Most "fashion advice" is catered to either rich people looking to waste money, or midwesterners white collar workers trying to fit in at the office.
But if you go out in public, no one dresses like that. They're wearing a lot of canvas, denim and plaid, lots of face piercings and tattoos, hoodies and beanies. On the fancier end, you'll see oversized flannel jackers and dad sneakers. On older people it's a lot of carhartt and Patagonia.
Out in the suburbs younger people wear athleisure, and older people wear cargo shorts and t shirts.
But when you look at style guides it's like "your guide to chinos and blazers" but only the most obnoxious finance and tech bros wear that shit.
Where do you find style guides for normal people?
Normal people don't read style guides
Browse more Instagram and TikTok if you can handle it lol
If you can, walk around the closest metropolitan city and observe people's outfits
Go to places where people will try to dress nicer for. Bars, clubs, skate parks, art shows/events, street festivals, concerts, thrift stores, etc.
I think normal people copy trends they see the people around them doing or what they see in media.
I don't think most normal people read about fashion. That's something fashion nerds do. So a fashion style guide for normal people is akin to Star Trek fan magazine for normal people.
All that stated, I recommend just wearing green fatigues and a cap with a red star every day.
Chinos are just regular fuckin pants made from cotton that aren’t denim and are more breathable and comfortable. Nothing wrong with denim, but I would way rather wear a lighter cotton fabric on my legs most of the time unless I’m doing rugged outdoor work. Never understood why denim is so popular for casual dress. But yeah, anybody wearing a blazer when they don’t have to is probably an asshole.
Same. I switched to Duluth Trading's stretchy cotton work pants and never looked back. Crotch gussets, stain and liquid restistance, and slightly stretchy material changed my life. They're $$ but I also bought my last pair five years ago, used them for landscaping, and they're still in great shape.
Admittedly though I'm "eccentric" and have my own "cybergrunge" thing going.
Your question is too open ended for any response aside from "Thrift Store" and "Wear whatever you want", in that order.
But if you go out in public, no one dresses like that. They're wearing a lot of canvas, denim and plaid, lots of face piercings and tattoos, hoodies and beanies. On the fancier end, you'll see oversized flannel jackers and dad sneakers. On older people it's a lot of carhartt and Patagonia.
What kind of look are you going for? Most of this is just... clothes. Fashion is when you're wearing clothes on purpose to create a specific look or fit in to a specific subculture. Like who do you want to look like?
Also, re: rich people; Fashion is a hobby and costs. If you don't have lots of money to throw around it involves a lot of time haunting thrift and consignment shops, learning how to find stuff you want on re-selling and exchange websites, and learning the brands that cater to your specific look so you can find where you can pick up pieces within your price range. That said - UNIQLO is always a solid place to start.
Edit: Apparently men's fashion right now actually is just "What Frank wears for his landscaping job, but spend a lot of money on it and somehow end up looking like it's 1994, you're white, you live in the burbs, and your mom picked this outfit".
Personally I'd sit this summer out and just go with some classic staples. This year's fashions are both boring and ugly, which is unforgivable.
Frank's evergreen fashion advice
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Levi's 501s. Make sure they fit
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The M-65 is always in style
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It's always worth taking your suit/blazer/jacket in to a tailors and paying for the alterations
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If someone is wearing flip flops you don't know their name and you've never seen them before
Fliflops are literally the most practical super hot weather leisure footwear. It’s the closest you can get to barefoot without worrying about stepping on broken glass. You’re not going to impress anyone wearing them but I’ve always thought they look fine with breezy summer clothes. Plus you can get them for like 5 bucks.
I'm sorry who are you? Did we go to school together or something? I'm afraid I don't recognize you.
Seriously though there is no godly reason to ever wear open-toed or anything that isn't secure on your feet. If you can't run flat out in it you shouldn't own it. "But Frank, that's paranoid and insane! Only someone who has spent their life getting shot at, running from cops, showing up first at accidents, walking for miles when your vehicle is disabled, avoiding bears, taking shortcuts, and fighting fascists would think like that!"
Lol. Brb, changing into my brogues. It’s 95 out and they are leather but at least they got those little pinholes in them for airflow.
Get some canvas shoes like chuck taylors.
Also throw out all your cotton socks. Wool is better in every way. they cost more but they also last vastly longer and the performance of light-weight wool socks in hot weather is dramatically better.
Okay, so, confession; My choice of shoes may be influenced by numerous traumatic events that most people probably have not experienced.
Oh I have some canvas shoes, which I will wear in hot weather (without socks) if there’s any chance of activity more intense than a casual stroll. But if I’m walking around the garden or to/from the beach, I’m wearing flip flops.
I otherwise fully respect your fashion advice. Wool is the superior fiber in almost every context, and is much of my wardrobe. My personal approach has been to buy used things of high quality that are frequently conservative/classic enough stylewise that I don’t foresee ever needing to replace them. I haven’t bought clothes in years. But I’m also probably a little older than most folks here so not sure I would suggest that as general advice.
Seriously though there is no godly reason to ever wear open-toed or anything that isn't secure on your feet.
My autism sure likes them. I only wear flip flops and combat boots.
I've seen many, many fashion heads refer people to UNIQLO for inexpensive essentials. I've honestly not spent much time their myself. They don't make anything in my size : (
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Style guides are made for people who want to dress "well" but don't know how, and typically men. For that specific case, the /r/MFA chinos, OCBD, and Clark's Desert Boots uniform is often the shortest path to accomplishing that.
What you want is lookbooks and inspiration albums. I've heard pinterest is very good for this but haven't used it myself. Google "[style] inspo" and see what comes up. Find a notable figure with a style you like and note what they do. Follow Instagram accounts. People watch in places with people you want to match the vibe of.
My problem isn't with needing a style guide, it's that I have no idea where people buy clothes. Where I live there is a Walmart, and the next town over has a Target. That's it. And all of those clothes suck
uniqlo/br/gap/jcrew online sales are a good way to stock up on the basics.
picture this: it's 2014 and you're normal
https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/what-is-normcore/
https://www.thecut.com/2014/02/normcore-fashion-trend.html
https://www.herstylecode.com/fashion/normcore-fashion-style-guide/
https://anthology.rhizome.org/youth-mode-a-report-on-freedom
If you want a fit that is tried and tested, simple, hard to go wrong - thrift a pair of Levi's that aren't skinny, but also aren't baggy. Sort of boxy. The denim must not be stretch denim.
Then get a black or white t shirt. Possibly graphic. Nothing recognisably branded. None of this Vans shite, or whatever. Go to a thrift store and find a t shirt that fits you nicely. Dont buy one that's merch for some boring dad-ass rock band, or The Rolling Stones or whatever.
Shoes are pretty easy. Find the right line between sneaker and smart. I recommend looking at the stock of Clarks. Or Adidas sambas, these days. Please, for the love of god don't buy Vans. They instantly mark you out as a dorky millennial. Doc Martens are just about fine, but honestly, with the wrong fit you'll look like a theatre kid. If you want boots, ideally look elsewhere. Docs don't have the quality that they used to.
I recommend a nice dark brown belt with it. If you've got an athletically shaped body I think tucking your shirt in is generally good and accommodates that. Even if you aren't, test the tuck out. Wearing a baggy t shirt over jeans makes you look like you have a weird long torso.
There you go. Simple. I just sorted your fashion life out. Experiment from there. The main thing is stick away from mainstream brands. They're all overproduced crap and look tacky. Their appeal is not quality fit or anything, it's brand recognition so consumers feel part of something.
I would reccomend against branded Docs. From what I'm told they changed manufacturing practices 10-15 years ago and the quality went to shit. So either try to find older ones or look up who makes a quality similar shoe.I would point out, though - theatre kids fuck, and they get real weird with it. If you want to have an interesting life you should try to find weird people to be friends with and theater kids are as weird as they get.
Solovair makes the original docs. They're the original company. Wood splint in them and all. There's other choices for good boots though - Redbacks, redwings, bluntstones, etc etc. Just gotta buy industrial wear.
Yeah, theatre kids do fuck, but if you're not one of them you don't wanna be involved. I did a theatre related degree at university. I'm a very strange person, and I would not say they're not the right type of strange. I really cannot stand to be around them. These mfers know Hamilton off by heart.
Just go to a skate park, most modern street fashion today originates from skate culture.
techbros absolutely do not wear blazers lol, infact theyd probably ostracize you for doing so. also wtf is "normal"
