HOF: What Are You Wearing Right Now - Part IV (starting May 2014)

[TheWraith]



Well, he came here acting like a troll. Even if he threw down the best stuff this forum had ever seen (which we really can't judge from these pictures). I don't think it would get much love. Yeah, great fabrics and nicely cut shoulders, lapels et c. But just the last days we've seen more impressive stuff from some of the regular posters, e.g. the Shibumi guys, Incontro, Tchoy, NickP, Murl and Stitchy's joined Formosa fits et c. So why exactly should these small pics posted by this rude guy get more love?

Also, many people on this forum dress with some kind of budget, it's not possible for everyone to buy all bespoke in exclusive fabrics and advanced cuts. Sometimes we praise people who do really well on the budget they've got, I don't see that as fawning over awful fits.

+1 well said.

 

[TheWraith]



I think both emptym and edmorel make great points. There is however a weird notion on this forum (and others as well), that if you've proven that you've got the right gear you're free to act like an asshole to everyone else (some revered bespoke clad SF posters come to mind). I have zero problem with criticism and think most of us would welcome more of the kind, presented in a decent manner.

But, as of lately I really try and follow this rule: If you wouldn't say something to someone's face, then don't post it on an internet forum. I don't think I'm particularly sensitive, it's just a question of civility.

Edit. Unrelated question: Is there any way of seeing when someone quotes your name (i.e. @EFV)?

+1 again.

 

[Monkeyface]

It's pretty close minded to think only one mode of dress is correct. Yes, we can all wear solids with some texture or small pattern, it's quite easy, but it's just not everyone's style. There's no need to condemn everyone who doesn't adhere to your particular sensibilities.

 

[in stitches]

Group hug?

 

[SpooPoker]



Really don't know how you manage to pull this off Spoo, but you do. EliodA is right - the jacket is borderline hideous. But somehow here it looks great.

I think the secret, as alluded to by Stitchy, is attention to detail. Shirt, belt and pants are relatively plain and are matched with each other and the jacket. You could take the jacket off and you'd become a preppily well-dressed guy at the beach. Put the jacket back on and you are a yacht-owning playboy. No wonder the birds dug on this. It oozes money and casual ease.

Oh, and your photographer knows their stuff too. Please don't tell me you shot this yourself with a tripod and a delay. I would have to hate you even more.

Thanks man, a wife and an iPhone.

But then again:

This is a guy who grew up admiring Gianni Versace.

This is a guy who thrifted a Ferrari.

This is a guy who entered this forum years ago by pleading for letting all fashion flowers bloom.

This is the guy the Robb Report included in its advertisement for "the ultimate Kiton experience," which comes with a price tag of 250.000 dollars.

This is the guy who runs LuxeSwap.

This is the guy to whom I commissioned some of my dearest clothes to sell.

Now, this is how I expect my dealer to look like when he's on vacation.

******* EPIC

---

@edmorel Shantung shorts came in handy too

 

[Holdfast]

I wonder why we don't continue to pursue higher levels of excellence..

I don't know whether this applies to many, but for me, clothes are entertainment.

Entertainment comes in a huge variety of forms. Sometimes, you can be entertained by a complex introspective play. Sometimes, it's a brainless sitcom. As long as you're entertained I refuse to acknowledge that one is a superior artform to the other, unless you model the purpose of the medium to be something other than entertainment. Clothes have less substance than even the most imbecilic sitcom, so to view progression through makers as almost a quasi-academic progression towards one's tenured professorship is a little ridiculous to me, as is a focus on one style or aesthetic being superior to another. Look at both Spoo & spectre's recent posts: you can't tell me that they're both not delighted with what they're wearing and getting exactly the reactions they want from others. They're very different reactions, of course, and aimed at different groups of people... but really, so what? Therefore, both outfits are equally successful in my book. Getting that level of insight into what you want & need from clothes is the key thing, not whether they're made to a higher standard or according to a variety of increasingly abstracted criteria.

It isn't really a cost issue at all; from my superficial knowledge of various people's professions here, many can comfortably afford to buy the most expensive bespoke if they wanted to. Not all, of course - there are plenty of younger professionals here too - but certainly far more than actually do buy from those makers. But here's the rub: as long as you enjoy your clothes, and they're chosen well enough to meet your social/interpersonal needs, that's really all there is to them. Beyond that, it becomes circular, self-referential navel-gazing nonsense.

One of the good things about this particular thread - and why I spend most of my limited SF-time in it - is that it strips away a fair amount of the nonsense and just focuses on clothes being worn by different folks. Whether bespoke, niche RTW or mass-market, at least in here, the clothes are doing what they're meant to: being worn, not just abstractly being discussed.

Now, none of the above is to say that it's not useful to acquire a passing familiarity with the range of different kinds of dress; it's useful to be as familiar with Friends as it is with Flaubert. You need broad familiarity with the range of what's out there to decide what you like best, and what actually matters to you, and SF can be useful to learning about a certain subset of this that isn't well represented in other media. But it's not the pinnacle of dressing well, unless defined without reference to individual needs.

tl;dr Ed summarises it well at the end of his post upthread: "it's just clothes and it's your money. Do what makes you happy."



Anyway, what I wore to dinner tonight, plus spoiler-coded ('cos no jacket/tie) pic of outfit from earlier today. Hottest day of the year so far for sure!

 

[arnathor]

Wow, so much Bro-ness happening here, Next time can I pair up with Crust?

 

[mezentius]

It's pretty close minded to think only one mode of dress is correct. Yes, we can all wear solids with some texture or small pattern, it's quite easy, but it's just not everyone's style. There's no need to condemn everyone who doesn't adhere to your particular sensibilities.

Just going to point out that the original comment about solids and "elegance" (whatever that means) was directed at one of those shiny, multi-stripe ties, something you'd expect to see with a rented black suit at high school prom. I don't think Spectre was denigrating the majority of SF-approved ties.

 

[EliodA]

@Holdfast, sharp analysis and well written, as usual. Your contributions are one more reason for me to follow this thread.

 

[Claghorn]

I think you've demonstrated well the divide. But I'd like to challenge you on the thought that neither is better. Let's push further in the direction of the second group you mention. If we do, we get into Hermes Man territory. I think one reason people love to make fun of him is that he holds up a mirror to a part of us we don't want to admit exists.

I think there as a misunderstanding about what I meant by the items involved in the fit. Stitchy got it right--I was referring to how well the various pieces are put together. Nothing whatsoever to do with brands (in fact, I've gone on record that I find the benefit of brands to be increasingly outmoded).

But let's push back the other way. The focus on fit rather than combination. As a number of people said, money may be an issue. But even more to the point, I like being able to admire what folks put together. I don't interact with member's tailors, so I don't get the same appreciation when I think "wow, xxx did a really great job with that shoulder" vs "wow, EFV did a brilliant job figuring out how to wear jeans with a tie."

well I wasn't making a comment on spectre's comments nor am I esposing his look to be the only universally correct one but your comment on items is, to me, the biggest issue with people trying to dress well. An outfit should not be an item, it should be the sum of the items. Fits like spectre's are boring and unimaginative when you are looking for the "item". But in total, taking aside any preference issues (I don't like monotone outfits either), the ensemble is the perfect canvas for the man.

I am someone that has always worn FU items, sometimes it works, sometime it hasn't. Its taken me a long road to recognize the difference between wearing items and wearing an outfit. Some people here wear items. There is nothing wrong with that if you choose to go that route. But you should be able to recognize when something that is not necessarily your style, is done right. The road to 100 thumbs here is not a difficult one to navigate. Napoli style suit, some variation of a raw silk/grenadine tie, large spread shirt (with tall collar) and loud shoes (by loud shoes I mean something either aggresively styled or aggresively antiqued). If you can add in some pocket accesories, even better. I get the look, I know why its popular but the individual should add refinement and his own touch to that outift. It shouldn't be a collection of items that look great on their own, but not necessarily together. It should flatter your build, not point out the flaws (take a look at a lot of the shoulder lines and gorges of some of the stuff posted).

I guess where I am coming from is, I like to think that I have refined my style over the years that I have been on here by looking at others, taking criticism and worrying more about what cut/fit works for me. I'm not saying people here don't care about that, just that its given a secondary importance to items that "pop". And instead of criticism, you see raves. When Spoopoker started posting pics here, he took a lot crap, in some cases rightfully so. I doubt that he thought back then that he was dressing bad. He has evolved his style. Some people are now posting outfits similar to the old Spoo outfits, but there is no criticism which would lead to learning (for everyone), just a lot of "thats my style", "not everyone can afford bespoke", "rules are stupid" etc etc.

I always like to end these rants with; at the end of the day, its just clothes and its your money. Do what makes you happy.

Agreed--no outfit should ever be about a single item. It's about how well each item plays with the others. Color, texture, formality, even extrinsic context.

I've not seen too many Spoo fits coming from folks that aren't Spoo, but when I first started working with my loud jacket, I made a couple of missteps (I generally need to get a feel for an item via trial and error before really understanding how to wear it. Maybe that's a deficiency on my part, but it's a process I enjoy). This thread was very vocal, and helpful, in pointing out what could have done better.

 

[StanleyVanBuren]

Epaulet (x2)
Moderntailor
Givenchy
Carmina






​

 

[NickPollica]



Spoiler: Accepting the fact that with such a loud jacket, I'm probably better off just sticking with ties in the brown family rather than trying to push any borders.

With such a pronounced window I would make the case for forgoing pattern all together and sticking with a brown or navy solid tie here.

 

[GSTT]

@Holdfast exactly my thoughts, I just wish I was able to express them so well. Your perspective on things is a reminder to not always take what is for most a hobby too seriously (me included).

Nice fits, btw.

 

[LA Guy]

With such a pronounced window I would make the case for forgoing pattern all together and sticking with a brown or navy solid tie here.

I would generally agree with you, but I feel that @Claghorn has executed this pretty well. The colors and size of the pattern match with the jacket well. There are definitely more ways to fail than to succeed with this jacket, but I feel that Clags has hit that rare success. Question to Clags - how many ties did you have to try before you got to the one with which you stuck?

 

[Claghorn]

That day, just the one. I purchased it with that jacket in mind. But for that jacket, overall? I've tried maybe 10 ties and have had 3-4 that I was happy with. All brown. A navy knit was recommended a few times, but it was my first thought outside of brown as well. Didn't like the way it looked. That could just be me though.