Where were you when you first joined SF, and where are you now?

[lemmywinks]

Style wise, obviously, and context would be awesome.

I guess when I first joined styleforum, I just moved to a new high school in California, not knowing a single person. The school I used to go to had uniforms, so I only had to worry about what I wore twice a day. Before that I exclusively wore basketball shorts regardless of the weather, and I swore against wearing jeans. The only long pants I had were a pair of Dickies in khaki, and those double as my 'dress trouser.' Granted I was only 15 at the time and didn't know much about style.

I didn't do much my first few months at my new high school, didn't really get noticed, couldn't really stand out. Part of it was because I dressed like an absolute chump... I wore a pair of Levis 569 and t-shirts from Pac-Sun, and the other part was that I just didn't have that much confidence in myself outside my comfort zone.

Around this same time, a basketball forum that I used to post at had a small thread on jeans in their Misc/Off Topic forum, and one guy talked about raw denim. Did a little bit of searching, found some info on styleforum and the rest was history. Went to Uniqlo in Hong Kong that winter break, spent around $2-300 dollars, and I did not like a piece of turd. Some kids that were part of the 'hypebeast' crowd started to notice, and that was my first entry into a group of friends in a new environment.

Since then, I've gone through two girlfriends, bunch of great and not so great memories, done the most heavy drinking and smoking of my life, gotten tons of compliments from girls for being one of the more well-dressed, but not flashy guys in school. Not to sound too conceited but near the end of my high school, I was one of the more popular, well-rounded kids. Worked hard, played hard, memorable to all the teachers, after being pretty much a nobody. A lot of that had to do with clothing, because it was how I could express myself. I reached points where I was confident enough to know that I could dress like a complete chump to school today and still command respect and project that confidence as I would if I dressed the way I normally did. I could come to school in a loose t-shirt, basketball short, and flip flops, and everyone would still know that I'm one of the best-dressed guys in school.

Clothing has always been important to me because it is a way of expressing and projecting myself. My whole time in high school, and these two years in college, I look at WAWYT, and MC Casual, and aspire to the day where I could comfortably wear trousers, dress shirts, suits/blazers and high end shoes without being ridiculed as trying too hard, or fetching "why are you so dressed up" questions.

Alright too tired to continue writing this I don't even know what I'm writing at this point... I'll probably finish it later. But the point is where were you in personal style and as a person when you first joined SF, and how have you changed since?

 

[CalTex]

I'm not going to read all of that but I'll contribute.

I was in a southern prep phase. Polos, shorts, and sperry's.

I'm on the MC side of things now.

 

[lesamourai]

I wanted Aldens. Now I don't want Aldens.

 

[andrewgreg]

Before SF: Theory, John Varvatos, Vince stuff, could be easily found at bloomingdales or barney's Co-OP

Few months after: big name designer, Dior Jil,, Lanvin, MMM, YSL etc

Pending interest: Want to try some leather jacket from Obscure, Julius and MA+, never bought stuff from these brands.

Now: Mainly MC stuff, Cucinelli, Loro Piana, Isaia, Lobb, Barba, Drake's RLPL etc.

 

[Mr. Moo]

Before:

After:

Kind of sums it up.

 

[max_r]

i was just looking for info on APC's when i found SF, i think i only made my account so i could buy a pair of B&S. I was wearing lots of stonewashed ugly jeans back then, and i wanted something slim and dark, but also nice quality.

I was in college then so i was poor as ****, and trying to dress kind of MC casual for some reason (button up shirts, jeans, dress shoes), and now that i have to wear a suit 5 days a week, 100% of my casual wear is tshirts, jeans and boots. Then i try to look less boring with some nicer outerwear.

 

[sinnedk]

i wanted to own good footwear that lasts
before: ben sherman / to boot ny
after sf: alden / trickers
now: carmina / butter / augusta

 

[sinnedk]

.

 

[Feji]

Before (started lurking ~2004) : Theory, AX/Armani, BR, Hugo Boss, stuff found in Saks/Neiman mainly, Kenneth Cole
Now : Schneider, Ervell, Drakes, DVN, W+H, Momotaro, Trickers, McNairy; basically a mix of well made basics, and basics made with interesting fabric/designs.

 

[Suicmez]

It was after I bought my first pair of nudies (Straight Sven Dry Selvage) and googled "raw denim" that I discovered this place. I had started out by reading articles from GQ's website, and that inevitably led me to their forums. But it was a really lacklustre forum, both activity-wise and quality-wise. It was great for learning a few basics, but unfortunately, it suffered from the same ethos that GQ was projecting: i.e., everyone dressed super "trendy" and just not that well.

After reading the SW&D threads religiously and digesting the incredible amount of information that this place provides, I started making purchases from B&S and eBay. Like most members, I started out with the Raw Denim+button up shirt+jack purcells/other converse uniform. I kept adding to that look, adding better jeans and better shoes to the mix when I saw fit.

Unfortunately, the Styleforum uniform circa 2007 had trickled down to the masses around 2010, and it seemed like every guy at my university was wearing nudies, boat shoes/Clark's DB's, and some random plaid shirt from the mall.
I've always been a fan of looking different (but not for the sake of standing out in a bad way). I felt that the raw denim/Clark's DB look was too "easy" and that everyone could wear it and look passable. But it was also very boring, as was wearing chinos, boat shoes, and a OCBD with a V-neck. I started to realize that what was once my own look around campus had been widely adopted, and that made me realize that it was time for a change. I'm not saying that I was responsible for it- far from it- I'm just saying that it wasn't challenging and fun wearing those clothes anymore.

That's when I started getting into the Jil/Raf/Stephan Schneider/Ervell stuff that I'm such a fan of nowadays. It doesn't look contrived or try-hard, all of the pieces are very comfortable and easy to wear, and I get the satisfaction of looking different without looking like I'm TRYING to be different. Everything I buy nowadays is either online or thrifted; I never go to the mall anymore, and I really enjoy that aspect of where I am stylistically now. It has also boosted my confidence over the years of branching out and dressing different. It was uncomfortable at first, but making myself vulnerable in that regard actually boosted my confidence over time, and I couldn't be happier with who I am or the clothes I wear that express that.