I'm 61 and I do care how I look, but I'm hardly fashion forward. I wear cargo shorts or pants because they're comfortable and practical. I wear tight-fitting Polo shirts and Henleys because they show off my physique and muscular arms, which is pretty much all I have because I'm only 5'9" (formerly 5'10") and average looking. I'm happily married, though, so why do I care? I guess it's just ego and perceived respect and admiration. I do wear cheap necklaces and bracelets to enhance my style and my $20 wooden watch gets me more compliments than my $900 Orvis, so I wear the cheap one. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother messing with my clothes, accessories, or hair, but then I just do it anyway. Am I alone?
My impression is that people who cared about their looks when they were young continue doing that in quite old age. My aunt got herself a charming long dress when she turned 80 and was visibly happy in it; even though she was 80, among the 80-year-olds, she was the most elegant and proud of it.
My mom is 90 and still dresses up every day, regardless of her plans. She always looks like a million bucks. She still works as an interior decorator and appearances are super important to her.
In these past few years I have been buying most of my clothes from Patagonia- hemp as an ingredient makes them more durable and they feel better than heavy cotton.
I think the extra muscle Bezos is showing off is as much a signifier to other men as it is to women. Men are often showing off their muscles to other men, some sort of dominance thing.
One fascinating aspect of wearing a uniform is that it not only figuratively, but literally, changes „who you are and what you know“. There is an example by Dave Snowden (no reference, I’m afraid) talking about complexity and how changing for example into surgical attire (and entering the context of the operating room) is essential to unearth and bring to use the surgical knowledge. It’s neither strictly functional nor signalling, yet it is an essential feature of the attire and the process of changing into it. Maybe there’s a fifth aspect, that of the liminality of the space between attire?
I'm an advocate for nuclear power, which is environmentally beneficial. I was also a long-distance runner. A few years ago, I started wearing a green headband as a visual identifier. This choice was highlighted in a new nonfiction book about advocates for extended operation of Diablo Canyon Power Plant near San Luis Obispo, California, USA. The book is Atomic Dreams: The New Nuclear Evangelists and the Fight for the Future of Energy by Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow. https://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Dreams-Nuclear-Evangelists-Future-ebook/dp/B0DFW7H1GQ/ The chapter that highlights me is titled, "The Guy in the Headband."
I'm 61 and I do care how I look, but I'm hardly fashion forward. I wear cargo shorts or pants because they're comfortable and practical. I wear tight-fitting Polo shirts and Henleys because they show off my physique and muscular arms, which is pretty much all I have because I'm only 5'9" (formerly 5'10") and average looking. I'm happily married, though, so why do I care? I guess it's just ego and perceived respect and admiration. I do wear cheap necklaces and bracelets to enhance my style and my $20 wooden watch gets me more compliments than my $900 Orvis, so I wear the cheap one. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother messing with my clothes, accessories, or hair, but then I just do it anyway. Am I alone?
My impression is that people who cared about their looks when they were young continue doing that in quite old age. My aunt got herself a charming long dress when she turned 80 and was visibly happy in it; even though she was 80, among the 80-year-olds, she was the most elegant and proud of it.
My mom is 90 and still dresses up every day, regardless of her plans. She always looks like a million bucks. She still works as an interior decorator and appearances are super important to her.
Best essay ever, Mr. Pueyo - loved it.
In these past few years I have been buying most of my clothes from Patagonia- hemp as an ingredient makes them more durable and they feel better than heavy cotton.
And maybe there's some signaling from the fact that Patagonia cares about the environment?
Yeah, a very strong signal about that issue.
I think the extra muscle Bezos is showing off is as much a signifier to other men as it is to women. Men are often showing off their muscles to other men, some sort of dominance thing.
They are linked. It’s the fact that a man can physically prevail over other men that gives him status, which is attractive to women.
Fashion has always perplexed me, this was helpful.
The golfer I believe is Arnold Palmer, not Daniel Craig.
Though an article on James Bond clothing would be intriguing!
One fascinating aspect of wearing a uniform is that it not only figuratively, but literally, changes „who you are and what you know“. There is an example by Dave Snowden (no reference, I’m afraid) talking about complexity and how changing for example into surgical attire (and entering the context of the operating room) is essential to unearth and bring to use the surgical knowledge. It’s neither strictly functional nor signalling, yet it is an essential feature of the attire and the process of changing into it. Maybe there’s a fifth aspect, that of the liminality of the space between attire?
i’ve often wondered why ripped jeans, frequently with very large and multiple tears, has survived as fashionable
for decades. Does anyone have any credible ideas about this?
Loved this layered take on fashion! 👏👏👏 makes me wonder, are we ever really dressing just for ourselves?
That’s only the functional aspect. Everything else is for others.
I'm an advocate for nuclear power, which is environmentally beneficial. I was also a long-distance runner. A few years ago, I started wearing a green headband as a visual identifier. This choice was highlighted in a new nonfiction book about advocates for extended operation of Diablo Canyon Power Plant near San Luis Obispo, California, USA. The book is Atomic Dreams: The New Nuclear Evangelists and the Fight for the Future of Energy by Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow. https://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Dreams-Nuclear-Evangelists-Future-ebook/dp/B0DFW7H1GQ/ The chapter that highlights me is titled, "The Guy in the Headband."