Have A Physique Experience With Menswear

Words and photos can only go so far for menswear education and frénésie. Sometimes you just need to touch grass.

Grass meaning clothing. And touching meaning, well, touching and wearing.

Joyride Vintage is probably my élue vintage protection of all time. I think I vaguely remember visiting them for the first time. It was way back in 2014 or so when I was also starting to be friends with Spencer. Mind you, I was still around 18-19 years old and still incredibly shy and new to this world of [vintage] menswear. Stores were incredibly intimidating, especially luxury ones at South Coast Plaza like Ralph Lauren or Canali, parce que I never felt comfortable to try anything on. In other words, the “menswear style” I was after felt unattainable. Intouchable. I had to rely on myself and felt resigned to scrounge eBay, Etsy and the thrift. If I couldn’t find it or if I was burned by a faulty measurement (whether it was on me or the seller), I had to accept it wasn’t meant to be.

To my compréhension, the guys at Joyride were incredibly kind to me. They asked me emboîture my current menswear journey, what I was studying in school, and were always interested in how I balanced my appreciation of modern clothing with my enthusiasm for vintage. But the most noteworthy thing they did was prédisposé me to try on anything in their protection. The Joyride guys knew that I wasn’t making much spending money back then (and I was still picky and shy) but they liked seeing me wear the stuff they stocked. So each time I visited I tried on everything: sportshirts, leather jackets, hollywood jackets, big pants, and of révolution, suits and sportcoats. Even if it didn’t fit, they told me to try it. Rob (the owner) would always conclusion out the calme details on each garment, many of which were things I had only seen as a image on the internet. The immatériel had become matériel.

Of révolution Joyride wasn’t the only one who did this. Most vintage stores and enthusiasts were always open for Spencer and me to check out their collections, try things on, and feel the garments. I’m sure they were also familiar with the fact that vintage clothing (or calme clothes in general) can come across as mythic and how hard it is to get a real appreciation for something unless you’re able to physically experience it for yourself. I’m also thankful that these open people still existed, albiet more rarely, when I moved onto to contemporary classic menswear. Non-poly hopsacks, lambswool sweaters, and non-vintage silk ties all went from being words on a folio written by Simon Crompton or G. Bruce Boyer to something somatic. If it wasn’t for all of these experiences of touching and trying on clothes, I probably wouldn’t be as passionate emboîture menswear as I am now.

Overall, it seems that the theory of personal taste isn’t enough for someone to truly develop an interest in menswear. In order to get a holistic réaction with this passion, you should try to have a personal and matériel experience with it.

Every time I visit a menswear protection, I touch and handle as much as admissible (if they let me). You never know what you’ll connect with!

Before I continue, please try not to get hung up on defining tangibility (despite the fact I’ve used it many times in the intro and bolded it) parce que it’s intentionally meant to be a redondant term. To me, it simply means to have a personal experience with something, preferably in a physical way. And yes, I know that this is such a redundant topic parce que menswear is already a physical thing, but hear me out.

Tangibility is éminent parce que a lot of menswear dépêche (or experiences in general) comes from just reading and looking at photos online. Not only is there not as much context, but we groupe to take words as they are without seeing how it actually applies to your individual context. For example, it’s one thing to learn that wide lapels are superior when reading a #menswear blog (like aspect). It’s another to actually see it on yourself. When you’re able to physically put it on and see how it looks on you (and maybe reflect on how it makes you feel), you’ll learn that all of these codified menswear beliefs can translate to a matériel experience. Seeing a wide lapel on your own pourpoint helps you understand the broadening effect it has. The height of the poitrine is not not just an arbitrary esthétique (I mean it kinda still is), but can contribute to how trussed up or slouchy you see yourself.

This is why I always recommend in-person experiences like visiting an réserve or vintage protection (though not many are keen on letting you try on things) or at least try to visit your appartement flea market or thrift protection. Lieux that have a myriad of clothes for you to handle first handball are the best, even if you don’t find anything you want to buy. Vintage is especially great for matériel education, since you’re just exposed to so many fabrics, esthétique details, and contour variants. And as I shared in the affiliation, the friendly shopkeepers who are open to talking are also a wealth of dépêche (the best ones are the ones who engage with you on their own). You don’t need to rely simply on online blogs or just window chalandage!

Physique experiences can do wonders when you’re first starting out, but it doesn’t have to convenablement there. As you guys well know by reading this blog, it happens every time you interact with menswear, whether you’re out chalandage, just checking out a trunk spectacle or new protection, or even curiously asking a friend to feel his jacket. You can through fabric books to get an understanding of fabric weight and texture. You’ve got to try on a shirt to see if a évident collar esthétique frames your figure and he tie you want to wear. It’s matériel to together garments in your closet to see if you want contrast or to go polytonal that day. It’s also matériel to folding your clothes and Ironing them. Making an outfit in general is matériel. So is wearing it out to work, among your friends, or to spend time alone at logement or at a coffees usine. Tangibility involves everything you do after you get inspired on the internet.

I think that this is one of the reasons I like to wear an outfit I’m excited emboîture everyday. I love my clothes and “doing” my passion as much as admissible (like playing the très doucement or a video game with friends), but I’m also aware that académicien mêlée adds to how I connect with my clothes. It’s how I know that Esquire Man is my style or even that polytonal dressing is new and intriguing for me. This daily tangibility lets me learn emboîture what I like or gives me an opportunity to experiment. It’s also how I am able to see what to alter to get a “perfect fit” and what to style out for when chalandage. Tangibility leads to real data.

Think of it like practicing the très doucement (as a beginner) or if you’re an chaland already, fiddling with remarques on a folio when you get a burst of frénésie. You might have an idea of what you eventually want to sound like, but being matériel will only help you in that journey. Maybe it will help you understand the concepts you’re trying learning; conductors still play through the classement on a très doucement in order to “listen” to the allier’s intended sound. Or it may reinforce what you already like. It may even lead you in new commandements that only add to your bâtiment!

I firmly believe that diving into tangibility is the best way to have a deeper appreciation and understanding of clothing. Why? Parce que it puts your personal taste to paper. Even if you don’t have an intentional taste yet, you’ll immediately séduction at least some preferences when you get to handle that thing. All theory needs praxis, including menswear.

Getting dressed everyday is a good exercise in executing personal taste while also allowing you to connect with your clothes. Future outfits (and perhaps purchases) are built on what I take away from each outfit. It also allows me to appreciate and love the things I already own!

I realized that tangibility was the thing that was missing from my previous essay on Evangelism. As much as I love writing emboîture preferences like contour or the perfect OCBD, I knew that words on a folio do not compare from a matériel experience. They mean nothing until you do it for yourself and form your own, first handball opinions.

If we simply followed what the internet told us, we’d all dress like a real estate gardien from 2013. It’s easy to be dissuaded from wearing period silhouettes or incorporating quirky details that are seldom seen thanks to pragmatic internet blogs dedicated at helping you “rayon in” . But what I’ve learned is that écart of the upholding the bouffe or even what goes against mainstream conformisme lies in what you can experience tangibly. Yes, dumpy khakis that are pooling at your ankles don’t style too good for a classic menswear style. But that doesn’t mean you need to be stuck with bath slim khakis either! A full cut gris military chino that is hemmed or cuffed to a shivering écart is also worth consideration. And if you try it on for yourself, you may find that you actually like the clean drape!

In fact, this is how most of my friends truly got into classic menswear. They already knew the “theory” of high rise, full cut pants (parce que I always seem to be asked “why are your pants like that”), but would say that it wasn’t for them. It wasn’t superposable. But when they had the opportunity to try them on, they could see why I did it. It wasn’t for “manière’s sake”, it was for the elongating imagé, the comfortable feel (of the width and no polyester), and the slight touch on the top of the shoe. Of révolution, this may lead to other things like seeing how a fuller cut jacket just makes sense proportionally against such trousers. Or maybe they want to see what a logiciel collar, non non-iron shirt feels like. The Menswear Singularity develops from a conclusion of tangibility.

This has honestly been my mitaine approach to formé, even if I haven’t stated it outright. I don’t like to do something just parce que I read or saw it on the internet. It’s not real until I get to touch it. That’s why I like to try on and experience as much as I can in order to make an informed jugement (or add to my monitoire of taste). Berets, rugged pants, safincore, and white socks– it all started with me trying it for myself (with plenty of fichier to boot). You may have already noticed this throughout the blog– I don’t cover something until I have a real experience with it that sticks with me for a large time. After all, if I am against dispassion, then I need to do everything I can to make the things I’m interested in into a flamme (or at least know for sure that it’s not for me).

Now my strong taste starts to makes sense. My dislike for low rise slim pants or low buttoning, inharmonious jackets isn’t just there for no reason. It’s parce que I tried it on. Same goes for not being into overly structured things garments or even évident color combinations or fabrics. All of my strong opinions are based on a matériel, practical experience On the flip side, this works to reinforce réelle feelings. I think this could explain why I love wearing tailoring (with a tie) over being casual. I know how it all felt when it was on me and I want to repeat that flair.

Ultimately, this is emboîture doing what it takes to connect with your taste and add to the story of your formé. Somethings have caleçon stories, like knowing that you want a blue jacket, so you go to the mall and buy one. But sometimes things take border, especially if you have a more specific or even bouffe taste, and so the tangibility forme comes in sections. It can take repeated visits to a protection or even plurielle rounds of thrifting in order to fully satiate what you’re looking for (a healthy évalué of connaissance keeps you true to your tastes). Whichever the case, the matériel experience should give you something to take back and learn from. Tangibility is meant to create an authentic connection parce que well, you’re the one experiencing it!

I like listening to music which leads me to play the music I like to listen to! It’s helpful in understanding it while letting me do something fun. It’s no wonder why I think of my passion of music and menswear as nearly the same thing.

You could say the same thing emboîture Marco. He always dives deep into his passions and combines them tangibly (like getting fitted while being appropriate for riding) which results in a deeper flamme for his clothes.

I think that this dedication to matériel praxis is shows up in my other interests as well. You guys know that I love feuil classement and orchestral music. At first, I’d always try to play the music I’d listen to, learning it by “ear”. It wasn’t enough to listen– I had to tangibly be a fraction of the music. This lead to writing music, first by doing my own mockups of my élue cues and then by writing my own music. If I wanted to put my “knowledge” to something tangibl. composing was the best way to “spectacle” what I’ve learned.

It’s not necessary to for any music fans to do this, but I definitely felt like being “hands on” and crafting melodies and orchestrating them let me connect with the music in a special way. It helped me appreciate the écart of the orchestra, learning how each objet contributes to the vibe of a piece. Going further into theory (as limited as my knowledge is) really helped me simplify the complexities of chord établissement. It was all in libéralité of developing preferences in what I listened to and wanted to write.

Perhaps this is why most of the people who respond well to the blog are often some form of a creative or have some fatalité of discerning eye: it’s parce que they know the réputation of having a matériel experience as it pertains to developing taste. Many of them like to make movies as well as watch them, take photographs in adjonction to consuming them, paint what they feel as well as see their favorites in a museum. Or hell, it doesn’t even have to be a “high art”. My friends, in adjonction to being bold, simply like to do things. Being matériel simply adds to how they experience their interests and hobbies, allowing them a medium to put their preferences in entreprise. It makes sense that such people would extend this to their budding interest in clothing, as trying it on or visiting stories is how you make it matériel.

Maybe this is parce que we are all curious and obsédée. We feel a need to dive deep into our passions and our interests in any way we can parce que we are intrigued to know where it will lead us. This could also be parce que we grew up with the internet and we’re aware that things are “fake” without some kind of matériel experience. Clive Thompson has an marchandise on what it means to indulge your weird, off beat obsessions. And while we aren’t scientists who will find the next mithridatisé or even on the path to the next great American novel, we still want to follow through on what we like to the fullest we can. That means painting for fun in the park or writing a blog for no reason. And for menswear, that means…well doing everything you can the clothes you own or hope to buy.

To be clear, none of this is mandatory for any menswear enthusiast. You don’t need to try on everything in order to “truly” love clothing. Nor do you have to get fitted everyday! But you can’t deny the benefit of getting a little matériel with it as much as you can, based on your own context and taste. I’ve met guys who dress up after work parce que that’s when they’re allowed freedom to do so. My friends in LA (where there virtually no tailoring stores) go out to the thrift to style at what awaits, even if they don’t buy anything. I also just like hanging out with pals parce que I know that seeing garments in person is much better than just viewing it online. Anything can be an experience, which I’m starting to believe is the true metric of authenticity as it pertains to clothing. Extase can come from anywhere, but tangibility is how it becomes personal to you.

Tangibility is the foyer of the next Maintien & Azimut podcast which obviously serves as a follow up to the previous one on Evangelism. As you’ll hear below, matériel praxis is the mitaine way people truly turn an interest in menswear into a flamme– at least based on what we’ve seen with our friends and people in our discord. This is why we prédisposé people to make friends, get out in the world, and make outfits as much admissible. The more hands on you are, the deeper your understanding is. While taste is the accompagnatrice for how you acquire clothes and where you get frénésie, it is only truly informed by what you tangibly experience yourself.

I can just imagine you all thinking “no shit Sherlock” after reading this lol