Where to start...

[lowrey]

thats because you wrote a part of it, he f'd up the quotes

[Faust]

Yes, I do! You sound like my lost long twin, haha - MA thesis on fashion, daughter, old Dirk, even the uniform (all my jeans are black though). Welcome!

I am of two minds about keeping stuff. Yes, some pieces I will probably never sell, but others I have because I hope they look better on someone's back than in my closet.

[Faust]

bump for new members

[Lucky Strike]

Oh, I meant more that don't be caught up in other people's ideas of what is essential.

ahh then I totally agree with you :)

[DudleyGray]

Oh, I meant more that don't be caught up in other people's ideas of what is essential. Like maybe here, slim black denim is essential, but I say if it doesn't speak to you, don't get a pair just because it's "essential." Don't be afraid to be the guy who wears that one pair of harem pants just a little too frequently until he's able to expand his wardrobe. I agree with everything else you say though, just make sure that those jackets and shoes you spend your money on are honestly you, you know?

[Lucky Strike]

I personally buy whatever I really love with no regard to 'essentials.'.

This works great if money is no object, and if your wallet is big then advise is fairly pointless. Just buy enough shit and you are bound to have some stuff that will fit together. I understand what you mean, and this is exactly how I went about when I started building a wardrobe. I wished I'd done things differently though.

If you are on a tighter budget my advise would be to spend money on jackets and shoes. Those two are the pieces that will make the biggest difference on your outfit. Buy some cheaper basics and start from there. Then gradually expand. Don't buy things on sale because they are on sale, etc etc.

[DudleyGray]

I personally buy whatever I really love with no regard to 'essentials.' Even when I was building my work wardrobe of menswear, I never bought Park Avenues. Instead, I opted for less versatile shoes that filled different niches. And I'm glad I did it that way, because I would never wear captoe balmorels now, I'd rather just have gone through an awkward phase where I wore a 'gimmick' a little too frequently for a short while than to own a boring pair of shoes because I felt I 'had to.'

The more pieces you buy, the less frequently you'll be able to wear a given piece that you love if you love/wear them all equally. So maybe it's good to have a little junk in your wardrobe for perspective, favorites are fun to have.

If you live in a place of 4 seasons, shoes can be with you year round depending on the style, jackets/pants/shorts maybe half to 3/4 of a year, coats 1/4 of the year. I don't think you need more than 1 coat, I only have two.

It's hard to know when you have enough until you have too much and you start to feel cluttered. But enough is never enough, so there's no winning.

[pilgrim]

propercloth.com

MTM shirting. Great work. I used body measurements and measurements from a band of outsiders shirt to get the right fit.

Options include shoulder slope to 1/4" variants. For those that wear button up shirts this is a good value. First shirt alterations/remake is free.

[j100000]

I dont have a lot of money so I believe that you should have versatile key items. I totally agree with what 550BC has said, althouh I prefer to spend my money on shoes and jackets!

[550BC]

It is only in the last year or two that I have started taking a real interest in fashion and clothing design. And as I have gotten more interested in the subject, there have been some basic questions that I keep coming back to:

I am interested in hearing suggestions about where to start when building a wardrobe?

What are the vital elements that you need to start out with?

Are there certain clothes that you keep from season to season? Are there others that you find yourself constantly replacing?

How much does a personal philosophy or cohesive look determine what clothes you are interested in? How much does your choice in clothes depend on the individual item? (I know these last two questions, sorta overlap with the "personal philosophy" thread)

Okay, long story short.

From my own experience, I wanted key items that would work with everything from season to season without replacing them or getting sick of it. From a basic tee,to some good pants etc. and slowly building up an wardrobe that will make a nice silhouette with every or most of the items you have, step by step getting more signature pieces with more details etc.

good basics are a vital element imo. nothing too ''extreme'' yet at start.

A lot! but some disagree of course, I find this an important factor because philosophy,aesthetics is where it starts it's the skeleton and the clothing's are the flesh,skin which expresses your philosophy in your externality.

[Faust]

bump for new thoughts

[juansolorzano]

I have to agree with Faust, styling its essential and i think its gained when you know what you actually need and works with your wardrobe and aesthetic not what you have and what always gets missed when your self styling.

[AppendixG]

It's not just the pieces you fall in love though. It took me quite a while to realize that styling is very important. I was ending up with 20 great jackets and one decent tshirt or a pair of pants to match them all with.

This is pretty much my life, right now. It's hard to get past my love for outerwear and shoes and somewhat disheartening to open my closet in the summer to see 4 coats that are too hot to wear and ending up pulling out the same (or similar) tshirts over and over.

Since I just started putting my closet together, maybe I can offer a current perspective, definitely not unique but hopefully helpful.

If I had it to do all over again, I'd make a vague list of where I wanted to be in 6 months. Things like, "I want to have 4-5 different looks for work and 6-7 different looks for outside of work." Then I'd expand on and define each different look until I had a sort of grocery list of things needed to satisfy them.

For me, it's just really boring buying a tshirt. I don't spend hours looking at or lusting after any specific tshirt, really, so I don't grow attached to them. When I save and buy a big piece -- a jacket, a nice pair of boots -- I feel like I've made a much more substantial step towards a solid wardrobe, but I'm beginning to realize that this is a probably a false perception.

Sometimes you have to take long strides and buy something epic but I think that a lot of times it's more important to take a couple short steps instead.

[Faust]

It's not just the pieces you fall in love though. It took me quite a while to realize that styling is very important. I was ending up with 20 great jackets and one decent tshirt or a pair of pants to match them all with.

[juansolorzano]

Where to start.... I think it all begins in what kind of culture you been raised in. I have to say i lived in North America, South and Central America and i experimented different types of fashions and also i have been able to redefined my personal taste with time. I love to savour every moment when i find a piece that just suits who i am, its not about trends, its not about longevity, or the price, clothes can always be replaced. I think its about who you are and what you truly love. Clothes are like your second skin, only difference is its just material things that can be easily replaced, but i find once you find the right fit for you and the right tone for yourself you can always find a piece that will define who you are. My father has always said to me, "its not where you shop, its what you buy" (old italian sayings) so what i mean is you can define your personal style with according to the music you listen to, life experiences, traveling experiences, art and of course your family can be a cause of your personal style.