Why you dress the way you do, buy what you buy, like what you like, et cetera?

How did you arrive at your current aesthetic? Were you part of a particular sub-culture, or did your aesthetic stem from something else? What is it that appeals most to you, or causes you to dress the way you do?

basically, what do you like and why?




i don't really have a fully established aesthetic yet i don't feel. i think my aspiration is to look 'american' but not like a douche. I incorporate some of the work wear stuff as it appeals to me, it is what my father wears, and his father, and all of their cronies... it is a solid look. I am from the midwest, runway looks are run way looks and would be a costume. I am not interested in clothes that are limited edition or special runs or one of a kind ... that is the biggest appeal of say Levis, or Converse, or a chambray workshirt... they are unlimited. I could go anywhere and find them. I look appropriate in them, and am well dressed, but am not noticed for how i am dressed. I suppose some of the notions of 'stealth wealth' apply in that i want to look like i don't care, or know where my clothes came from, or brands, or anything. I guess i just want to appear spontaneously kempt, if that makes sense. as if it came together fluidly, but with little thought to detail. For instance, my grandfather has style... but doesn't over analyse it. All of his shirts have a collar, his shoes are polished, he is neat and pressed. If he needs a coat he buys a good one that will last. The man was a barber, his closet is black on the right white on the left with a few coats hanging as well. He wears cowboy boots, or lace up oxfords, a white ocbd or polo, and black trousers almost everyday. granted its stuff he bought at mervyns or anthonys 20 years ago and is on no level 'fashionable' but is still insanely stylish in that he is never over dressed or under dressed he is appropriate for any situation.

I want to look a bit like a vintage gi joe too i suppose. it sounds silly, but for real... they are dressed sharply and not overdone. i would be really into the mister freedom gear if it were more accesible. i have been trying to incorporate a lot more military surplus gear in though it is rather picked over, or out of my price range too. If i could find an N-1 or non selvage denim equivalent of the MFSC foul weather coat, and a pair of boots that would last i could probably get rid of a lot of stuff, only buy basics and be set.



i ask this looking for the responses of the people with really establish tates [aka getsmart, bobo, some of the goth ninja dudes, robin/zissou, etc]

I think it is best summed up with this quote:

'' A man should look as though he bought his clothes with intelligence,put them on with care, and then forgot all about them.'' -- Hardy Amies

comfort is my priority.

for real, no one else?

This is and always has been my principle.

"I don't dress to look good, I dress to not look bad."

I spent a couple years going through the striped polo/AE jeans phase most guys seem to indulge in at one point or another. I made a shift from that to the Hypebeast idea of streetwear a couple years ago.

I probably sunk a grand or so into that phase. From that stockpile, I probably have four or five things I ever wear now with any regularity. The hoodies, the majority of the graphic tees, and a lot of the sneakers just sit there now. I'll probably drop most of them on eBay, though I still manage to work a number of the sneakers into my current aesthetic.

The SF aesthetic did nothing for me when I first joined here. It wasn't until a couple months passed that I started frequenting the forum more. As time passed, I became more familiar with the SF-approved brands. I didn't fully hop on the bandwagon, but my Hypebeast-influenced wardrobe was seeming less and less appealing to me. Not just for design, but fit, as well.

My current finances haven't allowed a total overhaul, which has been a benefit in some ways. I miss out on certain things I'd like to own, but that's not always a bad thing a couple months removed. I've accepted well-fitted shirts and quality denim do a lot more for my appearance than the graphic tee/really loud sneakers did.

I try to maintain a balance, though. I still think the SF look has a tendency to get a bit too stuff, which is why I search for pieces that feature interesting details, but don't bang you over the head like the Hypebeast's take on "interesting" usually does.

I guess I would describe myself as having hypebeast influences as well since I still go to high school.

That's right I'm a stylebeast.

group think

Alot of people talk about wanting to create a certain type of 'look.' I personally like picking out pieces that appeal to me that aren't loud and fit well, and was made with good construction and fabrics. I don't really prescribe to any look. I actually think the standard suit/tie/shirt for formal work environments is a bit tragic in that you are one in a sea of many. For guys it's especially difficult to not be in a group think environment but not be so out of the box that you're too far out there. There's not much room in between the margins to play with.

Good topic.

I love SF because without it, I'd still be wearing unflattering clothes. I always wear slimfit clothes to erm, flatter me so I look more attractive. Yes that is shallow, but SF itself is basically. I've grown accustomed to them, so now I feel uncomfortable in baggy clothes.

I've always been attracted to a darker look, not quite SZ style but moreso than normal people. I try to go for a look that is distinguished, that's why I've never been a fan of workwear and preppy stuff. Too commonplace.

I get inspiration and ideas mainly from runway shows, occasionally movies. No one IRL sadly, in fact they get ideas from me haha. Not so much music as I mainly listen to rap, and 99% of them dress horribly.

I honestly don't give a **** if people don't like the way I dress. I think of it as a prescreening device for girls if they don't like the way I look, we probably wouldn't get along.

So basically, I see or hear of some type of clothes I want, ask where to get them on here, and buy. I don't get discouraged if someone says, Damn that ****'s ugly!

When I was younger, I dressed in whatever way appealed to me at the moment, with an emphasis on comfort. There are, I'm sure, some eyebrow-raising pictures of me in early high school (so, say, 12 or 14 years ago) wearing a brown velour shirt, blue velour pants, a gray tweed LL Bean hat (or my release-day Doom 2 cap from EB, for giant nerd points), and probably vans or something. I aggressively didn't care about how I looked.

I got interested in clothing primarily because of jeans and boots, for reasons I can't really recall. Then I started getting interested in other clothes, largely because of SF and other internet sources. And really, it's from looking at pictures. The visual impression made by clothes is compelling.

I don't have a particular inspiration for how I dress. I'm not concerned with looking stylish or fashionable, though the things that look good to me at any particular time are obviously influenced by current styles. I see things I like or that seem to look good to me, and incorporate some of it and leave some of it to others. For my own self, I avoid dressing in a way that feels fussy or complicated. Not to say I don't like some of it on others, but it doesn't feel like "me".

I do tend to have a bias in favor of things that are "classic" in some hard-to-define way. Things that have been around for a long time relatively unchanged.

Also, I wear a lot of black because I like it and find it to be soothing. As far as I can tell, I'm the only person that really approves, but that's good enough for me.

I don't know yet.

I used to try to dress like a WASPy hipster. I realized that wouldn't work because it's just a bad idea, I'm not a WASP, and I'm hopefully not a hipster. These days I try to dress like a really dandy writer in the woods. It's a little less common and more honest than what I was doing before, even though a lot of pieces overlap.

In practice, that means brogued boots, Jack Purcells, heavy denim and chinos (and occasionally some chambray, linen or blackwatch plaid wool), patterned/checked/striped shirts, casual jackets, and quirky sweaters.

Gone through many phases and made lots of mistakes which I learned from so I don't make them anymore. The clothes I buy are all me and I never settle.

Originally Posted by wmmk

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I used to try to dress like a WASPy hipster. I realized that wouldn't work because it's just a bad idea, I'm not a WASP, and I'm hopefully not a hipster. These days I try to dress like a really dandy writer in the woods. It's a little less common and more honest than what I was doing before, even though a lot of pieces overlap.

In practice, that means brogued boots, Jack Purcells, heavy denim and chinos (and occasionally some chambray, linen or blackwatch plaid wool), patterned/checked/striped shirts, casual jackets, and quirky sweaters.

I like your new look, personally. The haircut helped.