined by Europeans and what kind of cut favors what body-type. I'm not saying that we aren't guilty of dressing badly most of the time but we're coming from a pretty big cultural disadvantage.

Classically well dressed white people had the means, materials, and sources like the Duke of Windsor and Cary Grant for inspiration. Unfortunately at the time when most Asians began to have access to western clothing and design, the source images came from brand-toting Eurotrash and then the hip-hop generation.

 

[sloaney]

agreed.... it's sad that most of the developed world emulate only the worst of western culture (hip hop, coca-cola, mtv, starbucks).

 

[Get Smart]

camel seems too close to most asians' skintones to be a good color choice. seems like it would wash you out. I rarely/almost-never have seen an asian wearing much camel color. I remember it was the "in" tone in the later 90s with every brand pushing camel colored coats, suits etc...honestly I think very few look good in camel. Of all the brown options, it's the most bland imo