Fashion debate: Do Americans have any sense of fashion?
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the_underground
Members Posts: 1,561 ✭✭
Okay, I love fashion. To me, if a person is fashionable and cares about their appearance, it shows that they have self-worth, originality, and a great deal of imagination.
Whenever I see Europeans, Latins, Asians and Africans dress up, i.e. people from different parts of the world, I'm always impressed/inspired by their wardrobe choices. They seem to mix and match and pull off amazing outfits.
The same thing doesn't happen when I see a plethora of Americans dressed. There are some people who are creative in how they dress, who care about how they look and have fashion sense, but the rest of the populations' wardrobe only consists of jeans and a plain t-shirt.
This might irk some people, but it's quite an interesting topic.
Why do many Americans have an issue with being daring, more fashionable, an being original in the way that they dress?
Discuss.
Whenever I see Europeans, Latins, Asians and Africans dress up, i.e. people from different parts of the world, I'm always impressed/inspired by their wardrobe choices. They seem to mix and match and pull off amazing outfits.
The same thing doesn't happen when I see a plethora of Americans dressed. There are some people who are creative in how they dress, who care about how they look and have fashion sense, but the rest of the populations' wardrobe only consists of jeans and a plain t-shirt.
This might irk some people, but it's quite an interesting topic.
Why do many Americans have an issue with being daring, more fashionable, an being original in the way that they dress?
Discuss.
Comments
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a "sense of fashion" is purely opinion driven. What is fashionable to one person looks like a blind hobo dressed you to another.
That said, for a man, nothing is above a good conservative suit, shirt, and tie. No matter where you go in the world, this is always fashionable. -
konceptjones wrote: »a "sense of fashion" is purely opinion driven. What is fashionable to one person looks like a blind hobo dressed you to another.
That said, for a man, nothing is above a good conservative suit, shirt, and tie. No matter where you go in the world, this is always fashionable.
I disagree. A suit and a tie meet the bare minimum for being fashionable and stylish. Anyone can wear that. Fashion is about standing out, taking classic pieces and doing something creative with them. A conservative outfit is just that--conservative. Outside of the workplace, the typical American attire is a t-shirt and jeans, and the way in which that is handled is lazy. It has no style, no originality to it--to put it bluntly, it's incredibly boring. Fashion is a way of self expression. The fact that Americans are so bland in their clothing and don't take time to have fun with it, regardless of what they're wearing, says something about the lack of imagination. -
Not at all.they hop on the wave that they see everybody else on
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Between the three of you on the show you’ve visited lot of different cities – where have you found to be the most stylish?
HH: For the programme I’ve only been to New York, and I think London is my favourite city – New York style is London style six months ago. Like a year ago all you saw in New York was Pete Doherty clones. But obviously there’s a massive difference between Upper town and Lower town, Upper town has that sort of preppy style. But I think London is the best.
GC: I went to New York for the first time last year with my friend called Gemma who I met on the first series – she’s a designer called Gemma Slack – and we went out there to stay with a friend and people were staring at us in the street like ‘woah, far out’, and I was like, ‘oh my ? , I thought this was how it was supposed to be!’ like so on the edge, but it definitely made me realise that London, like Henry said, is more crazy and colourful.
http://www.myfashionlife.com/archives/2010/05/11/round-the-table-with-henry-holland-and-gemma-cairney/
Just thought I'd throw that quote in. Not the first time I've heard people say American fashion is a bit too conservative or generally late -
Many Americans may also have more important matters to focus on than fashion.
Just throwing that out there. -
konceptjones wrote: »Many Americans may also have more important matters to focus on than fashion.
Just throwing that out there.
lol Still, I think that's an excuse people use just to be boring sometimes. I care about the economy and politics but I still consider fashion important in how I express myself and what sets me apart. Other countries have serious matters going on moreso than America, but people there make an effort to put alittle flair into how they present themselves. -
konceptjones wrote: »Many Americans may also have more important matters to focus on than fashion.
Just throwing that out there.
Well I'm pretty sure that there are just as many Americans that are as fashion conscious as other people in other countries, most likely even more so.
New York designers tend to be led more by the retailers anyway hence the more cautious and 'playing it safe' route. Freaks disguised as designers in other countries usually don't give a ? and go a bit mental with the clothes hence the more experimentation. That's one theory anyway. Go London and people don't seem to give a ? and will try anything. In Milan everyone's dressed slick -
the_underground wrote: »lol Still, I think that's an excuse people use just to be boring sometimes. I care about the economy and politics but I still consider fashion important in how I express myself and what sets me apart. Other countries have serious matters going on moreso than America, but people there make an effort to put alittle flair into how they present themselves.
The bolded part could be debated.
Take me as an example. I'm what you would consider "upper middle class" and have income that could allow me to dress "fashionably". Yet I see "being fashionable" as nothing more than a cry for attention from individuals who have a need to feel "different" (I won't go into the European's historical use of fashion as a means of subjugating culture in regions outside of Europe... That's a massive thread all on its own).
In my life, my family... The well being of my wife and kids... is my top focus. I dress well enough for my chosen career, but put no more emphasis on it than that. It's not about being boring, per se, it's that it's not important to me.
Ideas are important to me, experiences are important... Fashion simply is not. -
imo no they dont...i mean ofcourse i dont know ever one in america and ive seen some with a wonderful fashion sense, but the majority dont.
and sometimes their idea of whats hot is mind boggling.
also they stay behind, ? are still calling skinny jeans ? ...yea wayy behind. -
Being fashionable is not as easy as it seems. You gotta have a certain type of genre about yourself to wear over the top stylish clothes.
I think most people would rather blend in w/ basic clothing or whatever the hot celebrity trend is at the time.
It's easier to replicate than going outside the box and looking like a monstrosity in other peoples eye. It's basically up to the individual to decide what is trendy vs stylish/unique. -
imo no they dont...i mean ofcourse i dont know ever one in america and ive seen some with a wonderful fashion sense, but the majority dont.
and sometimes their idea of whats hot is mind boggling.
also they stay behind, ? are still calling skinny jeans ? ...yea wayy behind.
Skinny jeans are ? to me. I do not find that attractive on a man. Nor is the sagging jeans. -
imo no they dont...i mean ofcourse i dont know ever one in america and ive seen some with a wonderful fashion sense, but the majority dont.
and sometimes their idea of whats hot is mind boggling.
also they stay behind, ? are still calling skinny jeans ? ...yea wayy behind.
'cause they are.
My generation calls 'em that (GenX), hell even some gen y'ers do too. -
trust and believe in under 3 years, the same ? calling it ? , will be the ones wearing them.
seriously.
and being a fashionista isnt about dressing OTT
its just the way you pair certain items.
no not matching certain colours, its just being unique with it.
when i went to houston the style was terrible.
ill stay my ass in london lol. -
Being fashionable is not as easy as it seems. You gotta have a certain type of genre about yourself to wear over the top stylish clothes.
I think most people would rather blend in w/ basic clothing or whatever the hot celebrity trend is at the time.
It's easier to replicate than going outside the box and looking like a monstrosity in other peoples eye. It's basically up to the individual to decide what is trendy vs stylish/unique.
Well, when I was saying fashion, I didn't mean that you had to be over the top. The bolded is a good point. -
trust and believe in under 3 years, the same ? calling it ? , will be the ones wearing them.
seriously.
and being a fashionista isnt about dressing OTT
its just the way you pair certain items.
no not matching certain colours, its just being unique with it.
when i went to houston the style was terrible.
ill stay my ass in london lol.
Not happening in the US! -
trust and believe in under 3 years, the same ? calling it ? , will be the ones wearing them.
seriously.
and being a fashionista isnt about dressing OTT
its just the way you pair certain items.
no not matching certain colours, its just being unique with it.
when i went to houston the style was terrible.
ill stay my ass in london lol.
unless they're ? , grown-ass men won't be wearing them.
^^^ This ? will never NOT be ? ... -
konceptjones wrote: »The bolded part could be debated.
Take me as an example. I'm what you would consider "upper middle class" and have income that could allow me to dress "fashionably". Yet I see "being fashionable" as nothing more than a cry for attention from individuals who have a need to feel "different" (I won't go into the European's historical use of fashion as a means of subjugating culture in regions outside of Europe... That's a massive thread all on its own).
In my life, my family... The well being of my wife and kids... is my top focus. I dress well enough for my chosen career, but put no more emphasis on it than that. It's not about being boring, per se, it's that it's not important to me.
Ideas are important to me, experiences are important... Fashion simply is not.
If you're talking about the history of colonization on people of color, I think that's an understandable point. However, I never thought of fashion as something that was a cry for attention. It's an art form, a way to have fun with my clothes: I'm the artist, clothing is just my canvas. Also, one doesn't need to be middle class to be fashionable or anything. I shop at the Salvation army and discount stores and still come out looking good.
I refer to other countries to base this off of because I've seen countries that were more deprived and had more economic and political issues to worry about, like in Africa, but they still made a point of looking nice. There are some people who just roll out of bed, tie their hair up messy, go out in house shoes, and pajamas, especially young people, and thought that this was stylish. I went to Botswana and South Africa, where women actually took care of themselves, were stylish and made themselves look attractive. I'd never see anyone leave the house without looking decent or stylish.
To me, dressing plain is boring, and again, it's because I see fashion as an art form. If you value ideas and experiences over being stylish, I understand and respect that. I don't think that it has to be black and white, where you care about one over the other. -
^^those are cleary not skinny jeans, they look ? painted on.
this is what im talking bout.
this would be considered stylish:
but i know most american dudes wouldnt wear things such as that, while its the norm here.
dont even get me started on man bag either. -
dont even get me started on man bag either.
murses are the epitome of ? as far as fashion trends go.
^^^ In that last pic, Kanye at least attempted to make his look a bit more like a duffel bag/overnight bag, but Pharrell's ? looks wild ? .
A man needs his id, credit/debit cards, and cash. All of which fit into a wallet neatly. The cell phone goes in a pocket on in a lil holster on your belt.
If a man feesl the need to carry around hair care products, brush, comb, tweezers for annoying nose hairs, deodorant, a can of Axe, a mirror, and 932648741 quarters nickels, dimes, and pennies AND need it compartmentalized to boot, he's soooper ? .
again... masculine men of the US just don't do that ? . -
konceptjones wrote: »murses are the epitome of ? as far as fashion trends go.
^^^ In that last pic, Kanye at least attempted to make his look a bit more like a duffel bag/overnight bag, but Pharrell's ? looks wild ? .
A man needs his id, credit/debit cards, and cash. All of which fit into a wallet neatly. The cell phone goes in a pocket on in a lil holster on your belt.
If a man feesl the need to carry around hair care products, brush, comb, tweezers for annoying nose hairs, deodorant, a can of Axe, a mirror, and 932648741 quarters nickels, dimes, and pennies AND need it compartmentalized to boot, he's soooper ? .
again... masculine men of the US just don't do that ? .
The only dude that is ? is prolly the dude in the first picture. I can tell by his body language.
The rest of them, I don't think so. -
the_underground wrote: »The only dude that is ? is prolly the dude in the first picture. I can tell by his body language.
The rest of them, I don't think so.
I'm pretty sure the second one is.
The jury's still out on Pharell and Kanye though. -
No more than the ? pack wearing Europeans and canadians I come in contact with, the exceptions being the UK, France, and Italy
As far as the fashionable skinny Jean look, unless you live under a rock or in the middle of no where, men in the US have been rocking that style for a while now
Fashion is more global now, once it hits fashion week, there are a million copies made within weeks -
Fashion is ever evolving and america is now noticing that we must now pay more attention to what we are wearing.
true having fashion is purely an opinion but to be fashionable is a lifestyle.
In America we have a lot of vast styles for fashion in nyc we have more of a concise/tailored/muted colors/tribal/european chic look and for la we have more of the hobochic/americana/70's glam chic inspired looks.
truthfully, america is about 2seasons behind europe for fashion. However, with the trending forecasting company i work for the americana inspired looks are coming back for 2011 spring
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I take Kanye,Wale,Lupe,and Pharrel style over the style of most of these so called Newark negros anyday:
The 2nd pic is no where near my style at all.... -
Meh. Americans ride the wave of whatevers hot, and once they get older, they stay there. Word to all the 30 year olds rockin the tall tees and matching fitteds.
I agree with the T/S, most white folk I see would wear some open toed flip-flops (now THATS ? ) with cargo pants and a some T-shirt the prolly got from watching a pie-eating contest. Most people really don't care or they'll just dickride trends.(? Africans were wearing Polo before ghetto ? thought it was cool) As someone who lives outside of Hollywood/NYC nobody checks for most brands or styles. Except for the people with the "hipster label".
Word to the media though. At least it encourages people to get their game up. When the Pretty Girls video dropped I just had to get some new sneakers. Wale had me jealous like a ? .
As far as Skinny Jeans go, I heavily co-sign Moreno.
As for my thoughts on the subject.
http://community.allhiphop.com/showthread.php?47766-The-Skinny-Jeans-Movement-Must-STOP!!!!-When-Will-Ni99as-Put-an-End-To-This-? &p=901189#post901189
