Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear • Hacker News Board

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#191

Post by NathanKP » Fri, Jun 08, 2012, 10:42 PM UTC

egypturnash wrote: post #188

jskopek wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I recently helped a female friend move out of an old apartment, and I was absolutely astounded by how much clothing she had lying around. It surprised me because she came off as a stylish, but not terribly fashion-centered person. By my rough estimate, this list represented probably 1/5 of my friend's clothing. Granted, a sample size of 1 is not terribly informative; however, my gut feeling is that a women's wardrobe…

The plural of anecdote is not data but... I've changed my sex. I used to be male, now I'm female. My wardrobe used to be "a collection of t-shirts and 4-5 pairs of jeans". Now it's a whole closet full of blouses, dresses, and skirts, plus a dresser with a few more things. I recently did a purge and got the stuff down in my closet to 100 individual pieces.

Very interesting. Why do you think your wardrobe grew so much after you switched to female? Do you think that you grew your wardrobe to better fit the image of a female in the eyes of others, or was it a natural impulse that came from within?

Edit: Probably the root of my question would be does a transexual person like yourself truly feel female? And if you do does the feeling of being female precede or follow the switch? As you said your wardrobe was smaller before you switched to female. It would be very interesting if it had grown before the switch and then you made the switch. Fundamentally I ask these questions because I want to understand at least a little about what transexual life must feel like because I can not imagine it personally.

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#192

Post by jarek » Fri, Jun 08, 2012, 10:58 PM UTC

septerr wrote: post #189

I am yet to have spent $40 on any clothing. Looking for shirts under $10 and jeans/pants/dresses for $20 makes it so much more difficult to have a decent wardrobe. Although I know some of the pricey stuff is totally worth the money, it's difficult to break the frugal ways inherited from more difficult times. But I am going to give away my clearance sale wardrobe and start fresh. Like, Timoni, I don't like having exce…

> I am yet to have spent $40 on any clothing.

Winter coat or rain coat?

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#193

Post by jarek » Fri, Jun 08, 2012, 11:04 PM UTC

citricsquid wrote: post #13

I would call an outfit a group of individual items, having a defined list of items (but having multiple of each) would be (to me) a "style". I guess it achieves the same goal whatever it's called so it's a moot point. I personally have 1 (North Face) coat, 1 pair of outside jeans and... 160 t-shirts. I guess I would own more jeans if I left my apartment more than twice a month. As a side note I would recommend having…

Do you have a set order of the tshirts and wear each one exactly 160 days apart?

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#194

Post by house9 » Fri, Jun 08, 2012, 11:11 PM UTC

sneak wrote: post #139

cletus wrote: post #94

I saw this post and ignored it on first glance. I just assumed it was some guy and as such it's pretty easy, particularly as an engineer. At work picking out the engineers is largely trivial (jeans, tshirt, runners). There are variations (eg SF engineers have more an affectation for, say, checked shirts at present). As a guy this seems totally fine. Women seem to have it much harder and not really because of men eith…

There is huge variance in t-shirt quality and fit. In my experience, American Apparel tees are the best I've ever found, and I order them 150-200 at a time (in black, of course). I have to lie and say they're for screenprinting, due to some weird requirements Am Appy instituted for their (now pretty restricted) wholesale customers. In bulk and in quantity (free shipping), they are $6/ea stateside. (Retail where I liv…

my personal preference - Hanes Beefy-T, black, there is none better; much thicker T than American Apparel; started printing t-shirts in high school (20+ years ago) been wearing them ever since.

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#195

Post by mark_integerdsv » Sat, Jun 09, 2012, 2:09 AM UTC

Swizec wrote: post #187

sneak wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is huge variance in t-shirt quality and fit. In my experience, American Apparel tees are the best I've ever found, and I order them 150-200 at a time (in black, of course). I have to lie and say they're for screenprinting, due to some weird requirements Am Appy instituted for their (now pretty restricted) wholesale customers. In bulk and in quantity (free shipping), they are $6/ea stateside. (Retail where I liv…

Have you thought about using one of those fabric softeners designes specifically for black clothing? My t-shirts last about 3 years. Business-presentable up to a year or so ... that's hundreds of washes considering I cycle through most of my t-shirt stack every 1.5 weeks. After 5 years they're only good enough for the gym, on account of the fabric becoming weird. The colour is still mostly fine. Also, I think you're…

T shirt... Business presentable...?

You live in a world that is quite distant from mine and anyone I know.

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#196

Post by bitwize » Sat, Jun 09, 2012, 2:19 AM UTC

Sorry, but consciously imitating Cayce Pollard -- pure hipsterism in literary character form -- is not really not giving a fuck. It's giving a fuck that people think you don't give a fuck, which isn't quite the same thing.

I'm a guy, I'm single, and I live (more or less) alone. This is a domain in which I have some expertise. That said, it really is quite simple not to give a fuck about what you wear:

1) Go to your closet, or armoire, or laundry pile, whatever.

2) Pick out something that fits, doesn't look or smell dirty, and is temperature appropriate.

3) Put it on.

That's it. That's bloody all. I've gotten by like this for the past... ohhhh, six years ago? You've still got this costumery with all these pieces and gewgaws going on. For me it's: shirt, pants, bob's your uncle. I can be up and going in about 20 minutes, including shower.

I really wonder why more women don't do this. It'd be a sign of independence, and it'd shave precious minutes (or hours) off their "getting ready to go to work" time, leaving them more time to... sleep in, or hack, or whatever.

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#197

Post by mark_integerdsv » Sat, Jun 09, 2012, 2:21 AM UTC

jskopek wrote: post #31

smikhanov wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

...she came off as a stylish The author is definitely NOT stylish by any reasonable definition of this word. Hence the difference in the wardrobe size. Things like "ethical" or "green" consumption only make situation worse.

That's a little harsh of you, don't you think? Her wardrobe isn't varied, but as long as the default 'works' there's no reason she can't pull it off. Do you remember what your friends wore yesterday? From what I've experienced, clothing doesn't really matter once you get past first impressions.

You misinterpret the word 'stylish'.

Hoodies and band shirts are not stylish and never will be.

...unless you mean to say something like: in the style of a young urbanite.

The word 'stylish' in terms of fashion refers to more than just clothing though, it's meaning is closer to 'swagger' and it has connotations to 'classical style' or 'classy', which is where band shirts and hoodies fall out.

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#198

Post by mleonhard » Sat, Jun 09, 2012, 4:37 AM UTC

danellis wrote: post #57

ctdonath wrote: post #37

The 8-bit renderings are cute, but actual pictures would be nice.

Yes, exactly. Of the combos, rather than the individual items.

How about a pack of photos of a model wearing different outfits, and a way to order those clothes?

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#199

Post by mhd » Sat, Jun 09, 2012, 5:16 AM UTC

phren0logy wrote: post #128

mhd wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Assuming you've got the Saville Row conduit cut back then and worked somewhere conservative (i.e. pretty close to Saville Row). Other than that, there have been a lot of fluctuations in male suit fashion over the years. Sure, it's not as obvious (no sudden harem pants), but one might argue that this makes it harder. Think of the business card scene in American Psycho and apply that to suits. Colors, patterns, shoulde…

You are doing it wrong. Buy a suit that fits your build and it will never look too far out of place. Don't buy exaggerated cuts (like the present too-tight fit with too-short pants). The trendiest items will always be a little different, but they don't vary too far from the middle. You only look silly when you buy clothes too far on one extreme and the trend moves to the other end. See here for examples: http://theim…

> You are doing it wrong.

I'm not doing it at all. Jeans, t-shirts, occasionally a simple two-button suit, if required.

But for a lot of management guys, especially in finance, not being "too far out of place" just doesn't cut it. Somewhere you have to be more conservative than the general fashion, somewhere your tie and lapels have to be the proper width of the season. Never mind the often considerate difference between British, Italian and American fashion. We're talking about business fashion, not artist/actor style. (Never mind the preppy side of all those style guides and blogs.)

I'm not arguing about the timeless cuts, I'm a big fan of the toned down British style. And given the audience of this site, it's a good suggestion. Basically the 80/20 solution of menswear.

But it's really not like you've either got timeless fashion or 70s brown checkered suits with bell bottoms.

Re: Why I Wear The Same Thing Every Day, And What I Wear

#200

Post by pyre » Sat, Jun 09, 2012, 5:26 AM UTC

sneak wrote: post #136

dminor wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Men have it easy. A well fitted Saville Row cut suit has been relatively fashionable for at least a century. I'd be laughed out of the office if I wore that.

Find a better office, quick.

Seriously. I've worked in places with a relaxed dress code, but no one would be actively hostile towards someone deciding to wear a suit, even with everyone else wearing a t-shirt and jeans.