Do young women prefer casual looks over dress looks?

Originally Posted by DocHolliday

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Would you be more interested in a woman who dressed in stylish, youthful clothes, or one who wore full-length dresses and old-lady blouses buttoned up to her neck? Which one do you think would be more fun to hang out with?

Beyond that, would you want to hang out with that dude who insists on wearing a tie and carrying a briefcase to class?

Think of your target audience, then go for the look most likely to attract it.

Good advice. I think part of being a gentleman is making others feel comfortable. Wearing a pinstripe suit to college class every day isn't going to do that. Having said that, I see no reason why you couldn't step it up a notch and wear some nicer duds. Quality, polished shoes, clean, fitted clothing in general and maybe even an occasional sportcoat over some decent jeans.

Originally Posted by Grayland

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Good advice. I think part of being a gentleman is making others feel comfortable. Wearing a pinstripe suit to college class every day isn't going to do that. Having said that, I see no reason why you couldn't step it up a notch and wear some nicer duds. Quality, polished shoes, clean, fitted clothing in general and maybe even an occasional sportcoat over some decent jeans.

+1. I think you want to stand out in a good way and that means dressing slightly better than everyone else. If I had it all to do over again, I would dress similarly to other guys on campus, but with better fit and quality. A great fit that shows off your best assets is key. Shoes are a good place to start upping the quality of your clothing and an occasional sports coat over jeans works, too. Eventually you should develop your own style rather than just wearing what you think will appeal to the young women around you. Comfortable and confident with your own style means more to women than trying to be stylish. Check SW&D, not just MC.

On the subject of pleats: I refused to wear pleated pants for years, but now have several pairs of single-pleated trousers that fit well and look good. My 22-year-old niece tells me I need to wear more pleated pants, since "they're hot" (on several of her love-interests).

Its a case of extremes; dress like everybody else and you'll broaden your target audience - but be indistinguishable from your peers (at least based upon your appearance). Brand Image: Corner mall, repleat with dry cleaners and pizza place. You're convienent and if you don't work out, there's another one down the street. On the other hand, wear a suit and dress as if you were already a successful MBA, you'll dramatically shrink your market. Most will see you as terribly affected (even if they don't know to call it that) or at best, not in-step with your peers. You will however stand out, and to those who have a 'thing' for well-dressed men - you'll be highly noticable. Brand Image: Sinead O'Conner. not everybody likes you - but everybody will know who you are and what you're doing. Most wont get it - your friends will mock you - but you'll be unmistakably individual. So the trade-off is to fit-in and be invisble, or stand-out and narrow your prospects to those few who appreciate your message. The question then becomes; Are you up the challenge of being a stand-out and everything that goes with it?

You r asking the wrong forum.

I'm not in college, but for maximizing my appeal to college-age women it's definitely not casual clothes. If I dress casually I look like I have a manual labor job, which is not something most women value highly. I've also noticed that just wearing a sportscoat doesn't do much good, but coat and tie makes a big difference in the reactions and treatment I get.

Originally Posted by bmulford

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On the other hand, wear a suit and dress as if you were already a successful MBA, you'll dramatically shrink your market. Most will see you as terribly affected (even if they don't know to call it that) or at best, not in-step with your peers. You will however stand out, and to those who have a 'thing' for well-dressed men - you'll be highly noticable.
I would not call that dude well dressed, and suspect the number of college students who have a thing for such style would be almost infinitesimally small. We can justify such behavior by saying that we should all dress for ourselves, but we don't exist in a vacuum. The guy who insists on suit and tie even when it's completely uncalled for and arguably inappropriate is disregarding the social norms and distancing himself from his peer group. He's sending an "up yours" message, and he shouldn't be surprised if he gets one back. Usually the suit guys in college have some issue that's driving them to dress like someone they're not. It's often discomfort in their own skin coupled with a lack of social skills. Neither's very attractive.

well i'm 24, so i'll weigh in with my experiences on this one.

I dress in suits/sportcoats/slacks typically, and find that there are a certain small number of women who are head over heels for a well dressed, suited man. In my experience they're typically found in towns like Princeton, places like NYC or Philly. Places where young successful people are appreciated.

Jeans a nice half zip sweater, dress shirt and knit tie works for other women who might not be turned on by a suited man, but still love the well dressed.

Other chicks who like jeans and t-shirt guys.....well i dont know about them.

Save your money and get a motorcycle. Way better than clothes for getting girls.

I think Doc Holliday is giving good advice in this thread so I'll +1 everything he's said.

I'd also add to what someone else said and note that option 1 is not a good option for anyone in the specifics. You can do casual that looks a lot better than Gap pleated chinos. I think it's in that area that you'll find most women's preferences for everyday men's wear.

I'm in grad school now, so the formality of clothing is bumped up a bit as most people had jobs before coming back (even though I'm not in an MBA like program where business dress would be expected). Still, I think most of the girls in my program would think it weird if someone wore suits every day for no apparent reason. They would consider it affected. I wear jackets much more than is common and the people in my program now associate me with them, but I don't always wear them formally, so I don't think that they think I wear them trying to come off as affected. When we go out, I sometimes dress up more than is the norm, but that is seen as a situation where if you like that sort of thing, it's normal to go for it. I get good responses from that.

It's all about looking good in a way that looks natural for you, and if you start wearing suits as a college student, it will be exceptionally hard to look natural. Girls want someone confident in what he is, not aspiring to be something that he is not through his clothes. A suit may be who you are, but it's going to be hard to convince college girls that you aren't just being pretentious.

I have no idea, I just try to have them prefer me, the rest is bullshit. I don't subscribe to dressing like others but better, I guess its ok if you're not passionate about clothes.

Echoing thinman, I would say that the crux of the matter is not a matter of formality but a matter of fit. Assuming you're in college and that everyone around you (including girls) dresses extremely casually, I don't think you're do yourself any favors by affecting a coat and tie. You need to check out the WAYWT threat in the Streetwear & Denim forum, get an idea of what constitutes a good fit for casual clothes, and pick up a few basic pieces that fit well and flatter your body.

Originally Posted by Marcus Brody

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It's all about looking good in a way that looks natural for you, and if you start wearing suits as a college student, it will be exceptionally hard to look natural. Girls want someone confident in what he is, not aspiring to be something that he is not through his clothes. A suit may be who you are, but it's going to be hard to convince college girls that you aren't just being pretentious.
Good post, Marcus. Dress well, and dress to please yourself, but at the same time, be true to yourself. I wear coat and tie when others do not, and I have some crazy tastes, but I also force myself to temper those tastes when the moment demands. As much as I'd love to do the full John Steed all the time, and as much as I like to indulge my more bohemian eccentric side, sometimes it's just not appropriate. I guess what I'm saying is that there's a fine line between dressing for yourself and playing dress up.

Originally Posted by DocHolliday

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I would not call that dude well dressed, and suspect the number of college students who have a thing for such style would be almost infinitesimally small.

We can justify such behavior by saying that we should all dress for ourselves, but we don't exist in a vacuum. The guy who insists on suit and tie even when it's completely uncalled for and arguably inappropriate is disregarding the social norms and distancing himself from his peer group. He's sending an "up yours" message, and he shouldn't be surprised if he gets one back.

Usually the suit guys in college have some issue that's driving them to dress like someone they're not. It's often discomfort in their own skin coupled with a lack of social skills. Neither's very attractive.

All true. I didn't see a picture so I couldn't ascertain well-dressed or not. For the sake of argument I presumed he was describing dressed to the level of Yfyf or yourself.

My personal view is to dress within appropriate range for the situation, emphasizing those items that enhance his natural appearance vs particular styles. Regardless, asking the question itself suggests a serious problem between the keyboard and chair.

Originally Posted by bmulford

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My personal view is to dress within appropriate range for the situation, emphasizing those items that enhance his natural appearance vs particular styles. Regardless, asking the question itself suggests a serious problem between the keyboard and chair.

Great point. And while I like my style, it's far from a babe magnet. Were I single and looking for a date, I wouldn't bust out my three-piece tweed. Thankfully, my GF's pretty tolerant of my excesses.

doc,
out of curiousty, how old are you?

I agree with what you're saying too, spot on. Though your personality will be one dimension thats hard to really put into a specific box, if you're really outgoing you can pull off alot of looks that your average guy cant touch.