Random Fashion Thoughts (Part 3: Style farmer strikes back) - our general discussion thread

[whorishconsumer]

Going back to the Massive Attack discussion (sorry I'm late, I've been on holiday...), my Bristol friends tell me that no-one was listening to Massive Attack & co. there, even in the 1990s. It was all jungle / drum'n'bass, which matches my recollection. Massive Attack have always been a favourite of music journalists and the middle classes. Which is all no reflection on their quality or talent.

Smith & Mighty produced Massive's first single:

 

[dieworkwear]

no but not having a polo being most expensive purchase ever would be a good rule
sorry

Depending on where you're shopping, a polo shirt can be like $1,500 nowadays.

Anyone have rules for splurging? As in, a splurge item can't take more than X% of my monthly income or whatever. Just curious. I'm looking at a potential splurge cop (a knit polo shirt) that would be more expensive than any retail purchase I've ever made, save for a coat and a custom sportcoat.

Another consideration - is your splurge item always intended to be part of your regular clothes rotation? Or it's just simply a really nice statement piece that you don't mind paying for, even if worn less often or rarely.

I don't know if I have any "rules." For CM purchases, I take a really long time to figure out what I want to buy, so in the end, I'm much more comfortable with the purchase. CM things are usually less dependent on seasonal collections, so you can take your time.

For casual stuff, I try to think about how much I've been spending in the last six month or so. If I haven't made any splurges, then I don't mind buying something expensive. But if I've bought a few expensive items, then I try to rein things in.

I personally don't mind splurging on things I'll wear infrequently. That said, it's obviously easier to justify a purchase if you know you'll get a lot of use out it.

 

[sinnedk]

Let’s see for splurging, as long as you can afford all of your necessities this includes rent, food, savings then just buy what you want. You sometimes waste more time looking for equivalents or buying something cheaper in lieu of the item you wanted only to wind up wasting more money and time by buying what you actually wanted.

so you don’t go on a Safeway cookie diet to afford a nice item.

 

[DoubleDouble]

On the same lines as @sinnedk, if you have a good system where you receive your salary and it automatically goes towards different expenses and savings/investing accounts, then whatever you are left with is guilt-free spending.

Ramit Sethi's books and talks explore this in depth.

 

[Peter1]

Anyone have rules for splurging? As in, a splurge item can't take more than X% of my monthly income or whatever. Just curious. I'm looking at a potential splurge cop (a knit polo shirt) that would be more expensive than any retail purchase I've ever made, save for a coat and a custom sportcoat.

Another consideration - is your splurge item always intended to be part of your regular clothes rotation? Or it's just simply a really nice statement piece that you don't mind paying for, even if worn less often or rarely.

Yeah, I fund over-budget purchases with freelance jobs, but I find what I want first, then buy it only after the payment for the work has been received. That way it feels more like a reward rather than an indulgence.

 

[jaaz16]

Yeah, I fund over-budget purchases with freelance jobs, but I find what I want first, then buy it only after the payment for the work has been received. That way it feels more like a reward rather than an indulgence.

I do things like this too. I recently bought a pair of shorts that were ~4x what I normally spend on shorts, and I funded it—in my head anyway—from an unexpected gig that netted me close to the exact difference. I also make it a point to wear them often, or at least not “save” them for special occasions because they are so nice.

The trap to avoid, that I sometimes fall into if I’m being honest with myself, is when I justify multiple splurges with one of these gig paychecks. Like, “oh I just landed an unexpected $200, that will offset these new pants.” *1 month later* “oh I landed an unexpected $200 last month, that will offset these new shoes.”

 

[Michigan Planner]

Let’s see for splurging, as long as you can afford all of your necessities this includes rent, food, savings then just buy what you want…

so you don’t go on a Safeway cookie diet to afford a nice item.

Splurge or no splurge, a diet ofSafeway cookies sounds pretty good to me!

 

[King Calder]

I earmark a monthly clothing/discretionary spending budget after all my savings/rent/daily living obligations, and try to keep my annual clothing spending under a certain amount. "Splurging" to me means "I need to reach into my savings to not carry this as debt" because either the item is a lot or I simply don't have the liquidity in my discretionary spending account in the moment to afford it. The broad principle here is to think about life in terms of cash flow. Buy less small things now and save for when the big thing you really want comes around. I don't spend my discretionary budget most months, so that usually just ends up back in my savings anyway. If you're on SF you probably have, or in the near future will have, more than enough clothing/shoes/accessories, and then it's really just about being discerning and deliberate about what comes in and what goes out.

My splurges in the past have been things I wear a lot, but could easily see myself splurging on more of a statement piece if it were the right one. My last splurge was a Naissance Grizzly from NMWA - no regrets, it's my favorite jacket.

I agree with both @g transistor and @BlakeRVA - splurging will only serve to increase your spending tolerance long term (ex: previously, my most expensive jacket was ~$1200, and now it's ~$2200) and you should absolutely not, under any circumstances, fund any clothing purchases with debt.

 

[dieworkwear]

You can also sell things in your closet that you don't really love or wear. That way, it doesn't feel like a splurge and more like a "trading up."

 

[Mghart]

You can also sell things in your closet that you don't really love or wear. That way, it doesn't feel like a splurge and more like a "trading up."

This has pretty much been what I’ve done selling old stuff on the bay to fund new stuff that took the sting out of some purchases. Now that I’ve sold through the old stuff Im a little more discretionary with new stuff.

 

[whorishconsumer]

You can also sell things in your closet that you don't really love or wear. That way, it doesn't feel like a splurge and more like a "trading up."

That formula always equals a negative balance, at least for me. I justify a new purchase by following the principle of "one in, one out", but find that I'm then buying things with the mindset that they're the best I can find with the knowledge I have at the time, but that they can always be traded up. So then I'm always seeking to trade up. And selling something at 30% what you paid hardly covers a new purchase that is at a higher price point than what you paid when you bought the item you are replacing.

I literally just did this today with some J. Crew Ts which, until recently, I thought were "the ones" because they were of a slubby knit and fit that I had never before found in all my T-shirt hunting. But then I discovered Warehouse 4601s. And so now I'm getting rid of my J. Crews and replacing them with Warehouse Ts. This is a day after I was telling myself that I am at peace with imperfection and that it's okay for my T's collar to droop and not ring my neck perfectly taut.

This mentality also carries to getting rid of clothing that no longer fits, something I've done a whole lot of lately. Every thing I sell or donate I feel compelled to replace. So now I have a closet full of Real McCoy's. Which, no complaints here, other than this is an endless game that can only end in destitution or owning a floundering clothing shop.

My credentials are in my handle.

 

[King Calder]

I think a few years ago I tried to talk myself into the "I'm a guy who has a perfect tee" but I gave up on that. The closest I came to finding a perfect tee was the Merz U-necks but I think they discontinued them a year or two ago.

Speaking of "trading up" - since COVID started I moved out of my apartment and threw a ton of my stuff in storage, and have been just living our of Airbnb's and hotels all over the country, out of my car/a couple of suitcases. Being forced to trim down my wardrobe as a part of this has been a real revelation, with 75%+ of my clothing having been in storage for the past 15 months. I'm a bit intimidated to go back to my unit and open it up, I feel like I'll probably end up consigning pretty much anything I can't even remember owning when I go back in there. I also think I've come to be a lot more happy with less, and will use whatever I can get out of the things I don't need anymore to fund future splurges. I like this idea though of storing portions of your wardrobe, and if in 3 months you don't even remember owning certain items...how much did you really like it and/or need it?

 

[LonerMatt]

Looks for a navy sweatshirt with some cool floral design - mainly turning up either bad etsy stuff or overpriced streetare deliberately gauche ****. Any recs?

 

[gdl203]

Niche had been making floral embroidered sweatshirts for a few seasons.

 

[double00]

guess, surf brands, polo does all over print sweatshirts