Un-Tucked

Oftentimes when I am pointing out a no-no within men’s fashion there are exceptions.  There are, as we all know, exceptions to every rule.  But with today’s topic that is not the case.  One of my favorite aspects of wintertime is men looking fabulous in sweaters.  We all love them. (the sexy sweaters I mean ;-))  Sweaters are often thick enough to cover up the flaws of our body we are desperately trying to hide.  However, under no circumstance can a man look good wearing a

TUCKED IN SWEATER

Gross!  I mean you may as well tie it around your waist! (please see my January 15^th post titled “Coat Check” to read about how I feel about men who tie jackets, coats, or shirts of any kind around their waists…Nerd Alert!)  In fact tucking in your sweater is not only a major nerd alert, but pretty much makes a man undateable and if you are not dateable your are definitely not going to get play of any kind in the near future.  Men do not tuck their socks into their pants do they?  So why on earth would a man ever tuck in his sweater?  Some may think that tucking in a sweater looks more neat and tidy.  Bravo to those men who do not want to look like a sloppy mess.  Those people who feel that a tucked in sweater is the cleaner look would be wrong; it just makes men look uptight and like their mother still dresses them every morning.  Most all shirts on men need to be tucked in but sweaters are an entirely different animal.  They need to be left un-tucked.  If for whatever reason you feel a sweater needs to be tucked in because it is too long, then get a new sweater don’t commit fashion suicide.  Sweaters should rest right over your belt line.  If you are overweight, tucking in your sweater will make you look worse, if you are super fit and want to show off your hot bod as much as possible then just don’t wear a sweater wear a fitted shirt.  Tucking in a sweater is a lot like putting ketchup on chateaubriand… you are ruining a perfectly wonderful thing.

Quick Aside:  Some old timers and maybe a few golf players may feel that at one time men tucking in their sweaters was “the look”  And maybe it was.  (See image on upper right.)  But now men tucking in their sweaters is just disgusting  and no longer en vogue!

“When I started in fashion, I had already adopted the sailor-striped sweater as my uniform; that way, I wouldn’t have to drive myself crazy trying to figure out what to wear.”

~Jean Paul Gaultier

2012 in Review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 2,500 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 4 years to get that many views.

Click here to see the complete report.

A Good Idea in Theory

Photo Credit: apparelnews.net

It has been said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.  Isn’t it amazing how many insane people there are, well, according to this definition?  What bothers me is how many men keep making the same fashion mistakes over and over and thinking they will at some point look chic.  More specifically…

SWEATER VESTS

Almost every store that sells men’s clothing from H & M to Bergdorf Goodman carries sweater vests.  The lesson of the day is; sweater vests are not for every man! Please don’t get me wrong, some men look amazing in them but you need to be aware of whether or not you are one of these men.   I asked a few guys what their take on sweater vests was and I got some interesting opinions.  My go-to-fashion expert said, “Sweater vests are for golf courses and right-wing political failures like Rick Santorum.”  Another guy I asked said, “I think only politicians and people with PhDs in agriculture or history wear them.”  Needless to say, both had very humorous responses.  The rule really is that if you are overweight then the answer is always no to sweater vests.  A lot of men think if they wear a sweater vest it will cover up their gut, but in reality it only makes it worse.  Contrary to the two aforementioned opinions, the sweater vest is not for any specific genre of men.  It really depends on your style and build.  I used to have a boyfriend who was not overweight and very handsome, yet he looked awful in sweater vests.  I did not believe him when he first told me this fashion fact and then he tried one on for me.  No matter what, he just couldn’t make the “sweater vest look” happen.  Looking back, I praise him for being self-aware enough to know this. So please do not continuously wear sweater vests if they do not enhance you in any way.  They look great on the hanger in the store, I know.  But much like Reaganomics or white carpeting; for some men they are only a good idea in theory.

Quick Aside: All girls love and all guys want to be Ferris Bueller ever since his infamous day off back in 1986.  But please, do not go for the “short sleeves under the sweater vest” look if you are over the age of 25.