godofcoffee
Senior Member
- Joined
- Aug 10, 2009
- Messages
- 269
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Something I've been wondering about is whether style is really as timeless and transcendent as we make it out to be.
I can't say that I've ever really reached the highest echelons of fashion, so maybe I'm missing something here. But I've dabbled: gotten some suits and shirts made, bought RLPL ****, AE shoes, worn cufflinks at inappropriate times.
I can't say it's really paid off. I don't feel any positive difference - if anything, I'm just more worried about stepping in puddles. And (although I know this isn't an end goal) I don't get very much attention for my buck, so there are no Veblen-esque advantages.
A lot of what SFers wear is advertised as somehow "timeless" by menswear blogs. But I feel like the timeless component is the boring, decidedly non-stylish businesswear that you could get at Mark's Work Wearhouse (that's a thing, right?). SF style, with its suppressed waists and exaggerated attention to detail, seems like pointless overkill. The only interesting stuff is the stuff that'll probably end up outdated anyway.
My conclusion is that style is a hobby like stamp collecting: you have to intrinsically enjoy it for it to matter. What's strange is that people put down the un-stylish in a way that nobody puts down non-stamp collectors. I figure this might be a throwback to the days of sumptuary laws, where attire was meant to be an obligatory indicator of status. But that seems like a backward attitude nowadays.
Does anybody else ever feel this way? Or am I just in the wrong forum? Regardless, I think I'll continue trading in my benchmades for layman-indistinguishable Bass Comfort Shoes.
I can't say that I've ever really reached the highest echelons of fashion, so maybe I'm missing something here. But I've dabbled: gotten some suits and shirts made, bought RLPL ****, AE shoes, worn cufflinks at inappropriate times.
I can't say it's really paid off. I don't feel any positive difference - if anything, I'm just more worried about stepping in puddles. And (although I know this isn't an end goal) I don't get very much attention for my buck, so there are no Veblen-esque advantages.
A lot of what SFers wear is advertised as somehow "timeless" by menswear blogs. But I feel like the timeless component is the boring, decidedly non-stylish businesswear that you could get at Mark's Work Wearhouse (that's a thing, right?). SF style, with its suppressed waists and exaggerated attention to detail, seems like pointless overkill. The only interesting stuff is the stuff that'll probably end up outdated anyway.
My conclusion is that style is a hobby like stamp collecting: you have to intrinsically enjoy it for it to matter. What's strange is that people put down the un-stylish in a way that nobody puts down non-stamp collectors. I figure this might be a throwback to the days of sumptuary laws, where attire was meant to be an obligatory indicator of status. But that seems like a backward attitude nowadays.
Does anybody else ever feel this way? Or am I just in the wrong forum? Regardless, I think I'll continue trading in my benchmades for layman-indistinguishable Bass Comfort Shoes.