Reasonable dress for a clueless college guy

<p>I went through high school without a care in the world for clothing or style. My friends were laid back, and in general I figured that it wasn't something I wanted to be judged on. That is still the case, but I at least want to take care of my own appearance. My goal is to have clothing be fairly neutral, but maybe on the classier side - I don't want to make a fashion statement, but I also don't want to be that one kid who wore a T-shirt and sports shorts every day, as in high school. If jeans and t-shirts are normal, great; if collared button-down shirts would suit me better, that's fine too (but tell me what pants to put with them). In the end, it should be pretty normal.</p>

<p>Details: I'll be at Princeton, and coming from Texas, I'm sure people will be a little dressier and definitely ready for colder weather (I'm not kidding when I said I wore shorts every day of the year here). I'm also tall, pretty pale, and extremely thin - 6'0", 125 lb, 28" waist, 32.5" hip, 32" inseam. I really have no experience or sense for clothes, so I was wanted to ask this forum for a starting point. I want to learn to develop a style later, but for now I would rather get comfortable with the basics. Again, though, college is a time to expand, so I'm not afraid to look a little nicer. Any suggestions on everyday clothing, somewhat dressier outfits, and winter wear would be highly appreciated! Styles for shirts, pants, shorts, shoes, coats, hoodies, as well as the stores to get them for a reasonable price, are all welcome - I really know nothing!</p>

<p>Thanks for the help.</p>

<p>Kohls has good clothes (and has a decent mens section last time i peeked over there) and often runs sales. Start there :)</p>

<p>One article of clothing every self-respecting person should have, cargo shorts</p>

<p>I don’t know how students dress at Princeton, so I don’t have anything useful to say, except for the following unsolicited advice. . .</p>

<p>If you want to start caring about your appearance, try lifting weights and eating a little bit more food (especially protein) to gain muscle. It’ll also help you with finding clothes that fit better so that you’ll look better.</p>

<p>Khakis, casual shoes, and just about any color collard shirt is decent(pull over or button up), comfortable clothing that looks nice and is really hard to screw up.</p>

<p>For cold weather were the exact same things as you would in warm weather. Just through on a jacket in fall/spring and a coat in hard winter. Maybe some gloves if your not used to the cold.
How much are you really going to be outside?</p>

<p>Also if you have a girlfriend just let her dress you. Works like a charm.</p>

<p>Also, Cargo shorts.</p>

<p>Sorry, I read the title and lolled. :D</p>

<p>Others have given good answers. I’ll add nice jeans (not faded or ripped…fairly dark) with polo style or button-down shirts are nice. Your school T-shirts are great to wear for game days. Also, khaki pants or black jeans are nice with the aforementioned shirts. For winter, you pretty much just add a jacket. You could just bring whatever jacket you have now and wear it the first cold day, then take note of what other guys are wearing and buy something similar.</p>

<p>I’m a girl, and guys wearing nice clothes with dirty athletic shoes is kind of a pet peeve of mine. I know at my school, lots of guys wear Sperry Topsiders and Clarks Wallabees. Dressing nicely shouldn’t really take any more effort than dressing how you did in high school.</p>

<p>People have basically told you what you need to wear. I’d suggest shopping at Buckle, Kohls, and Express.</p>

<p>Dress or Polo shirts are always nice. School shirts can be worn on any day and you’ll look good as long as its not to faded.</p>

<p>A few good pairs of dark blue or black jeans are essential to any wardrobe. </p>

<p>Just about every guy usually has a school hoodie, a nike/reebok/addidas/under armour/etc. hoodie, a light jacket and a thick jacket for the winter months.</p>

<p>Far as shoes go you can wear whatever brand you like and find comfortable. Always have a nice pair of dress shoes, but there’s nothing wrong with most of your shoes consisting of Nike’s or Reeboks</p>

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<p>Good luck finding any off the rack “dressier” clothes in your size.</p>

<p>You may end up wearing shorts most of the time because you will have a hard time finding 28" waist 32" inseam trousers of any kind.</p>

<p>Make friends with girls; I’m sure they would be happy to help. Plus, many guys are colorblind or dress like they are, incl. my husband. You may wish to wait to do a substantial part of your shopping until you arrive in NJ. The winter part will have to wait at least.</p>

<p>I know this wasn’t the point of the thread, but if you want to be more attractive, start working out and lifting weights. I’m sort of skinny and I’m 6’1", 165. I can’t imagine being 40 pounds lighter at my height. Get in the weight room and you’ll find that you can find more clothes that you look good in. </p>

<p>Just my personal advice, ignore me if you want :)</p>

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<p>Ummm, if he does that with discipline, he may end up with a 44" chest and 29" waist, which may be even harder to find “dressier” clothing that fits. If you have a large chest and small waist (typical male ideal), you may find that most “dressier” clothing that fits your chest is far too large at the waist, because “dressier” clothing is mainly bought by older men who are more likely to have a small chest and large waist.</p>

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<p>You trollin’, fool. lol.</p>

<p>^Haha yeah I loled at that too. Couldn’t decide if he was serious or not with that deadpan delivery.</p>

<p>Try finding 36" waist 38" inseam off the racks! Serious i havnt bought pants in store for like 3 years. Anyways, ■■■■■ or not, cargo shorts are fine with a tee or colored polo.</p>

<p>Cargo shorts are fine if you’re either 14 or don’t care about how you look. Since the OP explicitly stated that he does care about how he looks, it would be disingenuous to suggest that cargo shorts are okay when in fact, they are not. This holds doubly true at Princeton of all places.</p>

<p>^lol. just lol.</p>

<p>e: mandatory “my opinion is better than your opinion!!!11111”</p>

<p>OP, I posted this on another thread a while ago but most of it still applies:</p>

<p>Clothing items that are popular among guys in college:
Vans (usu. authentic original), boat shoes (usu. Sperry Topsiders), Levis (511 or 514), plaid/flannel shirts, v-neck t-shirts, light colored button down oxfords, zip hoodies (usu. American Apparel), cardigans, LL Bean duck boots, North Face winter jackets, seersucker/salmon shorts (popular at Ivy League schools), Air Jordans, slim khakis, Toms shoes, Clarks Wallabees and Desert Boots, vintage crew-neck sweaters, Ray-Ban Wayfarers (or cheaper knock-offs), wool peacoats, Ralph Lauren polos, wingtips, slim ties</p>

<p>Things that generally should be avoided:
American Eagle, Abercrombie, Hollister, other high school brands, axe body spray (get real cologne), cargo shorts, baggy jeans, old man khakis, loose billowing shirts, overly-tight toolish muscle t-shirts, Ed Hardy, Affliction, Tapout, anything seen on the Jersey Shore.</p>

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<p>Many clothing makers have remedied this by introducing “slim fit” lines that are more accommodating at the shoulders/chest while being slimmer at the waist. Brooks Brothers now has both “slim fit” and “extra slim fit” styles of dress shirts.</p>

<p>I can tell you what not to wear. Do not wear ******y shirts, like affliction type t-shirts or baggy jeans and trousers.</p>

<p>Your best bet is to not take anyones advice on what you should specifically wear. Everyone is going to throw out random ideas and it’s better to go with your own idea. Go around to the pricey shops or wherever and do a little window shopping. Go with your gut. Go with the idea of “if I didn’t have a budget on clothes what would I buy?”
Then once you get an idea of what you like, will suit your body shape and most importantly your personality you can find cheaper versions at the outlet malls or similar places that offer great discounts on good quality clothes.
Do not ever walk into a store and ask someone what you should buy, they will try to get you into the most ridiculous outfits and try to sucker you into buying ****ty outfits.</p>

<p>Cargos are for GDI’s. ****</p>