What's at the root of our fashion interest?

[quill]

Quill, Thank you for the comment on my maturity. Â For some reason, I've always felt a bit out of place with my peers...not to sound snobby or anything, but I think I might have grown up too fast. Â Friends have commented on that before, on how I act more mature. Â It's just who I am I guess. Â I still like to go out and party with friends and have a good time, but my general interests that have come and gone through the years (men's style, cooking, astronomy, gardening, aquariums, fly fishing and fly tying, etc) have always been different from theirs. Â I've been trying to keep a good balance of spending and saving. Oh, by the way, I'm Eric.

You're welcome.

I'm Stephen (pronounced STEE-vun, not STEFF-un).

 

[LA Guy]

I buy designer and higher end clothing (though it should be noted that I am also a vintage freak) because it makes me feel nice. I stay within my modest means, and also save a little money.

There is no justifying a hobby to a non-hobbyist. I personally think that table saws and fast cars are sort of a waste (you can buy perfectly serviceable furniture at design-within-reach and can't drive a Ferrari the way it's meant to be driven without losing your license,) but I can appreciate that some people enjoy having and using them. Most of us have to choose our luxuries (there appear to be exceptions on this forum, and more power to them). As long as you are responsible with your money and aren't squandering your children's college funds or are unable to meet the mortgage, you should be able to enjoy yours without being made to feel guilty.

 

[LabelKing]

This reminds me of Japanese women who fall prey to loan sharks in order to sate their buying interest of Gucci, and etc.

As well as young girls who become prostitutes so they can purchase the latest Vuitton or Bulgari jewelery.

 

[Mike C.]

This reminds me of Japanese women who fall prey to loan sharks in order to sate their buying interest of Gucci, and etc. As well as young girls who become prostitutes so they can purchase the latest Vuitton or Bulgari jewelery.

Whhhattt?

??? That's crazy, however I don't doubt it for a second. I've seen women slut themselves out for less than this.

 

[LabelKing]

Originally Posted by LabelKing,22 June 2004, 4:39

This reminds me of Japanese women who fall prey to loan sharks in order to sate their buying interest of Gucci, and etc. As well as young girls who become prostitutes so they can purchase the latest Vuitton or Bulgari jewelery. Whhhattt?

??? That's crazy, however I don't doubt it for a second. I've seen women slut themselves out for less than this.
There was a small article in the S/S Arena Homme Plus which detailed some of the shopping habits of the Japanese. There was one instance in which a person who was so fond of Hermes he carried his Hermes bag wrapped in an Hermes towel to protect it from his bodily oils. And a monk who had passion of purchasing Comme des Garcons. These were all male of course. Considering their shoe fetish it is hardly an anomaly. Lotteries are also held to determine who can buy Hermes handbags. Needless to say some sort of panic ensues.

 

[johnnynorman3]

I found this whole discussion, specifically the middle parts, extremely interesting. This was primarily because you saw a lot of tension between the concept of "investment" and "waste." There seems to be a fundamental misunderstanding among money that the only thing that can truly be an "investment" is something that has no obsolescence -- in other words, only gets better with age. But, really an investment should be considered an expenditure of money that leads to future money, even if the thing purchased with that initial expenditure becomes obsolete.

Thus, a car can be a good investment in the same way that an education can. Or a suit a good investment in the same way a home can.

One misunderstanding in the conversation here -- specifically MikeF's comment about real estate -- is of the price of happiness. For example, it is not necessarily true that $1000 more of house will make one as happy or more happy than $1000 more of suit. It just depends.

So, we are left reconciling two concepts, ones that are distinct but sometimes collapse -- happiness and investment. MikeF could argue that while $1000 in house may make one less happy than $1000 in suit, the $1000 in house will last 20 years, while the $1000 in suit will last 5. In other words, that the house is the better "investment" (to the extent that we care about happiness as opposed to merely money) so long as the house makes us more than 1/4 as happy as the $1000 in suit. But, I think that this ignores that the hapiness the suit brings could actually translate into a pure money gain. For example, you feel better in your suit, so you work harder and longer (happy people are better workers), and then you make more money.

So, I guess my point is that as long as our purchases are functional, then they may or may not be both creators of happiness AND investments. It is only when a piece of clothing is bought for nonfunctional purposes (for example, when something hangs in the closet with tags on it) that it can be argued that it is per se not an investment (or, in other words, a potential money maker).

Personally, I think the true wastes of money are things like fine food and drink (meaning expensive restaurants). These are things that have short half-lives (obviously), and while they may make you happy (important, see above), they will also make you fat and thus raise medical bills and shorten your life. So, between me who likes a nice shirt but rarely eats out, and Joe Schmoe who eats out like crazy but wears a Mervyn's shirt -- tell me, who should be criticized.

Anyways, I just think it is an interesting thought experiment to consider how much happiness itself can actually be an investment, both to the extent that it can earn us money and to the extent that it will lead to even more happiness in the future.

 

[Zubberah]

The root of my interest in my fashion is simple and one word: AESTHETICS. I love the look of nice and beautiful clothes (quality is often secondary) and hopefully the way I look in them (tertiary). And it doesn't have to be designer label - IMO the best plain white and black t-shirts in the world are the Aussie "Bonds" brand- on sale you can often get them for US$5. (beautiful simple cotton raglan styles).

My annual spend on clothes is nothing compared to my spend, say, on wines (where I would happily pay $1000 for a bottle of premium fermented grape juice but would baulk at paying tis amount for a pair of shoes or shirt despite greater longevity and more frequent use). That's a different motive though - it's wanting the best in quality and beauty (hence the aesthetic appeal) that something so simple like grapes can be transformed into incremental increases topward perfection from Yellowtail/2 Buck Chuck to Grand Cru burgundies, 1st growth Bordeaux or Aussie Shiraz icons like Grange, Hill of Grace et al).

 

[General Koskov]

I also cite aesthetics as my reason for being interested in clothes. I want to be aesthetically pleasing in clothes, I want others' clothes to aesthetically please me.... Knowing so much about clothes makes one tend towards picayunity but when there is nothing to pick out in a ensemble of clothing it makes the aesthetic experience more rewarding, I think.

Or, perhaps, our fashion interest lies in sex and aggression.

 

[esquire.]

I found CTGuy's response really insightful.

I don't know if I would agree with those who consider clothing an art, and that's what appeals to them. If art is what truly inspires you, are you also going to art gallerys and trying your hand at sculpting and etc..

 

[quill]

I think I'd have to be wishy-washy here, and agree with both CTGuy and esquire; the wonderful thing about clothes is that you can use or wear them for any number of reasons, and none of them are inherently wrong. It's kind of like Amish furniture; their function is foremost, yet the Amish find every opportunity to make the function aesthetically pleasing, too. I think anything well made - a building, a car, a pen - can be appreciated for its function, and also appreciated for its art, if so desired. But let me posit this: does clothing appeal to men because of the way guys are hard-wired? The generalization here being that guys like to tinker with details; car engines, stereo components, wine fermentations, sports stats, etc. (behavior that women aren't generally known for). Does well-made clothing fascinate us because of the endless details we can "tinker" with?

 

[AlanC]

Good point, quill. It simply could be viewed as another "gear" issue. Men like to acquire gear (tools, amps, etc). VersaceMan, just tell your parents you're only buying clothes to resell on ebay. If you happen to test the items a time or two before you resell, then so be it.