"Good grooming never goes out of style." I recall reading that poster while sitting in the barber's chair during my nearly three decades in the US Navy. Always show up to work inspection-ready was my motto, because if you looked slovenly in uniform, then any work you produced would be immediately & equally suspect. Spring forward a few years & I've made the transition from Navy blue to corporate gray, & that motto stays with me, although I no longer wear khaki on a daily basis. But what is a suit if not just another uniform? The image you present to the world says much about you & what you bring to the fight, & contributes to other's opinion about you. For me, I was never in a hurry to slip into something more comfortable after work. I loved being in a suit, even if I was just walking the dog around Old Town Alexandria, VA. A trip to the Whole Foods around the corner was in suit & tie (or if I felt wild, I'd take off my tie). My wife thought it was hilarious that I'd immediately lay out tomorrow's suit just as I got home, but for me that act provided me a sense of purpose & control. Now in retired life I still love to slip into a collared shirt, cotton chinos, and Bass Weejuns when I'm going about town because, why not? Good grooming, indeed, never goes out of style.
It's mostly an American thing, but sadly it began to inflitrate good ol' Europe as well (blame it on the 1KYAE). Most people don't realize (or, to be more precise, have forgotten) that dressing well is a form of respect towards your interlocutor. It does not signify pride nor pedantry, but respect.
I do not have any data on this, but I'm convinced the peak-stylish era of the 50s was a reaction to war and poverty; "we are dressing well because for the first time since the poverty and war of the last 3 decades, we actually can. And we need to prove to ourselves that we can be more to each other than predatory beasts and survivors fighting over the last potatoes".
There are many reasons as to why we don't dress well anymore; the obvious one being that in a society where nothing is serious anymore, and nothing really matters, it's not surprising that clothing followed the trend. Exit the custom suits, welcome juvenile garments. Because how can you be relevant in a forever young culture if you dress like a man?
Another one, more pernicious, is the fact that the current economy could not work with this "dress well" logic; learning to dress supposes technical qualification (why would I buy a 600€, 85% coton coat from a trendy brand that won't keep me warm when I can buy a 70% wool one from a less known brand ?); it also implies historical meaning, as in; "why people dressed like that for so long? Why did they use this fabric or this material instead of an other?
Learning to dress well eventually takes you away from the fast-fashion and the never-ending compulsive consumerism that forces you to "update" your entire wardrobe every 6 months. No wonder it's not popular.
Learning to dress well is also frightening to many; if people start noticing me, maybe they'll eventually think higher of me, and I'll have to live up to their expectations? Frightening world indeed.
This essay topic is timely Tom. I recently had my favourite pair of black Levis retire on me. I was in the market for a replacement. A friend suggested a pair of ABC Lululemon pants that he said he’d been living in since Christmas. Needless to say I was sceptical.
I happened to be in a mall a few days ago so I popped in to take a look at them. I cannot adequately describe the mix of sorrow and exhaustion I felt looking at them. The colours. The material. My reaction was “Christ, is this what men are wearing now!?”
Obviously I didn’t buy them. Moreover, I walked out of the store thinking that I didn’t want to be the kind of man that would wear stuff like that. Lockdowns are hard on the psyche but we need higher standards for ourselves.
Thanks for you newsletter. As always it’s given me something to ponder over on a Sunday!
I would never thought in my whole life, so far with 20 years old, that dressing way too comfortably would be in fact an act of selfishness. Idleness is like my personal brand, although I'm pretty disciplined with many aspects of life. Now I feel that dressing a little bit better, even while I'm at home office, would make my day-to-day interactions, once impaired by quarantine, revive in some manner. Thanks for another great essay Thom!
I used to wear childish and supposedly "comfortable" clothes. But recently, with the big help from my wife, I've started to look more for aesthetics. And I shall admit it feels great, all the benefits you mentioned are real.
So whoever is reading this comment, I can verify that everything Tom said is true.
Although all clothes are "analogue", aesthetics seem lost in the modern digital age and considered as something unusual, often claimed as a part of special status (even if it's not a question of money, as you mentioned). I think that hustle culture and overall business favours comfortable clothes and promotes minimalism and a utilitarian approach to style in general - in clothes, architecture, furniture, etc. So, as one who has an old collection of "comfortable" t-shirts in the same wardrobe with overcoats and Chelsea boots, I have big hopes for the aesthetics to come back and become a part of the analogue future.
"Good grooming never goes out of style." I recall reading that poster while sitting in the barber's chair during my nearly three decades in the US Navy. Always show up to work inspection-ready was my motto, because if you looked slovenly in uniform, then any work you produced would be immediately & equally suspect. Spring forward a few years & I've made the transition from Navy blue to corporate gray, & that motto stays with me, although I no longer wear khaki on a daily basis. But what is a suit if not just another uniform? The image you present to the world says much about you & what you bring to the fight, & contributes to other's opinion about you. For me, I was never in a hurry to slip into something more comfortable after work. I loved being in a suit, even if I was just walking the dog around Old Town Alexandria, VA. A trip to the Whole Foods around the corner was in suit & tie (or if I felt wild, I'd take off my tie). My wife thought it was hilarious that I'd immediately lay out tomorrow's suit just as I got home, but for me that act provided me a sense of purpose & control. Now in retired life I still love to slip into a collared shirt, cotton chinos, and Bass Weejuns when I'm going about town because, why not? Good grooming, indeed, never goes out of style.
Hey Thomas, is everything alright? Did they suspend your TWTR account?
It's mostly an American thing, but sadly it began to inflitrate good ol' Europe as well (blame it on the 1KYAE). Most people don't realize (or, to be more precise, have forgotten) that dressing well is a form of respect towards your interlocutor. It does not signify pride nor pedantry, but respect.
I do not have any data on this, but I'm convinced the peak-stylish era of the 50s was a reaction to war and poverty; "we are dressing well because for the first time since the poverty and war of the last 3 decades, we actually can. And we need to prove to ourselves that we can be more to each other than predatory beasts and survivors fighting over the last potatoes".
There are many reasons as to why we don't dress well anymore; the obvious one being that in a society where nothing is serious anymore, and nothing really matters, it's not surprising that clothing followed the trend. Exit the custom suits, welcome juvenile garments. Because how can you be relevant in a forever young culture if you dress like a man?
Another one, more pernicious, is the fact that the current economy could not work with this "dress well" logic; learning to dress supposes technical qualification (why would I buy a 600€, 85% coton coat from a trendy brand that won't keep me warm when I can buy a 70% wool one from a less known brand ?); it also implies historical meaning, as in; "why people dressed like that for so long? Why did they use this fabric or this material instead of an other?
Learning to dress well eventually takes you away from the fast-fashion and the never-ending compulsive consumerism that forces you to "update" your entire wardrobe every 6 months. No wonder it's not popular.
Learning to dress well is also frightening to many; if people start noticing me, maybe they'll eventually think higher of me, and I'll have to live up to their expectations? Frightening world indeed.
Another example of how far ahead the G Manifesto was.
Either custom suit or shirtless. The rest is BS.
most not honest enough.
Machete
This essay topic is timely Tom. I recently had my favourite pair of black Levis retire on me. I was in the market for a replacement. A friend suggested a pair of ABC Lululemon pants that he said he’d been living in since Christmas. Needless to say I was sceptical.
I happened to be in a mall a few days ago so I popped in to take a look at them. I cannot adequately describe the mix of sorrow and exhaustion I felt looking at them. The colours. The material. My reaction was “Christ, is this what men are wearing now!?”
Obviously I didn’t buy them. Moreover, I walked out of the store thinking that I didn’t want to be the kind of man that would wear stuff like that. Lockdowns are hard on the psyche but we need higher standards for ourselves.
Thanks for you newsletter. As always it’s given me something to ponder over on a Sunday!
I would never thought in my whole life, so far with 20 years old, that dressing way too comfortably would be in fact an act of selfishness. Idleness is like my personal brand, although I'm pretty disciplined with many aspects of life. Now I feel that dressing a little bit better, even while I'm at home office, would make my day-to-day interactions, once impaired by quarantine, revive in some manner. Thanks for another great essay Thom!
Sprezzatura is the effortless chic of an over-achiever who never admits to hard work.
I used to wear childish and supposedly "comfortable" clothes. But recently, with the big help from my wife, I've started to look more for aesthetics. And I shall admit it feels great, all the benefits you mentioned are real.
So whoever is reading this comment, I can verify that everything Tom said is true.
Although all clothes are "analogue", aesthetics seem lost in the modern digital age and considered as something unusual, often claimed as a part of special status (even if it's not a question of money, as you mentioned). I think that hustle culture and overall business favours comfortable clothes and promotes minimalism and a utilitarian approach to style in general - in clothes, architecture, furniture, etc. So, as one who has an old collection of "comfortable" t-shirts in the same wardrobe with overcoats and Chelsea boots, I have big hopes for the aesthetics to come back and become a part of the analogue future.