21 Replies
What I seem to catch is:
* busy-ness but with a big range from subtle to almost too much
* layers
* drapey accessories
* Maybe heavier fabrics but cuts or layers that give more flowy/fluid looks?
There tends to be something in the outfit visually on the lower arms - sleeve pattern or gloves?
A good deal of the dark stuff seems to fit within the realm of 90s-00s mall goth/emo. I see a lot of flared pants, short sleeves with long sleeves under.
a lot of the inspo also has very doll-like models
it feels very infantilizing
not just the models, but the styles as a whole
I'd say these 4 are the least so in that category
a lot of "A" shape silhouettes, slim top with flares or skirts. Definitely on the goth/emo/punk spectrum as shrimp said. For more inspo you could look at 90s vivienne westwood, undercover, and number (n)ine. I also have a whole laundry list of 90s/00s brands I can dig up if you want.
I'm more trying to distill the things to look for I think, elements to seek out specifically or keep in mind when trying to pull an outfit together.
Llama, you should really re-read what we already went over in your last thread
https://discord.com/channels/1116793467654381685/1342369364141277235
Yeah, but what I was looking for there was if stuff looked decent on me or sloppy, and how to improve, and specific to a professional though casual environment.
Here I'm looking more for where my personal aesthetic leans so I can narrow it down when looking for pieces or composing outfits in daily wear.
I think shrimp and raisin nailed it, especially around the infantilizing, goth, emo stuff. I appreciate what you're doing but i think it can lean too reductive to just try to categorize things this way
it takes away what makes outfits cohesive
like a piece of music is not just a bridge and chorus
What makes them cohesive?
I genuinely look at images and struggle to see why one seems cohesive and the other doesn't.
I think that's normal, because you need to be exposed to those images and visual language a lot to "get" it, as wall as practice expressing it yourself, and its hard to only theorycraft your way into it
as a side note, the inspo you post reminds me a lot of harajuku fashion
which in itself pulls from a lot of different subcultures
I don't think what makes things cohesive is purely rules based because there are people out there that can mix two styles together in an unexpected way to make it feel cohesive
but there are styles that are easier to mix, like workwear/ivy, and styles that are harder to mix
zeo in the other thread mentioned that you need a vibe you're going for
That's part of why I made a separate thread. I know colors would be easy to overdo or clash, that it is inherently a higher skill requirement, but the compositions I posted here are dark - I haven't found something that shows the colors and the compositins I like together. If I can better define the compositions then perhaps I'd have more to go on or could even narrow down finding inspo outfits that are closer. (I'll look up harajuku tonight)
However, the other thread was specific to workwear. I agree that from "decent" or "good" to "wow" is personality and originality, but in the context of workwear being boring or unremarkable is probably favorable to discordant or sloppy, and mixing punk elements with workwear isn't going to be simple and doesn't have a lot of inspo albums. I made this thread to ask about the personality parts specifically, such as to work on getting better direction for personal wear and what direction to take for clothing modification. Pulling out specific elements of the personality stuff here, and then applying it to the workwear sparingly seems reasonable, no? But my question here is also more broad, as it is separate from the workwear option though can be applied back to that.
For example, in the workwear thread I recalled why I leaned toward the open button shirts and busy under tees - I have an aesthetic preference for clutter or busy-ness that seems to show here.
Where the line is between hoarder/insane and intentional/cohesive is something I need to work on.
In the workwear thread it was recommended to have the undershirts be less dissonant, and the button shirts to be closed. I took the suggestions and my personal impressions of the results and am intending to try 2 implementations: 1. pair more matchy undershirts with open button shirts, and try tucking the undershirts with a belt, and 2. closed button shirts with the louder/busier undershirts that barely peek out. While that may or may not be my vibe, it has elements of what I like and rainbow-chaos, with also being workwear and not too loud for my newb ass to mess up too badly toward casual, immature, or sloppy. It gave me ideas on small changes that would pull it together better in the journey where I am now.
In the future making something more chaotic work is possible, but it requires experience to do well and have the confidence to apply that back to a less open context of professional wear. The first steps of getting to that were explained as figuring out what I like. I found images of what I like as a full composition and I am asking for help on figuring out what the common elements are so I can then find them in colors or try them out.
just gonna drop some thoughts here, take em or leave em.
- the inspo here is utterly dissonant to the inspo you were posting in the workwear thread. I would work on identifying why that is, because trying to meld the two styles will result in you failing at both.
- you absolutely dont need to build a basic wardrobe and build your way up to something u actually want to wear - you just need to develop your eye to understand why you like the things you're looking at, and why some fits work and others are bricks. And that takes time. It takes time to understand why a fit is working, and it takes a lot of mistakes to figure out why a fit is not working when you try to replicate it.
- harajuka is exactly where id point you as well. It's colorful, light, ironic, playful, etc. Lots of the same silhouettes you've posted here, but with vibrant colors
I think youre over-fixating on describing your goals and that's getting in the way of you making progress towards them.
You have a ton of inspo here, and I imagine you'll have even more once u check out harajuka fashion. Grab 2 or 3 looks, make a thread asking for some brand recommendations, and try to recreate those looks. The only way to really figure this stuff out is to do it
indeed- art made a comment about taking cues from charlie and thinking of fits in terms of characters (who is this person? what would they wear?) which really resonated with me
Vibe, story....
Adjectives like "whimsical" and "functional"?
Someone who would run up a wall just because it is there, or crawl under a car to check what leaked, or pet a muddy dog... so stuff that is replacable, cleanable, or hides stains and not super expensive. Bright colors make that hard though, but I guess modding helps since vintage and thrift mean items are harder to replace. The busier outfits would hide mud/oil stains better too.
there's a distinction that should be made between "the vibe i'm going after / the type of person i am dressing like" and "the functional properties i need from clothing"
i think it helps to fully figure out "the vibe i'm going after" then whatever functional needs you have for it
https://discord.com/channels/1116793467654381685/1344523457408536608/1344564925690810412 raisin gave a good list of brands; it's maybe worth looking some of these up, not for any specific clothes but the outfits as a whole and what they say about the brand (usually on an about page)
if a brand says they're whimsical, do you see that connection in their clothing? do you like the way they conveyed whimsy (or irreverence, or fun, or chaos, or rebellion, or any other sort of feeling)
https://discord.com/channels/1116793467654381685/1300843256019419136 this may also be a good exercise in defining who that person is, similar to what you described above; the people who posted in many cases also noted how this informs the clothes they wear or like
Like this?
Wolves
1. wants easy zero-thought pick-a-shirt, pick-pants uniform, and for any combination to work for any use (work, woodshop, errands). Never pause to do something worried clothes will get dirty or torn. Pockets - doesn't want the hassle of bags or switching. All of it needs to be easy to move in and non-fussy.
2. wants to have no black, no grey, no brown, barely white, clothes, and wear all the colors all the time. High saturation, usually more pastel than bold or florescent. Think a unicorn vomiting easter.
3. likes pretty things, tries for adorable/cute in an anti-sexy way much like lolita philosophy. #1 said absolutely no to that much effort and stuff that isn't mix/match.
4. Blend in wolf - not stand out as poorly dressed or underdressed. Also doesn't want to be super stand out.
All the wolves hate shopping. Not finding what they want, dealing with stores or returns, price hunting, discovering something doesn't pair well, etc. 3 seems quiet but mostly just puts most of its points into anti-hot than cutesy. 2/4 are the biggest conflict, 1/3 is next. 1/2 don't get along either because light colors are rough. Explains the tie dye shirts + cargo pants base though.
im of the opinion if you don't try stuff on you're just never gonna find anything that looks really good on you or develop an eye for stuff that works for you
also i think most well dressed people actually put a lot of thought into putting their fits together. they might have some pre assembled easy fits that they go to if they don't have energy to think about what to wear but there isn't a shortcut for not thinking and looking great
Yup, making a few outfits I like for specific contexts and then improving those bit by bit is what I was planning.
Theseus' outfit and such.