The re-inventing beatnick

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Hello,

first time post and I have a question. I'm a college student who's current style runs towards dirty grunge guitar boy. My clothes are all torn and ripped, I wear vintage clothing, scruffy facial hair, bead necklaces, sandals.

I'm 210 and going down (thanks to the atkins diet), reddish brown hair, blue eyes, nice skin whatever.

I'm looking to redo myself. I wanna get out of the whole highschool rock star thing and get some genuine class and style. Any advice on hair, fashion styles, etc would be greatly appreciated as there isn't a lot of stuff for guys out there, especially my age.

I don't want the whole slick N-Sync thing either, drench myself in CK 1. I want something that is classy not trendy. But I have no idea where to start, thanks in advance.

 

[Joe G]

A few ideas. Fashion Simply buy some non-ripped clothing in natural materials that fit. By "fitting", I mean that the fabric should fit close to the body, but not the extent that you're uncomfortable. Some things to add to your wardrobe: -Cotton khaki trousers with flat fronts, in a few different shades. -Polo shirts, in a variety of solid colours, in pique-finish cotton or mercerised cotton. -Polo-collar (aka "button-down") oxford cloth long-sleeve shirts. White and sky blue are good colours with which to start out. -Spread-collar shirts. These may be hard to find inexpensively in the US, but are just classier than point-collars to my mind. Make sure they're all cotton and have removeable collar stays. -Depending on where you live, you may want to invest in a decent coat. New England college kids all seem to wear single-breasted wool polo or Chesterfield coats, that they call "peacoats". A peacoat is also a good option, be it designer or US Navy surplus, if you live in area warm enough to not require a full-length coat. -In college, Docs and Birkis are fine. That's pretty much all I wore. After that, you'll probably want to look into nice loafers. Be forewarned that nice shoes aren't cheap, though. Grooming -Talk to a competent hair salon as to styles that will best compliment your shape and natural properties of your hair. -Keep your hair, including any on your face, neatly trimmed. -There's nothing wrong with having facial hair, as long as you take care of it. -Lose any jewellry except for a watch. Peace, JG PS: Look at the following site for clarification about any terms I used: http://www.fashionmall.com/flusser_b...x_current.html

 

[GQgeek]

I'm 22 and in college and my wardrobe has a lot of boss and armani in it. It's kind of touch and go though. At our age, there's a pretty fine line between people thinking you just have nice clothes and people thinking you're gay, which probably isn't the impression you want to give heh. Don't know if you ever watched fresh prince, but you don't wanna pull of a carleton look either and be labeled a preppy nerd


Depending on if you're 210 overweight (and how much) or the right weight for your height, you might or might not want to get flat front pants. Only get pleated pants, imo, if you need the extra fabric to be comfortable when you sit down, otherwise i'd stay away from them till you're an older guy. I'd stick to creaseless pants as well, as soon as you have creases you're getting out of "casual" and in to "dressy". You want to look stylish, not overdressed, not like a prep, not gay.

While Joe G's suggestions will get you looking respectable, you'll also look like most other guys. It's the very safe route to take. Personally, I'm not a big fan of plain old khakis. A) Everyone and his brother has a pair and b) the material from the common brands is usually pretty stiff.

It's getting in to the fall/winter season soon, so I don't know if you want to buy your summer clothes now, or if you're just
gonna buy new clothes for fall for when you go back for school. If you buy summer clothes, certainly get some
polos as Joe suggested. I don't know how much you want to spend, but most of my pants for summer were fairly loose (but not aroudn the waist) cotton or cotton/linen blends. I also had some very lightweight wool pants. The pants I have drape a lot better than khakis and they look a lot nicer too, but then you could probably buy 6-7 pairs of regular khakis for the same price of one pair of my pants (then again if
you look now you might get good stuff on sale). Always chose natural fibers over the man made stuff.

For shirts, depending on the climate, you're probably best sticking to cotton for summer. You don't want to drop stuff off at the dry cleaning every time you wear it because you've sweat through it. You should be buying shirts you don't have to tuck in. If you're wearing nice pants, shoes and a tucked in shirt, you're gonna look a bit too preppy imo. You can still buy collared shirts, just get ones that don't have shirt tails that you can leave untucked.

Getting in to fall/winter, your clothes should be closer fitting. It's a pretty easy season to dress for, as you can wear sweaters, long sleeved shirts and a whole lot of other stuff. Again, the best thing to do for a college kid is to stay away from anything you have to tuck in and don't forget it's pretty hard to mess up with solid colors for your sweaters. Patterns on sweaters are for old men or maybe something to wear at a ski lodge. ;p

It's pretty hard to give specific examples so the best thing to do is go in to a store and look around, feel the fabrics, try stuff on and see how stuff looks. Get your haircut before you go shopping though and try to be presentable when you go or you'll feel really uncomfortable in the better stores.

 

[GQgeek]

Oh and for shoes, if you can afford it, buy top of the line. Like someone said in another thread, this is where you should spend a lot if you can't spend a lot on everything you buy. I have two pairs of kenneth coles that I'm probably throwing out soon. I'm gonna try and find some ferragamos I like or something else of the same quality. They're expensive but well worth it.

 

[LA Guy]

I think that it would be mistake to try to change your style overnight. You are liable to look and feel rather uncomfortable in your new wardrobe. Besides, as a college student, you are unlikely to have the discretionary income necessary to replace your wardrobe in one shopping trip. It would probably be a better idea to incorporate higher quality pieces into the style you feel comfortable with - your personal style, as it were.

You can look good in jeans and shirts. The secret is, as Joe G points out, to buy clothing that fits well. Don't skimp on the basics. This is how I would go about your business. Bear in mind that this is just my opinion, and that you need to buy clothing that you'll feel and look good in.

Go and buy a couple of pair of good (read well-fitted) jeans. A dark pair are an especially good idea. Don't be seduced by a brand name, but don't be deterred by price either. Denim is relatively inexpensive, and you should be able to afford a pair or two that you really like. You might want to pick up a couple of pairs of casual/going out pants as well. I would stay away from khakis or cotton pants. They tend to look overly casual (you won't be wearing them around all the time anyway), and don't dress up particularly well. Try wool, flat front pants in dark/neutral colors that will be easy to coordinate. Next, you'll need some shirts. For a more elegant look, stick to fitted twill or poplin shirts in solid colors and vertical stripes. Both are significantly more versatile than plaids. You can wear the shirts with jeans or wool pants. You'll also want a couple of good sweaters. Solid colors are again advisable. There. That should provide you with at least a week's worth of casual wear.

Of course, you'll want some good footwear and a couple of belts. Clark's desert boots are cool and go well with jeans, and are inexpensive to boot. A pair of black balmorals should take care of most of your needs. Don't skimp on shoes, and never get sucked into buying a pair that doesn't fit well. You'll pay for that type of indiscretion.

And if you get treated poorly at a store, walk out and never go back.