A lot of you might be my fashion tribe! My work wardrobe is business professional. Everything else is for comfort and function.
I hate to shop, don’t like to buy new if old works, and have a 5’2” body without a waist. Nothing ever fits. Mostly I just don’t care about clothes, make-up, or hair.
Ditto. At most it takes me 2 minutes each morning to figure out what I want to wear, and none of it is a mistake. There simply isn’t a right answer for me. Many people could scoff, and probably do. That’s all their stress, not mine.
Like you, I don’t care how old people think I am either.
No one really knows how old they are anyway. If they die tomorrow they’re old. If they live another X years, they’re middle aged. If they live 2X years they’re downright young yet. 
And just because people can make themselves look younger, doesn’t mean the sun isn’t still setting just like it would without “whatever.”
It’s probably related, but I also rarely notice what anyone else is wearing. I have to make myself pay attention if I want to know.
I’d make a horrible eye-witness.
Police officer: So, what was the perpetrator wearing?
Me: Uh, I can tell you they had clothes on, and it wasn’t a clown suit. Does that help?
Police officer: Shoes, boots, sandals?
Me: Probably one of them, because I think I’d notice if they were barefoot.
I don’t ever wear makeup or care about trends in style at all. I wear what is comfortable to me and that I like, even if it’s ugly or uncool or ages me. I do love ballgowns though, and shopping for them. Military ball once a year is incredibly boring but I love the dresses. I actually wear dresses about 75% of the time, but not for fashion. I’m extremely sensitive to things around my waist and my neck, so I avoid both whenever possible.
I’m have my first job interview in like a decade next week and I realized today that my wardrobe was not compiled with an eye toward that at all. I’m still gonna wear my clothes- a maxi with a sweater is a normal thing for me- but it’s definitely un-ideal for this particular situation.
This is so me!!! I never notice anything anyone wears. I tell people at work they could wear the same thing every day and I wouldn’t notice. I’m also bad at not noticing major changes in facial hair.
Lately I have noticed a little bit more at work because many days we all come in wearing some shade of blue or red/pink or whatever. It’s really weird.
Wow. That old thread was fascinating. I forget how much things have changed in the last decade. The post that said this reminded me: “It’s one of my goals in life to work somewhere that doesn’t require business causal or formal. Just nice jeans and presentable on a day to day basis.” Ten years ago we couldn’t wear jeans at my law firm. Now it’s rare for anyone to wear anything else. Before the pandemic people used to dress up on court days but now with 99.9 percent of our court appearances still on zoom, people just keep a blazer or suit jacket and tie in the office and throw it on top before the hearings. Jeans still on the bottom. The same is true at all my friends firms.
I remember seeing a study going back a bit, probably to the time when Erin Brockovich was a film, that showed people who lived in rural areas distrusted anyone in a suit. The only profession where they expected to see it and it wasn’t a turn off was undertaker.
Since then I’ve noticed most places changing their work attire expectations around us. Maybe Covid advanced it for cities too? Or maybe more places in cities have caught on that one can be comfortable at work and still get the job done? I don’t know. I’m just glad to see the change because it allows me to fit in more.
Overall though, I don’t care if folks like to dress up or wear space uniforms or anything in between as long as it’s “them.” Ditto with how much something costs. I do me. I allow them to do them. It’s people who adjust what they do to just to be in fashion that I don’t comprehend. Well, I do, but as I said before, our priorities differ. They prefer looking good to others they respect. I don’t give a hoot about looking good to others. If someone didn’t like me due to it we likely wouldn’t be good friends anyway.
Didn’t read the old thread about wearing sweats on campus, but I live in a flagship college town and I was in our urban Target that is adjacent to campus the other afternoon about 5pm and saw two college girls in matching shorty pajama sets — y’know with the button up shirt with the piping around the collar and matching shorts. If they can wear that, I can wear my shorts and a t-shirt!
I have a friend who is definitely more fashionable than me and enjoys dressing up, but she’s pretty casual most days. It’s just that her casual is more fashionable than mine. She wears leggings with a sleeveless tunic a lot. I hate leggings. Hate having something tight on my legs. Sweats are fine, but I rarely wear those out of the house. I also don’t like sleeveless. Just feel more comfortable with something over my shoulders. I get cold easily. (My friend gets hot easily.)
I’ve usually got a t-shirt on (right now it’s one from my D22’s elementary school, which was 8 years ago now). I have my “nice” t-shirts that don’t have a band name or other logo on them, but most of my wardrobe consists of t-shirts from places I’ve been or bands I like. Some are pretty ancient.
My two grown kids play around with clothing more for sure, but they have their own styles and aren’t necessarily trying to be trendy.
My wardrobe sounds similar to yours. I had a Zoom meeting Thursday with an architect and contractor and decided to change out of my College World Series T-shirt.
My reflex would be to agree with many others here, that I am just not that into fashion. All jeans/shorts and t-shirts for me. If it weren’t for my wife dragging me to the store to try on “dress clothes” for a wedding (ugh!), that would be my entire wardrobe.
But I think I just have a strong preference for a particular fashion instead of “not being into fashion.”
Many older guys I worked with, most of whom are now retired, religiously wore their brown polyester pants and yellowish button down shirts (probably used to be white) to work. I always thought, “Man, they fell off the fashion boat about 40 years ago!” If I weren’t into fashion, I wouldn’t have noticed or cared.
And I’ve always thought women look best in jeans and t-shirt, or casual variants like leggings and workout attire. Dresses or formal wear? Not very appealing to me.
And, I think analogously, I also do not care if people are super into trends that classic fashion folk don’t like. Tattoos? Piercings? Hair all the colors of the rainbow? Or half-shaved or any other non-standard look? Cultural look from a non-mainstream background? Tight revealing clothes on a body deemed less than perfect? Have at it! it’s your body–dress how you feel happy. (And yes, I know that, professionally, that can be an issue, but the people choosing those looks know it too. I’m talking about the frequent, in a vacuum, tsk-tsk-ing).
Do I sport any of those looks? No, too much work, and again, I’m just not into any particular look, though one of these days I might decide to rock seapunk hair coloring! I just celebrate people choosing what they want, with less condemnation by the fashionistas.
I was the girl in high school that all the other girls copied. I’d do my friends’ hair and makeup. I wouldn’t have thought about going out without makeup and hair done.
Now I hate fashion. Maybe I’ve just given up (I am far from a “sample size” anything), but I think it’s more about my priorities shifting. I wear what’s comfortable (and I’m uncomfortable in most everything, so most of my outfits are on repeat). I swear I can’t imagine working in a career where I’d have to dress professionally.
I know a lot of women are into accessories as size isn’t an issue when shopping. I don’t have any interest in them, either. I’ll pay a fortune for comfortable shoes, but the thought of having to wear heels (or anything uncomfortable for that matter) nearly brings me to tears. I break out in a cold sweat at the thought of having to dress for a wedding or other formal event. I don’t carry a purse (thank God I found the perfect cell phone case that holds my license and a credit card). I wear no jewelry (even my wedding rings).
In terms of cars, I want something reliable and I just can’t bring myself to spend an exorbitant amount on transportation when something more reasonable will do. As I tell people, I don’t need 72 speakers to listen to NPR during my 10 mile drive to work. As long as I can fit my 150 lb dog in it and it has leather seats so I can clean the drool off, I’m good.
I’d say my house is the only place where I have any eye toward fashion, but I don’t tend toward trends but rather good, functional design. Nothing turns me off faster than touring a house with things that don’t make any sense (like having to walk through a formal dining room to bring in your groceries from the car or having your formal dining table right next to your informal dining table).
I carry a purse, but just because I need a place to put my glasses (3 pair, prescription for distance, prescription sunglasses, readers), wallet, keys, masks, other odds and ends like lip balm, dental floss, tiny container of lotion, gum, etc. I have the same purse that I repurposed from an old black leather motorcycle jacket. I made it about 6 years ago and have carried it ever since.
I wear graphic T’s and knit type yoga/workout pants or shorts everyday. It was a constant battle growing up because my mom insisted you had to be “dressed” with full makeup everyday; it was not “me.” I haven’t worn daily makeup since I sold the company 13 years ago. I’ll dress up if I have to, but I don’t like it; it feels too restricting, the clothes, makeup, jewelry all of it. I wear a waterproof sports watch and a cross necklace I’ve worn since I was 13, that’s it. If my chest was 30 years younger I wouldn’t wear a bra 
. I don’t use a purse, but I have a wallet phone case; if I need a purse, I use a small leather backpack my parents brought back from Slovakia last time they went. I will say covid allowed me to let go of all other pretenses; I let my gray grow out, which I hated coloring. I love my gray; it’s very “streaky” with black and silver chunks, so kinda cool looking.
Hubby is the same way, and D20 (MechE) is just like me; she wears leggings or stretchy jeans and a graphic T everyday. We don’t notice fashion; I never personally understood the interest in it. We don’t know brands or designers. To each his own; I don’t fault anyone who’s into all of it.
I don’t do design trends either. We still have some hand-me-down furniture we were given when we got married; most everything else is 15-20 years old. I still take hand-me-downs if I like it. I love thrift shops. If I can find something I like for a lot less, why not? I am always practicality-hyperfocused. It’s not so much do I have the money, but does it make sense to spend the money. Most of the time I’d rather just squirrel it away.
No. I’m old now. I don’t care. As long as I’m comfortable and covered and things match, I’m good. That’s about as far as it goes. LOL. One DIL is very stylish and it’s fun to see and I’m glad she enjoys it. The other two not so much, more like me I guess.
Just to give you an example of how I am…I was enormously relieved to have the last child’s wedding behind me so I didn’t have to ever go through that shopping challenge again! I doubt I’ll still be alive when any of the grands get married.
I just received my nephew’s invitation; it’s formal attire. DH and I looked at each other like oh crap. He hasn’t had to wear a full dark suit in over 15 years, and I haven’t worn heels in over 20. The last time I wore a “fancy” dress was our wedding, and I wore sneakers with it
My condolences. LOL.
I dread getting an invitation to a formal event! Funerals are tough, too.
I know you shouldn’t have favorites, but he is, and he and his fiancé are really into fashion. It shouldn’t have come as surprise, but it honestly never occurred to me because it’s an afternoon wedding. I’m so happy they’re getting the wedding they want (been postponed 2 years because of covid), but I’m dreading the whole shopping thing.
Our son’s wedding is coming up late next year. I will wear a gown and shoes I wore to one of the military balls while he was at the academy. No reason to buy a new dress when I have one that is perfectly fine. No one will be looking at me anyway. 