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Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Wednesday, April 27, 2005 7:49 PM (Eastern)
Well...I have long thought that clothing is the human equivalent of the fur, feathers, and colored skins of animals.
Since we don't have natural camouflage, or bright peacock feathers to attract mates, our clothing functions as our (social) camouflage and mate-attraction equipment.
An obvious example of the former is color. People living in California wear overall brighter colors...fuchsia, turquoise, intense yellow, jewel tones...to match our native flowers and bright blue sky. The colors get brighter and more intense in Southern California, more muted up North.
People in Hawaii do the same only with more intensity, since their flowers are more colorful than ours.
People on the East Coast tend to favor the muted tones of the trees and soft sky there. In fall, they are resplendent in the colors of fall leaves...red, burgundy, browns of all shades from golden to chocolate. In winter, a touch of bright red (to match the cardinals and holly berries) with somber neutrals and winter white. In spring, soft pastels suit the spring flowers (no gaudy bougainvillea here, but daffodil yellow, hyacinth blue, the pinks of azaleas). Summer sees some bright shades as the sun gets hot, pinned in humid air, and the natives eat loudly-colored popsicles. :)
These are a few U.S. examples of clothing as camouflage. That does not even entail the social status aspect of clothing. We don't have leaders with enormous horns or manes; we have leaders with Rolex watches whose second hands sweep, not "tick."
As far as mate-attracting...don't you check out the guy's shoes when you go on a date? Don't you look at his watch? How do his pants look? If you don't like these things, the mate-attraction part isn't going to work.
So...what do you wear? What do you want to convey with your clothing? How do you find your own style?
Personally...I think the first aspect is money. How much you have and are willing to spend. How much time and money you want to, or can, spend on maintaining your clothes (throw in washer vs. drycleaners).
The second aspect is how comfortable you are attracting attention...an unusual wardrobe makes people look at you, whether in a positive or negative light. A conventional wardrobe won't attract added attention.
So...you have your budget at hand...this can be "starving student" through "money is burning a hole in my pocket," but clothing is seldom worth going into debt over.
Start with your jacket. Look for an expensive jacket, if it means eating peanut butter and bread.
Why? An expensive jacket shows. It's the first thing people see of your outfit, and it can conceal/enhance a (much) cheaper outfit beneath. An expensive jacket should last you years and years and not go out of style. i.e. your jacket should not be fashionable or trendy (unless you're more toward "money burning hole in pocket"): it should be classic.
So, here you may buy the leather jacket or coat of your dreams...or a nice wool one...the color, the quality, the sheer pleasure of the dang thing, should make your toes warm and your face beam.
You may search for a well-made blazer jacket of wool. Don't go cheap here. Try shopping around...Nordstrom Rack has some good stuff...but if you can't find it for $65, you may invest up to $200. i.e. if you're more toward "starving student," you will have to search more before deciding how much to plunk down. But get something good.
Okay! You've got jackets. Now what?
Why, shoes of course. Imo, you do not need tons of shoes. You can do with a few pairs of shoes. But they must be comfortable. They must look good and last well. It's worth the money. Cheap shoes wear out after a year; two is a stretch. Good shoes last years and years.
Again there is the "warming toes," "beaming face" factor. You have to love your shoes.
I am not entirely against cheap shoes mind you, but not as a staple. I wore $5 flea market pumps back in the day. Didn't bother me. But for everyday, do invest.
Now you have jackets and shoes. That's 99% of the work right there.
Now you can wear whatever you want and still look great.
I am in favor of individuality, if only because our society invariably veers away from hand-crafted, and toward mass-produced. (Take software for example.) We are in danger of becoming robots. We need to somehow distinguish ourselves as human beings, not numbers.
So, the small, sentimental, unique item...the necklace, the scarf, the ring, the pin...can transform an outfit. It makes old outfits new and cheap outfits beautiful. Find a nice locket and put a picture of someone special in it. When you travel, buy a small piece of jewelry to remind you of your trip whenever you wear it. Jewelry is always nicer when someone buys it for you...so do buy something for your daughter here and there.
Basics...you can go cheaper on basics. Depends on your budget and lifestyle. I throw everything in the washing machine. I'm long past my hand-wash days. So I love basic cotton tops from the Gap family...Old Navy, The Gap, Banana Republic (the last one is expensive but dang do their clothes last).
J.Crew is a good brand...to my experience, Banana Republic wears somewhat better but J.Crew has some good stuff, as does Lands End.
There is always Target. Target has stuff like sleeveless mocknecks, tank tops, etc. that you can buy in bulk and throw in the washing machine for a few years. Look carefully; if you find something here, you can freshen up your wardrobe for a good price.
Marshalls can be good. You can go there to find a completely individual item, such as a pink sweater with a print of what looks like French ladies sitting at small tables and drinking tea on it. :)
We have Ross Dress for Less but it's not as good as Marshalls.
Jeans! Eh. Here I think you have to pay more, unless Gap/Old Navy jeans fit your butt (they don't mine). Levi's are not what they used to be. Imo it's worth it to spend $50 and get something you won't have to replace after a couple of years.
Men's clothes...men's shirts and sweaters can be nice. The quality tends to be better and the price lower...so don't neglect looking in men's stores or departments.
Flea markets...you are so lucky if you have access to good ones. "Vintage" in California is morbidly overpriced (as are "antiques") but East Coasties should check these out.
Finally...remember...comfort, comfort, comfort. You have to feel comfortable in your "camouflage." If it's sexy, you have to feel comfortable being sexy. If it's young, make sure it is as young as you feel. If it's cheap, by all means act as if it's expensive. If it's expensive, then make sure you wear the clothes and not the other way around.
And...have fun!
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