Help a fashion newbie

Student Lounge College Life
41

<p>Well, you told the OP that he can develop "own sense of style" by "people-watching," a.k.a. mimicking other people's looks. I didn't mean to sound confrontational or critical... I just picked up on this contradiction and thought that it was funny =)</p>

<p>And, I do agree with you. Band t-shirts + jeans + chucks are the norm where I live as well. In fact, the majority of students look down upon those who wear AE/AF/Hollister, and despise the preppy look. I'm from a 99% white, affluent, suburban school... so obviously, the students like to be "nonconformists" to partially mask their wealth. Ha, ha. Anyway, my point is that clothing tastes differ from school to school (perhaps in some schools, hoodies/jeans/chucks = middle school and khakis/polos = "mature," but it's the complete opposite where I live). That's why I think that plain shirts (in multiple colors!), jeans, and (non-Converse, to appease all the anti-chucks people out there) sneakers are a safe bet.</p>

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<p>Actually it's not contradictory at all. You need something to start with, and you get a sense of what looks bad and what looks good by seeing what other people wear. You don't wake up one day and decide that something is "cool" out of the blue, you usually SEE it somewhere be it a catalog or on the street.</p>

<p>For the people recommending stuff like Banana Republic and Lacoste.. read what the OP has said. He is contemplating shopping at Wal-mart and Target, so your posts arent exactly helping him out.</p>

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<p>I know, I know... I just meant that at first glance it seemed contradictory. I was just trying to make a joke, not criticize what you were saying =)</p>

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<p>am i the only person who thinks all the abercrombie and express is alittle toooo...preppy? go get some hi tops, a hoodie, and a pair of old navy jeans and call it a day</p>

45

<p>^I second what taromakino is saying. Let's all remember that:</p>

<p>1.) The OP lives in the midwest, so he is not near any higher end stores that can more typically be found in NY or other more metropolitan areas (AE, Express, AF, Guess, etc.)</p>

<p>2.) Keyword: TARGET and WALMART.</p>

<p>Ok, now that that is over and done with, DON'T SHOP AT WAL-MART! Just don't do it. They have bad clothes, and don't even get me started on my political views on the place...Target is fine.</p>

<p>Just get some plain solid colored shirts. Target has some designed ones too. The best thing though is that they're all under $20. Get some jeans. Nothing too baggy and nothing too tight, just straight fit or boot cut jeans. Get some adidas shoes. Cheap. Get some plain colored sweathirts...And you're done. Casual, functional, and ready to go.</p>

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<p>abercrombie isn't preppy at all. it's "fashionable"</p>

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<p>It's a waste of money ^^</p>

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<p>If the OP set his heart on WALMART , then he is doomed. All I have to say is that WALMART is about as far away from being "fashionable" as metaphoricaly possible. The fits and finishes of WALMART clothing cannot even compare that of Express, let alone the style... In conclusion, WALMART is intended for grocery, the mall is intended for clothing.</p>

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<p>But if you have financial constraints then maybe it is not worth it to have the MOST fashionable clothes. I dont think the OP is looking for the most expensive clothes to try and gain popularity. Just something simple so he does not stand out.</p>

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<p>***? are u serious? are u that naive? All those stores are found easily. What do you think, the entire midwest is a farm? unbelievable that you said this. snap out of your east coast bias. granted, the high, high high end stores populate probly east more but everything else is just as plentiful. lol, i cant believe you think this.</p>

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<p>yeah seriously I live in illinois and it takes me 20 minutes to get to the nearest ae or whatever, mind you I do have to go through some cornfields. I just wish my horse was faster...</p>

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<p>I really like Banana Republic clothing. However, I NEVER EVER buy any of it at retail price. You can get polos for like 10-15 bucks on clearance and they are really quality clothing. Gap has some nice clothing too. I just bought dress shirts for 12 dollars from gap.com </p>

<p>The key is to buy clothing on sale. You can buy quality clothing, without killing your budget, you just have to search. Best of luck.</p>

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<p>Searching for clothes is just like searching for rare pokemon</p>

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<p>I like American Apparel, H&M and Forever 21's men stuff.</p>

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<p>Originally Posted by OniLaqwliet
1.) The OP lives in the midwest, so he is not near any higher end stores that can more typically be found in NY or other more metropolitan areas (AE, Express, AF, Guess, etc.)</p>

<p>Wow, yeah, I live in Kansas City, MO, and we have all of those stores and much, much more around here.</p>

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<p>woah btw all those stores that u said arent in the medwest are actually there that include AE express AF Guess etc.</p>

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<p>You all must be freshmen. To the OP, College is not high school, people are too wrapped up in their studies, and whatever extracurricular involvements they have to care about what you are wearing. Jeans, t-shirts, hoodies, and sneakers should do you just fine as long as your clothes are clean and not overly wrinkled.</p>

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<p>haha duh. the stores you mentioned are retail chain stores. they're everywhere.
and in the big picture, they're definitely not high end. sure they're too expensive for their quality. by high end implies that they have quality.
it'd be much more accurate to say something like
"The OP lives in the midwest, so unless he is by a major city, he is probably not near a lot of high end designer boutiques, fashion houses, etc."
which, obviously, no college student needs, and if he really wants that, he could just shop online </p>

<p>I agree with constantIllusion. Just some casual jeans, plain tees, polos, hoodies, and sneakers. Also get some nice dark jeans, an some nicer tees/polos, and maybe a sports jacket or something, for going out. </p>

<p>you can get a LOT of stuff on sale. AE is great for casual stuff, as is Gap, and I love H&M. American Apparel is also great for basics. Banana Republic is good for nicer stuff.
Don't attempt to get labels like Abercrombie or Hollister or whatever. I personally hate them. I rarely buy anything that has a huge logo plastered across. That is definitely NOT fashionable. Style isn't about how much money you spend or what stores you shop at. It's about how you put different pieces together. If you like something, get it, it doesn't matter where its from. </p>

<p>On that note, don't worry too much about fitting in. Just wear what you like. It'll be easier for you to find you niche in college, rather than trying to be something you're not. Just be clean and neat and say hello to people. you'll be fine.</p>

<p>Edit:
argh. some people just annoy me. again, fashion is NOT what brand something is. MattZheng, i'm sure you could get some great stuff at Walmart if you tried. sure it might not be as good quality as Express, but if someone is truly fashionable, they could make it work. though, I personally prefer Target. same price, much better quality. +they're designer lines are great.
and abercrombie/express is not preppy. at all. try jcrew. that's preppy.</p>

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<p>It's nice to pretend like everyone's above what people wear in college, but in all honesty, people don't go blind and they're still people. Sure you may not be as likely to get made fun of to your face or any of that (really is more of a high school thing), but people do notice and they do make judgments.</p>

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<p>So constantIllusion what your trying to say is that during the summer before college you drastically change and suddenly don't care bout how you look?</p>