When did you begin your conquest of all things sartorial?

[randallr]

When did you being your conquest into all things sartorial? What was your inspiration? Do you remember your first purchase? Do you remember the reactions of others when your attire started to change? Tell us your story!

My conquest began when I got a job at a tuxedo shop in Cincinnati, Ohio. I became very familiar with sizing and was really educated on how things should fit. I was also interested in the construction of garments. All of my co-workers dressed well(or so I thought), as I began to educate myself I noticed that much of what they did was not complimentary to complexion, physique, etc... I was buying clothes left and right, I think this is a phase all newcomers go through. It is hard to really establish a sense of style without getting your cherry popped a few times. Much of what I had originally purchased is no longer worn due to my change in what I viewed were pleasing aesthetics.

My first purchase of any value were three shirt from Jos. A Bank, all of them fit like tents and I no longer own any of them. I tried to take one in myself, what a disaster.

My inspirations are really all of you, from the likes of Doc and Alan who love all things trad. To Mafoo and Iamatt who love that Southern Italian tailoring. Everyday I learn something new on this forum. One day I hope to graduate, make a lot of money, and buy all these nice things you own.

Share your story!

 

[Eccentric]

For me, it all began with high school speech and debate, where suit and tie was required. My first purchase was (may the forum gods forgive me) a black pinstripe suit from Jos. A. Bank. Over time, it went from uniform to fascination. I began to realize my errors, particularly upon discovering the forum, from which I have gained immense knowledge. Clothing is now an obsession of mine. The only thing better than getting new clothes is figuring out better ways to wear them.

 

[RedScarf7]

My desire to dress well began, oddly enough, because of my involvement in an accounting group project. On presentation day one of the guys in our group looked splendid. I had never seen a pocket square before, and I couldn't get over how effortless his well manicured look was. He was wearing AE shoes so I went on to purchase a pair of AE Sohos in Cognac from Harry Rosen, and I was so clueless I wore them with my TR jeans and a pin-stripe blazer.

Though this was no more then 6-7 months ago, it is amazing how far I've come...mostly thanks to SF!

 

[lordofpi]

I was trying to log on to www.stileproject.com one day, but I accidentally spelled it wrong, and I wound up here! I've been trapped ever since! Lol. j/k (though stileproject is quite an atrocity unto itself).

When I was young, my mother and father always dressed me like a man rather than kid. Buttondown shirts and wool trousers were definitely staples. As I got into my teens, my older cousin, my step-father, and my father -- all power self-made men -- attired themselves in nice suits and felt it important to maintain a quality appearance. I was always taught, "If you don't take yourself and your appearance seriously, how do you think people meeting you will take you at first glance?"

Around age 15, I got ahold of Malloy's Dress for Success where I started to learn the finer points of being a proper dresser that exceeded those of my sartorial mentors up till that point. During and after high school, I was immersed into the business world. I learned much about clothing through trial and error, and was able to appreciate the finer details as time went on. I was pretty well versed, but after hitting SF a few years ago, I definitely filled in many of the gaps in my knowledge that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. The rest is history.

 

[randallr]

Interesting posts guys, keep them coming.

 

[Valence]

I've always been a cary grant, hitchcock fan, but around age fourteen, I realized the potential benefits of dressing myself in an appropriate fashion. My real research was as a freshman, requiring a suit for Model UN. I required a suit, and even I knew that the suit I had was not properly fitted.
As i was already an extremely odd size (32X38, 42 shoulders), I needed to research how I might find a decent fitting suit.
Thus began the journey.

At sixteen, I don't think I've really looked back once.

 

[dsmolken]

I'm still in the early stages. I didn't even learn to tie a necktie until at age 30 I moved to the city and got a job which required dressing reasonably well when dealing with bosses from Switzerland. Before that I only owned one sportscoat (passed down from an old guy who probably outweighed me by at least 50 pounds) and one suit (which I never wore to anything except job interviews and official work photos). Then I decided I've had enough of being skinny and gained a significant amount of mass. Because of this I had to gradually replace nearly all my clothes. I eventually got big enough to become oddly proportioned so finding stuff that fits reasonably well became difficult, necessitating more learning.

 

[mert54]

about 14

 

[Zenny]

About when I turned about 17.

I decided to get a suited tailored (it was a MTM, though I had about 2 fittings) and I spent hours talking to the tailor because I really didn't know anything about clothing. Then he recommended AAAC, through which I found SF and now I'm in therapy because I have too many clothes.

 

[unicornwarrior]

I would say 17 when I started to prefer button up dress shirts and pants over t shirts.

Honestly I would say the day I actually spent some time around Neiman Marcus and Hugo Boss and compared the clothes to that of Express, Guess, etc. It got me interested in the details of clothing.




not that i'm suggesting neiman marcus and hugo boss are the epitome of quality.

 

[sydneycentric]

After having bad experiences with poor quality garments and realising that it is worth forking out for good quality gear....not brand names and badges!

 

[Eagle]

I guess the best answer I can give is it started over 45 years ago, in my early teen years, when I began buying my own school clothes...OCBD's, chinos, penny loafers and wingtips. As time passed a navy blazer, sack suit and a "great" houndstooth check sport coat were added to the mix. This sartorial foundation has remained remarkably unchanged over the ensuing years and I suspect it will continue for the remainder of my lifetime. I think the key is finding your true comfort zone and then...just enjoy where you are at!

 

[Marcus Brody]

I have a hard time saying very definitively. I enjoyed dressing up so much when I was little that when I was in 4th or 5th grade my mom bought me a cheap tuxedo from a rental shop in town. I have a lot of pictures of me prancing around in it playing James Bond, though I never had any real occasion to wear it.

I subsequently went through a number of periods of dress (from sixth grade, where I refused to wear anything with a logo, to college where I dressed partially in reaction to how uniformly preppy my university was), but I'd say my interest in more "classic" sartorialism probably dates to roughly my graduation from college (a little over two years ago now). Having a job that had a very loose dress code gave me an excuse and reason to start buying jackets, nicer dress shoes, etc. When I started reading fashion forums (AAAC was first, then here), I started to learn more about construction etc. and that fueled my obsession even more.

 

[dastig]

What tuxedo shop did you work at in cincy?

 

[smmea]

My first suit i had 5 years ago it was one of those chinese nylon which i dresed everyday for about one year until it become completley digusting. than i thought i should upgrade my wardarobe and began bying better and better stuf. now i find myself comfortable only in italian sartorial stuff but i think this smth one is born with, i feel i always had this kind of extraintrest for the details and things how should be, rather than they are in the common aceptance. the italian sartorial philosoph goes smth like "we do not make things to cover our body with, we make clothes"