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  • justine
    Senior Member
    • Jan 2007
    • 672

    #16
    Re: Your Style Philosophy

    sobre et sombre...

    Comment

    • mesh
      Senior Member
      • Dec 2006
      • 976

      #17
      Re: Your Style Philosophy



      The key for me is design and proportion, the two guiding elements that define my style. I stick to designers who produce quality and share the same type of mindset as myself, nothing that strays too far from the medium and nothing that follows trends while being original in its own right.Itry to incorporate articles in new ways and with complementary colors when choosing items Iown/deciding to purchase.I neverintentionally imitate any looks I've seen since I like to do my best at being an independant coordinator.




      The end result has to be a good feeling when I'm putting myself together because it's that emotion that dictates how I look. If something is off ie the color or something that isn't optically pleasing in my eye then I'm not content. It was in the past when I would make purchases on a whim without thinking things through and being honest with myself as far as it contributing to my desired aesthetic. There are lots of nice things to look at but when it comes down to it, I'm expanding and limiting my wardrobe at the same time simply by purchasing very meticulously things that are "my style".

      Comment

      • Avantster
        ¤¤¤
        • Sep 2006
        • 1983

        #18
        Re: Your Style Philosophy



        [quote user="matthewhk"]to me, yohji can be pretty damn sexy...it's not a conventional sexy, but something about it being dark, mysterious, and somewhat pure and poetic. like i see someone in yohji i wonder what that person is like, makes you wonder about the personality behind the layers of swimming black fabric. especially on the opposite sex. its probably not how people conventionally view it though, maybe it's just me.
        [/quote]



        Yes, I know exactly what you mean. There is something sensuous in the mystery that Yohji's clothes evoke. Whether it be the hidden body symbolised by the cutting, pleats or tucks, or the fleeting indication of body underneath and the air between it and the clothes when in movement. I think this is what Jean-Michel Jarre was getting at when he described a woman dressed in Yohji as a nymphomaniac nun.

        let us raise a toast to ancient cotton, rotten voile, gloomy silk, slick carf, decayed goat, inflamed ram, sooty nelton, stifling silk, lazy sheep, bone-dry broad & skinny baffalo.

        Comment

        • Chinorlz
          Senior Member
          • Sep 2006
          • 6422

          #19
          Re: Your Style Philosophy

          [quote user="Avantster"]

          [quote user="matthewhk"]to me, yohji can be pretty damn sexy...it's not a conventional sexy, but something about it being dark, mysterious, and somewhat pure and poetic. like i see someone in yohji i wonder what that person is like, makes you wonder about the personality behind the layers of swimming black fabric. especially on the opposite sex. its probably not how people conventionally view it though, maybe it's just me.
          [/quote]



          Yes, I know exactly what you mean. There is something sensuous in the mystery that Yohji's clothes evoke. Whether it be the hidden body symbolised by the cutting, pleats or tucks, or the fleeting indication of body underneath and the air between it and the clothes when in movement. I think this is what Jean-Michel Jarre was getting at when he described a woman dressed in Yohji as a nymphomaniac nun.



          [/quote]





          Very interesting!!



          I see the same in those wearing pieces (or dressing in the vein of) the Continues line.



          There's something effortless yet dramatic about it and that's what draws me to it. Anyone wearing these lines immediately stands out but it's difficult to say just why they do. Karlo was once quoted as saying that the line creates the "jeans and tee" look and feel while remaining something distinctly different. Casual yet sharply elegant at the same time. It's damn comfortable to wear and everyone looks twice and wants to know where you got it.

          www.AlbertHuangMD.com - Digital Portfolio Of Projects & Designs

          Merz (5/22/09):"i'm a firm believer that the ultimate prevailing logic in design is 'does shit look sick as fuck' "

          Comment

          • casem
            Senior Member
            • Sep 2006
            • 2590

            #20
            Re: Your Style Philosophy



            OK, so I'm starting to regret saying "sexy" in my post because it's not really what I meant. And I agree, Yohji can be sexy in the way that others above describe. What I was meant was: I consider age appropriateness in my style. In other words, I realize there are certain things that I can really only pull off while I'm relatively young so I go for it. I may not be able to fit into my 19cm luster jeans in 5 years butI figure I should do it while I can. There are looks and designersthat I'm attracted to but at this point in my life I just don't feel like "me" if I were to dress like that. I figure I can save those for when I'm older and it will be part of the fun.




            I bring this up because when I was first getting into fashion, I was attracted to the quirky dressed up PradaorJil Sanderlook, and I bought some formal button ups and dress pants and tiesthat I never wear. I've found that, for now, I'm much more comfortable in clothes a little edgier and younger like Dior and Cloak.

            music

            Comment

            • Faust
              kitsch killer
              • Sep 2006
              • 37852

              #21
              Re: Your Style Philosophy

              [quote user="casem83"]

              OK, so I'm starting to regret saying "sexy" in my post because it's not really what I meant. And I agree, Yohji can be sexy in the way that others above describe. What I was meant was: I consider age appropriateness in my style. In other words, I realize there are certain things that I can really only pull off while I'm relatively young so I go for it. I may not be able to fit into my 19cm luster jeans in 5 years butI figure I should do it while I can. There are looks and designersthat I'm attracted to but at this point in my life I just don't feel like "me" if I were to dress like that. I figure I can save those for when I'm older and it will be part of the fun.




              I bring this up because when I was first getting into fashion, I was attracted to the quirky dressed up PradaorJil Sanderlook, and I bought some formal button ups and dress pants and tiesthat I never wear. I've found that, for now, I'm much more comfortable in clothes a little edgier and younger like Dior and Cloak.



              [/quote]



              I agree with that. Although sometimes I find myself regressing (leather pants, anyone? they are going back by the way, I'm collecting my pennies for the Ann Dem leather jacket I posted in another thread.)

              Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde

              StyleZeitgeist Magazine

              Comment

              • Johnny
                Senior Member
                • Sep 2006
                • 1923

                #22
                Re: Your Style Philosophy

                Thought I?d bump this, since it?s an interesting thread, and also to add some thoughts. I got thinking about it again after reading through the thread on SF re justifying high prices for ?high end? clothing, which I think some of you were involved in.



                I think I can only provide some random thoughts, not a philosophy as such, since one of those very thoughts is that I frequently change my view on fashion and what it means and should mean to me, and so any notion of a dogma or manifesto sits uneasily.



                1 Clothes should make you look good. Or at least make you think that you look good. I don?t agree with cmf that you should never try, because trying and pushing yourself on a bit in terms of that way that you look is an interesting process, but you shouldn?t try too hard. I?m not sure that the other considerations that are relevant (like the image of the brand, the philosophy of the designer, the exclusivity of the product, or even quality) should really ever override this. In fact, this consideration is what I feel differentiates art and fashion (rather than just the commercial/non-commercial distinction, although that?s still relevant): fashion, essentially, is about vanity: it just has to be, because it?s a form of non-functional adornment of the body. The desire to dress up to attract someone of the sex of your choice is pretty irrepressible (I lifted that from something I read recently, but it struck a chord).



                2 I think you find a natural balance to what you wear, combining a number of the points referred to above, and in other posts here. If you end up obsessing over any one of them at any particular time, you end up looking imbalanced and uncomfortable, and that?s when mistakes happen. I have been thinking a lot recently about buying one of those CCP leather jackets. I have been doing this in the knowledge that (a) I would not look good in it because I?ve never had or liked leather jackets before, they don?t suit me, my wife hates them and I?m too old for one now (the ageing rocker is not a good look) and (b) it?s too much money (in my own personal view). But still the desire to buy it was quite strong because of the whole CCP is great quality thing, CCP is an artisan with pure motives thing etc etc. These things are true, but when they start clouding your gut judgement on whether you actually will look or feel good in a thing, that?s where the imbalance lies.



                3 Another way in which I think that balance is important is to not wear, head to toe, a full ?look?. There should be some break in the total look to allow at least some of the wearer?s personality to be apparent. I think this is probably something to do with being ?stylish?, but I?m never quite sure about that. Certainly I think being stylish requires some degree of confidence, which doesn?t seem obviously there if someone just does a whole ?look? from head to toe: that seems to be just agreeing with what someone else has suggested you wear. There was, I think, a comment made here a while ago about how there seemed to be a disconnect between what the guys in The Library or Atelier wore and the products that they sell. They guys in the Library wear converse trainers and jeans, but might have on a LUC knit and carpe jacket. I don?t know so much about the A guys. In Leclaireur there are some who do the top to toe dark-fashion-lord-look, but I think the ones that look better, less victim-y, are those who will wear some plain pants with Lanvin sneaks and plain shirt. My own ?balance? is usually to wear a well cut shirt and jacket, or a tee shirt and sweater, with some jeans and some bashed up shoes or non-branded sneakers. I?m NOT, suggesting that this is particularly stylish, or that this is the only way to be stylish, or, certainly, that I am stylish as a result; it?s just that it?s how I feel comfortable wearing clothes.



                4 There is an intrinsic appeal and virtue in quality itself. If someone takes care to produce what they produce, in any walk of life, then even if it comes out a bit wrong, or it?s not for you, you may still appreciate it and attribute value to it accordingly.



                5 Fashion should not be too serious. That?s why I like comme des garcons. Sometimes it?s good to look a bit geeky and awkward, and not so polished and dark all the time.



                6 Men look good in tailored clothing, since it can absolutely flatter their natural physique if done properly. It can also lo terrible if done badly, and invariably looks terrible if it?s done preppy. In general American men don?t dress well in formal clothing ? see the British and the Italians for better examples of how to do it.



                7 Tee shirts that cost $200 are probably always overpriced. But my justification for spending a lot of money on particular clothes is that it?s just what you have to pay to get exactly the thing that you want. Menswear, in particular, is all about details. So anyone can get a shirt, or a cotton shirt, or a slim fitting cotton shirt and so on, but what if you want one that has a particular detail on it that appeals to you ? like, say, high arm holes and very, very slightly flared cuffs. It?s probably not ?worth? another $200 to get those details, but if that?s what you want and there?re no alternatives, what are you going to do? The Junya jacket that I got recently is made out of old tracksuits, re-cut and then garment dyed and washed. The result is, from a distance, not entirely dissimilar to any other double breasted jacket. But there aren?t any other double breasted jackets that are made like that, or indeed that look or feel like that up close. Is it ?worth? what I paid for it in terms of quality, materials, construction?.probably not. But when I saw it, it appealed to me, and I knew that I couldn?t get it anywhere else. So to me, that makes it worth it. Clothes are just boring otherwise.



                8 Notwithstanding point 4, I don?t see why men should lust after the equivalent of haute couture for women and assume that there?s an inherent and necessary worth in that type of approach. Maybe it?s an old fashioned (or non-fashionable) notion, but men should look too ?done? and shouldn?t need plissé lining in their suits. I read an interview with Thom Browne in Surface magazine recently where he said the following (paraphrasing here) ? (1) men?s clothes should be grounded in reality; and (2) we?ve just made a suit for men that costs $35,000 made out of pleated silk. Ridiculous no?



                9 Following on from the above:



                a. I agree with Junya Watanabe about keeping it real;



                b. Luxury for luxury?s sake (read cost for cost?s sake) is the single most irritating thing about (men?s) fashion ? nobody needs a $35,000 suit because nobody needs it to be pleated in the first place, which is the thing that gives rise to the ridiculous cost.



                Comment

                • xcoldricex
                  Senior Member
                  • Sep 2006
                  • 1347

                  #23
                  Re: Your Style Philosophy

                  great post johnny :)

                  Comment

                  • Faust
                    kitsch killer
                    • Sep 2006
                    • 37852

                    #24
                    Re: Your Style Philosophy



                    I agree, Johnny - great post. Especially #4 - I am writing an entire MA thesis on it. :-) That's all so why I don't understand how others don't understand my interest in womenswear. I don't understand how can you not be interested. That's why it bugs me sometimes when these (and other) forums go into discussion just about stuff.



                    I also read one designer (don't remember who or when) saying that (s)he would never expect a head-to-toe look of his/hers creations.

                    Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde

                    StyleZeitgeist Magazine

                    Comment

                    • sbw4224
                      Senior Member
                      • Sep 2006
                      • 571

                      #25
                      Re: Your Style Philosophy

                      You have some great thoughts there, Johnny. I appreciate the time you took to write that out. I gotta agree with your thoughts on balance. While it's fairly hard to pinpoint what is the right balance for each individual, I definitely have felt this type of balance/inbalance in some of my own looks. I think that achieving a balanced look is just a learning process in itself, and it can take more or less time for different people to figure out. I don't mind, though, as that's where all the fun is [:)]

                      Comment

                      • Fuuma
                        Senior Member
                        • Sep 2006
                        • 4050

                        #26
                        Re: Your Style Philosophy



                        Very interesting post Johnny, I must say point #4 is really something that recoup my own thoughts on the subject. This is why, like you mentionned in #1, you're often tempted to purchase items that don't fit your style; because you think they're fascinating it and out of themselves. I would say a good way of avoiding that is working at dissociating utilitarian and expressive needs (that are often linked with the realm of consumption) and appreciation/aesthetic considerations. The first set is about design (art with a purpose=in this case clothing you and making you look "good") and the second about a purer or at least more abstract form of art/design; which is why our friend Faust looks at women collection with great satisfaction (we hope that's why.... [:P]).




                        BTW what is your alias on superfuture?


                        Selling CCP, Harnden, Raf, Rick etc.
                        http://www.stylezeitgeist.com/forums...me-other-stuff

                        Comment

                        • Johnny
                          Senior Member
                          • Sep 2006
                          • 1923

                          #27
                          Re: Your Style Philosophy



                          Thanks for the positive feedback guys. Just responding to a couple of points, I agree with you Fuuma about that distinction you make. I think, as is apparent my my post, I tend to fall into the first category more easily and more often, but the"purer" motive is certainly still valid. I have bought things in the past almost becauseI just liked them as objects - certainly it was primarily that and not the "this makes me look good" motive. I do that less now I think, but still do it sometimes, and in a sense don't always regret it evenfrom the past. I still look at certain of my cdg pices and admire them, even although they don't really fit in with how I wear clothes now.




                          Faust, the "whole look" thing is something that I think we've discussed before. I used to think it was OK, but whenever I've done it (literally only once or twice) I've ended up feeling a bit silly. It can look good - again I've seen some guys in head to toe homme plus and thought that they looked pretty good,but it was at a comme show, surrounded by others also wearing that stuff - I think out of that context its more difficult.




                          Re SF I'm mostly a lurker I confess although I have posted occassionally using the name Leviathan, mainly on the 45rpm thread.

                          Comment

                          • Buckwheat
                            Senior Member
                            • Sep 2006
                            • 409

                            #28
                            Re: Your Style Philosophy



                            Thanks for taking the time to writeand share Johnny (and same to all of you here) It's something that I cannot do with my words. I tried once but I gave up half way because I got confused myself of what I was saying/writing...haha




                            I think I fell in the catergory of buying clothes as an objectbut not as clothes before. Admiring it only as a nicely crafted "object". As I move on I found that comfortablity is the more important that just looking good. I can't wear slim cut pants, sit and work as my nuts go numb. Some slim cut shirts and jackets are nice but they limited my mobility. So I lean toward clothes that have a little more volume these days. I think the human body moving within the given volume is as beautiful.




                            and totally agreed about CDG Johnny....that's where I go when I want to add a little fun in my wardrobe.

                            Comment

                            • Ann romance
                              Junior Member
                              • Mar 2007
                              • 13

                              #29
                              Re: Your Style Philosophy



                              personally i feel that style is like a huge vortex and it feeds on the ideas and creativity . there is endless energy that the vortex can take which means there are no limitation to style. There are million types of different styles and looks. some caused by influences from the media., friends , branding . but in the end it comes down to the person who wears it . is he can carry it out well even a simple rag would look good on him. "fashion fades, style is eternal". thisquotation by a french designer from yves saint lauren gives me much to think about. We should not see style as something we can develop but i personally feel it should be already grown in us .fashion comes as goes like the wind but our personal style doesn't...end. I wondered if pple even understand wat i was trying to say.[:(] . guess i ain't much of a speaker. and btw very good comments made previously. props to u guys .




                              http://thinkexist.com/quotation/fash...al/226263.html. worth a look.

                              Comment

                              • Faust
                                kitsch killer
                                • Sep 2006
                                • 37852

                                #30
                                Re: Your Style Philosophy

                                /\ makes sense to me.
                                Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months - Oscar Wilde

                                StyleZeitgeist Magazine

                                Comment

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