Fashion Knows Not of Logos

By Klemente Cisneros

         Have you ever wanted something so bad it made your mouth water? It’s a day to day thing drooling over a moist piece of cake, the latest mp3 player, nice jewelry, a gorgeous garment, or just something as plain as a white v-neck tee. We all want things, whether out necessity or just for fun. It’s because we’re on a diet, a low budget for the month, or simply don’t have the means that we don’t get those things. If we can, however, we get what we want, don’t we? When it comes to fashion, however, we can’t precisely base our personal appearance just on what we can and can’t have. Fashion is actually about excellent taste and styling; something that has nothing to do with price tags. Therefore, I’m going to give you my personal insight into the world of classy fashion, which I’m going to be writing about throughout this blog

Fashion and style are totally different things. In one hand, fashion is the result of a collection of ideas gathered by people with excellent taste in clothes. It is, therefore, the product of an exhaustive battle of good looking versus bad looking garments. A mere clarification of what should be worn over what shouldn’t. Style, on the other hand is an innate but never hereditary quality of few people. Style is the root of fashion. It defines every detail of what makes fashion. In a clear example, it is the cashmere, the thread, and the cut and fashion is just the finished sweater. In the real world, however, we come across much inappropriately called fashion that’s merely a collection of really expensive ugly garments. Haven’t you bumped into people who wear Gucci, Louis Vuitton, or Chanel head to toe and still look like a really bad Aeropostale poster? (I am a sorry Aeropostale fans). Perhaps, on the contrary, you have seen those people that you don’t know what the heck they’re wearing but it makes them look extremely good you just want to photograph them. That’s fashion. It knows not about the price tag or logos, but the way you put things together.

One of the most despicable outfits I have seen on people over the years is clothing with the brand logo (not the pattern) splashed across ninety percent of it. For some strange reason, there is a sick obsession people have on screaming out the brand of their garments in public. I don’t really understand the need to be a walking billboard of their favorite brand that merely gives them no profits. Perhaps the only revenue they expect for that is others thinking, “oh, look at that dude wearing a huge ass eagle (or seagull) across the chest. He looks so awesome I just want to take pictures of him and put them on a magazine,” or maybe, “Oh, look a that guy wearing an exclusive (89.99 dollar plus tax) Abercrombie sweatshirt. He looks so expensive I just wish I could dress like him,” and my favorite, “Wow, look a that guy’s tee says Armani in huge (fake) silver letters. He must be rich. I want to date him!” In reality, however, you are just one more walking mannequin with a human face. You don’t stand out in a good way, and, consequently, you portray no style or sense for fashion. Now, on that you may give me the million-dollar excuse, “Dude, I’m a (straight) guy. I don’t need to look fashionable.” Well, let me tell you, dude, girls and boys like guys who look good head to toe. Period.

For when it comes to judging, nonetheless, I’d be totally dishonest if I ever told you I’ve never made fashion mistakes myself. I have owned at least one of those giant logo clothes throughout my life, except for the fake ones (fake clothes and Crocs are just an abomination of nature and I will not waste my time explaining why). However, not all the brands and all the clothes are bad. I can assure you that from drift shops, to Banana Republic stores, to Prada boutiques, you can still look totally stunning without breaking a sweat (well, maybe in the drift stores. I saw this episode of 2 Broke Girls where they literally fight for a shirt). For example the guy on the left featured on GQ magazine. Except for the gorgeous face and amazing body, which play just a small part in the whole picture, he looks really clean, sophisticated, and laid back at the same time. He looks like he could be going to school, work, to walk the dog, or just anywhere about. Notice he is not dressed in any logos at all. He might as well be wearing any brand. Besides, those clothes are really easy to find. The shirt is a no brainer. It’s just a plain shirt you could buy at Wal-Mart or Gucci, depending on your budget. The sweater, I have seen it in many stores, Old Navy (cheap), American Eagle (cheap), GAP (regular), Express (regular), H&M (high), Prada (very high), etc. Finally, the bottom is just a regular straight fit jean in gray wash. Even drift stores could carry those. It all depends on your budget. Yes, some clothes have better quality than others, but we’re talking style here not personal preferences.

Speaking of personal preferences, many things I notice people fail to achieve are the look for a particular circumstance, place or setting. Something I like to call the Playbook, because in plays you always have to change the setting and the costumes to fit the story you’re playing. You should look what’s on your Playbook and dress accordingly. So, what’s on your Playbook? Many people prefer to wear whatever they like anywhere even if their Playbook of the day says Work, Dinner with friend, and late night drinks. For example, many people prefer to wear the typical oversized suit and tedious tie to all of those events without the slightest care. Similarly, most people think it’s fine to wear exercise clothing everywhere even when their Playbook says school, lunch with friends, and the mall. Wearing something you prefer out of commodity just because you’re too busy or tired to care will not get you free drinks, numbers on a napkin, or for that matter job opportunities. Likewise, I can assure you that even if you look like a Nike commercial, flawlessly stunning, it’s never okay to wear track pants everywhere. It’s not professional, appealing, or sexy unless you’re in a gym or the park (exercising of course). Different clothes were made for different settings. If you’re an artist on a job interview at a design firm, for example, you don’t want to wear an untailored oversized suit and black shoes. You will want to dress like a real artist (I’ll make a post about that). Similarly, if you’re a lawyer on an interview, you wouldn’t want to dress in a motorcycle jacket and leather pants because nobody will take you seriously. Your Playbook defines the things you should be dressed in, just like style defines the fashion you should wear. Therefore, a stylish Playbook will make you look stunning everywhere, anytime, and under any budget or circumstance.

Now that I’ve explained what true fashion means to me and the examples I gave you above, you can get a notion of my future post about fashion: Labels (outfits) and Playbook (advise). Fashion is one of the things in life I love the most (I have “Fashion” tattooed in my arm) and it would be a shame not sharing the love. I will try to give you the best things that catch my eye and share them with you. Just know that for me, fashion is basically to wear anything that will make you look good in any particular setting regardless of any budget. Remember that it’s all about how you arrange every tasteful piece of clothing with fiercely good style. Buying a really expensive garment will not make you look good magically. For you can buy fashion, but you can’t buy style, and that, ladies and gentlemen, is my motto.

Rejoice,

Klemente


Photography courtesy of GQ. Editing and design by Klemente & Co.